Fresh beets and not so fresh ones

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

when do you prefer either one?
is it always better to use the fresh and hard ones?
or maybe sometimes the soft and old ones are better?

 

[dragnlaw]

Better in what way?

I don't think it makes much difference once they are cooked.

Beets, in my experience, keep for a very long time before going soft.

 

[taxlady]

I imagine it might make a difference if you lacto-ferment your pickled beets instead of using vinegar. I haven't tried lacto-fermenting beets, but I want to try that this year.

 

[Just Cooking]

While I like beets, I don't eat enough to prepare my own.
I buy canned, slivered beets to top salads, mainly.

Ross

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

i didn't know they are also sold canned

 

[jennyema]

i didn't know they are also sold canned

Pretty much every major vegetable is sold canned

 

[jennyema]

While I like beets, I don't eat enough to prepare my own.
I buy canned, slivered beets to top salads, mainly.

Ross

My niece just moved to near Springfield, MO. I hear you have a huge fork!

You might try buying fresh beets. Wash and trim and cut in half but don’t peel. Boil, bake, pressure cook until done. When they are still pretty warm usevpaper towels to rub off the skin. Cut them into the size you like and then dump into a bowl. Add your favorite vinaigrette or just bottled Italian dressing and a generous T of prepared horseradish. Let the beets marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Serve cold alone, just with some greens or as a salad topper.

It’s usually the first thing to go when I bring it to parties.

 

[taxlady]

My niece just moved to near Springfield, MO. I hear you have a huge fork!

You might try buying fresh beets. Wash and trim and cut in half but don’t peel. Boil, bake, pressure cook until done. When they are still pretty warm usevpaper towels to rub off the skin. Cut them into the size you like and then dump into a bowl. Add your favorite vinaigrette or just bottled Italian dressing and a generous T of prepared horseradish. Let the beets marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Serve cold alone, just with some greens or as a salad topper.

It’s usually the first thing to go when I bring it to parties.

That marinade sounds like a delicious way to serve beets. I think I will give that a try.

 

[jennyema]

That marinade sounds like a delicious way to serve beets. I think I will give that a try.

Thanks! The horseradish does all the talking

 

[karadekoolaid]

I only ever buy fresh beetroot and make sure they`re all firm to the touch before buying. Why on earth would you want to buy soft, old beetroot, STB?
Would you buy limp lettuce?
I usually boil them - cover in cold water, bring to a boil, boil for about an hour (depending on the size) then allow to cool. Just rub the beetroot in your hands and the skin comes off easily.
Occasionally, I bake them, which brings out the sweetness. Add a little balsamic and honey for accents.
The boiled beetroot is used in salads, vegetarian dishes and pickles. The favourite sandwich in this family is a cheddar cheese and beetroot!

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

i've made some kooba shwandar (red kooba)

 

[dragnlaw]

karade brought up an interesting question.

Did you find these soft beets in your cupboard?
Or were you asking if you should buy them if they were soft?

Looks yummy! and what is kooba shwandar?

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

karadekoolaid


in hot countries like israel and not only in hot countries very often what you have are soft old beets.


in israel the lettuce is often somewhat soft too. but not like the beets.


hot weather is not easy on vegetables like that.


the beets in the photo are not very red too.....



dragnlaw


they are already soft when i buy them often.... not that much in winter.
i bought them yesterday and they were in a plastic bag in the fridge.


kooba addooma (red kooba) is an jewish iraqi dish very common in israel.


in iraq it was made with grounded white rice from what i know. they even sometimes used to ground chicken bones inside the rice with a pestle and mortar.


in israel there is semolina and this is how they are being made today. no rice.
very few young people know that it was made of rice in iraq.


from what i know shwandar is beets. kobba is the dumpling. there are many kinds of koobas and they are being made differently too.


i filled mine with chicken thighs and celery etc..


i don't think it will be easy to find the ingredients in the us because in the us you have instant semolina which is not always good.
also, you need some practice to prepare the dumplings. you can find many videos on you tube
i don't like to make balls of the meat mixture, freeze and then fill. i like to fill with non frozen mixture in balls shape.....


there are some subtleties for how to make it right. the videos are not even close to cover them all from what i know....
try to find regular samolina if you want to prepare. it can also be found maybe in middle easters stores or jewish markets or perhaps maybe in indian staples stores..


if you come to israel don't buy red kooba in shops because it is not tasty in my opinion and also mostly not fresh or high quality..


make you own until they make them better outside.


there was once a kooba shop in israel but they are closed and i didn't like their kooba that much either.


one of my grandmothers makes them little more big and in a more sour soup and serving them very hot.
my other grandmother makes smaller and in a very sweet thick soup and also serve them much colder.


so many varieties

 

[karadekoolaid]

" In hot countries like israel and not only in hot countries very often what you have are soft old beets.
in israel the lettuce is often somewhat soft too. but not like the beets.
hot weather is not easy on vegetables like that."
I live in Venezuela, between hte Tropic of Cancer and the Equator, so I know all about hot countries. Vegetables tend to spoil quicker; but I´d still never buy soft beetroot or limp lettuce!

 

[dragnlaw]

I guess it all depends on where it's grown, how far it's come, what the conditions were for shipping and storing.

Also a very big contributing factor would be how desperate you are to taste that good old dish that Mom used to make!

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

maybe also they don't refrigerate the raw beets well often

 

[HeyItsSara]

i like canned beets as they are really soft. my daughter prefers hers roasted.

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

in israel we very often have cooked vacuumed ones from spain but they are not tasty in my opinion


and the texture is too soft too

 

[dragnlaw]

In the last couple of years I've seen the vacuum packed beets at the grocers. The ones I got in Quebec were rather good - I appreciated that I didn't have to remember 40 or 50 minutes ahead to get them on the stove, cook, peel, etc.

They were packaged 4/5, and not an unreasonable price. Great for someone cooking for one. Great to add quick to a salad, or even be the salad.

But in this part of Ontario, the brand is different and I don't like them as much. Found them smaller in size at the same price, with an off taste.

Too bad, so sad.

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

i see
you are also saying that different brands of vacuumed beets are different.
i thought that the fact that it is "preserved" means that it is getting this off taste.
so good to have this information