If you’re not making pickled onions on the regular you’re not living life! My girlfriends husband refers to these as “refrigerator decorations”, which always gives me a laugh every-time I see them in the fridge because they are pretty darn pretty. I however, think of them as my secret weapon to take something from ordinary to extraordinary. Want to jazz up your salad? Add pickled onions? How about a sandwich? Pickled onions. Tostadas, tacos, burgers, hot dogs, the list goes on and on!
I make these on repeat all throughout the year and thus my refrigerator stays well “decorated”, lol! The recipe is simple and straight forward and doesn’t take long. For the amount of time it takes to make them versus the amount of times you’ll use them it’s a HUGE WIN!
Most people like to use apple cider vinegar and red onions. I started subbing red wine vinegar one day when I was out of red onions and wanted to experiment using a regular yellow onion but didn’t want to loose the sweetness of the red onion. It turns out I like the yellow onion/red wine vinegar combo as much as it’s trusty counterpart. Now I exclusively use red wine vinegar and switch off between using red and yellow onions. The color of the red onions after pickling definitely cannot be beat. Whichever way you choose to make them, one thing is for certain, your refrigerator will never look as beautifully decorated again and your tastebuds will be endlessly satisfied with the wide variety of dishes you can use them to enhance!
Pickled Onions
Ingredients
- 2 c thinly sliced red or white onions
- 2 c hot water
- 1 c red wine vinegar apple cider works well too
- 2 tbsp sugar optional (omit if doing Whole 30)
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice optional
Instructions
- Thinly slice onions to desired thickness using a mandoline or a very sharp knife
- Add onions to container you will use to pickle. I typically divide the onions between two 16 oz mason jars but you can use one large 32 oz jar
- Add vinegar, sugar, salt, and lime juice (if using) to a glass measuring cup or bowl
- Heat water on the stove. I use my teapot for this step. When the water is ready add 2 c of water to the vinegar, sugar, and salt
- Stir well until the salt and sugar has disolved
- Pour liquid over onions
- Seal with a lid or lids and place in the refrigerator overnight
- ENJOY!
