Do I need to peel the beets before cooking - we will learn how to cook it using the life hacks of experienced housewives
Beets can be used to make many delicious dishes. From traditional and everyone's favorite - borsch and herring "under a fur coat". However, many housewives do not know how to properly handle this root crop. If boiling, do you need to peel the beets before boiling? We have learned the tricks of cooking this vegetable and are ready to share them.
The content of the article
Clean before cooking or not
If you peel the beets before boiling them, then after boiling you will find a pale, unsightly brownish brown root vegetable in the pan.... All the bright burgundy color from the peeled vegetable will disappear.
Therefore, the housewives came to the conclusion: in no case should the root crop be peeled before cooking! This will keep it nice and useful..
It can be useful:
Life hacks when working with beets
There are tricks when cooking beetsfacilitating the work of the hostess. Let's look at everything in order.
How to cook
We have already found out that do not peel raw beets before cooking.
It is enough to wash it thoroughly.
Neither the top nor the root is cut off, the integrity of the surface is not violated.
Dip the vegetable in boiling water in a saucepan and cook for 50-60 minutes.
Attention! Depending on the size, age and variety, beets can be cooked from 30 minutes to 2-3 hours.
You can use a pressure cooker. This will shorten the cooking time. (an average of 10-15 minutes). You can also boil beets in a slow cooker. Usually a special mode is provided for cooking vegetables in a multicooker (for example, "Boiling vegetables"). Duration of cooking - according to the instructions for the device.
To preserve the color, vinegar (6-9%) is added to the water - for every 2 liters of water, 1-2 teaspoons of vinegar and 1 teaspoon of sugar.
Important! The root vegetable is not boiled in salted water. If you add salt, the beets will become less tasty. They add it after cooking.
As a rule, beets take a long time to cook in a saucepan. To speed up the process, after 30-45 minutes, it is removed from the stove and placed under a very cold stream (ice) water for 3-5 minutes.
Note. Surprisingly, beets are "cooked" in cold water. It's all about the temperature difference. He brings the root crop to readiness.
How to bake
For making vinaigrette or salads, not boiled beets are more suitable, but baked... It is believed that with this cooking method, all nitrates are removed from the root crop.
You can bake a vegetable:
in the oven. A pure root vegetable is wrapped in food foil and baked at a temperature of 150-160 degrees for an hour;- in the microwave. Place the whole washed beets in a roasting bag. The oven is turned on at a power of 800 watts for 10-12 minutes. After the time has passed, the root vegetable will be ready. Cooking times may vary depending on the size of the vegetable. If you don't have a baking bag in the kitchen, you can cook the beets on a glass plate covered with a lid or other plate. The baking time is then increased by 5 minutes. To prevent the product from getting dry, you can pour 0.5 cups of warm water on the plate.
Attention! When baking, housewives recommend making holes in the bag with a toothpick for steam to escape.
Check product readiness with a fork... The fork enters and exits the cooked root crop without effort.
How to clean
How to quickly peel boiled beets? The peel leaves the finished root vegetable quite simply... It is enough to scrape it on top with a knife and it will come off easily.
The main advice that experienced housewives give - use gloves when cleaning and cutting beets. If you do not protect the skin of your hands, it will be stained in a bright burgundy beetroot color. It will be difficult to get rid of it later.
Attention! When cleaning a vegetable, disposable plastic, latex or rubber gloves are suitable.
Tips for choosing beets for cooking
How to choose the right root vegetables for cooking? Beets should be:
- solid;
- maroon color;
- medium size;
- a variety suitable for cooking (for example, Cylinder or Bordeaux);
- there should be no cracks or damage on the surface.
It will be interesting:
Let's sum up
If you are going to boil or bake beets, remember: you do not need to peel them. Rinse well enough. To shorten the cooking time, housewives advise at the end of cooking to "cook" it under running cold water. In addition to traditional cooking in a saucepan, you can use a double boiler or pressure cooker.
It is preferable not to cook the root vegetable for salad or vinaigrette, but bake it. This can be done in the oven (in foil) or in the microwave (in a baking bag). Unusual dishes and bon appetit!