Pickled Red Onions – No Sugar
Can you think of a condiment that says, “preserve the fall” and “class up your winter meals”—all at once! How about pickled red onions? Perfect on pizza, sandwiches and more. 
Making Pickled Red Onions has been on my list for ages. I’ve eaten them out and they can take a salad or other dish from plain to elegant, even glamorous, in a snap! And even my husband enjoys them!
The final push came when I decided to make steak fajita nachos (pictured above, stay tuned for that delicious recipe!). Did you know there are a ton of nacho recipes that use pickled onions? Whoda’ thought!
Pickled Red Onion LIne Up
Of course, pickled onions are incredible in all kinds of dishes. Pizza, salad, flatbread, sandwiches. It’s just the kind of thing I can do now to make the holiday season easier and better. Not to mention preserve some of our local bounty.
I cut my onions quickly and easily using a mandolin (carefully). And I loved how they turned a beautiful pink after simmering in vinegar!
Picked Onions on Flatbread
The recipe is super simple, and I was kicking myself for not making it earlier. It’s even sugar-free, something that can be hard to find in pickle recipes. I took it from Ball without guilt, knowing they may get a few jar sales out of it.
Enjoy!
Look at that color!
- • 3 pounds red onion
- • 4 cups white vinegar
- • 3 tbsp minced garlic
- Wash and preheat jars in water on stove. Wash lids and bands with warm soapy water. Set aside.
- Peel onions and slice 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick. Separate slices into rings. Bring vinegar and garlic to a boil in a large pot. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add onion rings to vinegar mixture. The pot may be very full. Cover and simmer for about 7 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Pack hot onion mixture into half pint or smaller hot jars tightly. Be sure onions are covered in hot pickling liquid. Leave ¼ inch headspace. Remove any air bubbles, wipe the rim, apply the lid and band, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes, adjusting time for altitude, as needed (see note).
- This make about 7 half pints.
- This presupposes you know how to can—there is a lot of instruction online if you’d like to learn.
- If you don’t want to can these, you can still enjoy. Just make a smaller amount and store in the refrigerator.
- For altitude adjustment, see https://www.freshpreserving.com/altitude-adjusting.html
Make Ahead Recipes for Thanksgiving
- Brown Sugar Spiced Sweet Potatoes by That Recipe
- Make Ahead Buttermilk Dinner Rolls by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes by Cheese Curd In PAradise
- Yummy Yeast Rolls by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
We share Recipes From Our Dinner Table! Join our group and share your recipes, too! While you’re at it, join our Pinterest board, too!
What a great addition to salads, burgers, sandwiches, you name it! Totally trying these.
That’s it? I will definitely try this recipe…I love pickled onions especially the red ones…so pretty and adds a nice kick to sandwiches and salads…thanks for the recipe Inger.
Enjoy the rest of your week!
I love these pickled onions on sandwiches and in wraps! The crunch and pickled flavor is delicious!
I make and enjoy fresh pickled onions on lots of things but never thought about canning some…thanks.
The color is absolutely amazing. Now, my question… as I will have to skip the garlic, do I need to replace it with anything else? Or just let it go as is?… my sense is that I could make it without the garlic or anything else.
You should be able to just skip the garlic David–or possibly add some salt. I couldn’t really detect the garlic in the final product anyway (though I didn’t aged the first jar very long). Have fun!
I love pickled onions and like you, could put them on anything 🙂
I know! It’s going to be a fun winter with these!
Oh I love that these are not sweet! There are so many things I can think of these would be amazing on. Hoping we get a lot of red onions from the CSA this year.
We just aren’t sweet pickle people Audrey, so even my sliced pickles are straight dills, not sweet pickles.
I love making pickled red onions. The color alone and the way they mellow are wonderful.
The color was the big surprise bonus for me Karen!
I can think of so many different ways you could use these pickled red onions at the holidays. On salads, on sandwiches the day after a holiday, or on a relish tray!
I love pickled veggies on holiday trays!