Colourful, sweet, tangy, sharp… these Quick and Easy Pickled Carrots pack a punch and are a great addition to many dishes! Try them today and elevate your next meal!
Why Pickle Carrots?
Carrots are a great vegetable to pickle. They are sweet and firm and so they can withstand the acidity of the vinegar and hold their shape without becoming soft. Carrots are one of my favourite vegetables as they are so versatile. This is a great way to keep them on hand to add an extra kick of flavour to a simple dish.
Ingredients for Quick and Easy Pickled Carrots
- 3 medium carrots
- 1 1/2 tbsp white sugar
- 1 tsp fine table salt
- 190ml apple cider vinegar
- 125ml hot water
Carrots
These are obviously the most important part of this recipe so make sure your carrots are fresh, sweet and crunchy. Don’t use old carrots that have gone soft, they will not make a good pickle. It is best to peel your carrots as the peel can be quite bitter.
How Should I Cut My Carrots to Make Quick and Easy Carrot Pickles?
For this recipe you will need to cut your carrots into regular pieces. They should not be too large, as they will not be pickled all the way through (these are quick pickles, remember), but they should not be too small either, otherwise they may go soft and lose their texture.
In other words, avoid using large carrots sticks or grating your carrots, rather cut them into matchsticks, use a peeler to make ribbons, or a serrated peeler that will julienne your carrots.
Sugar
Normal white sugar works well for this recipe as it is fine and dissolves quickly.
Salt
Pickles do require quite a lot of salt, it brings out the flavour of the carrots and helps with preservation. You won’t actually be consuming that amount of salt since most of it will remain in the pickle juice.
Apple Cider Vinegar
This is my favourite vinegar to use for quick pickles. I love the flavour and it is not sweet as some other vinegars can be. It also has many health benefits, which makes it a staple in my kitchen. If you’re interested in finding out more click here.
Hot Water
Using hot water will help the sugar and salt to dissolve and it will also kill any unwanted bacteria in the mixture.
Quick and Easy Carrot Pickles Method
First, bring some water to the boil in a kettle.
P ut the salt and sugar into a 500ml clean glass jar the slowly pour in the hot water. It is important to do this very slowly otherwise the glass may shatter from the heat.
Pour in the apple cider vinegar, put the lid on the jar and shake until the salt and the sugar are dissolved. Be careful not to burn yourself, as the jar will be hot. Use a tea towel to hold the jar if necessary.
Add the carrots to the hot pickle juice, put the lid back on the jar and leave to cool.
Once the pickles have cooled, you can eat them immediately or, better still, keep them in the fridge for at least 24h.
How long will Quick and Easy Pickled Carrots last in the fridge?
Typically, these Quick and Easy Pickles Carrots will last for around 2 weeks in the fridge if the jar remains well closed. Having said that, in our family they never last that long, they are usually gone within a few days, we love them so much!
Are Quick and Easy Pickles Carrots Healthy?
There is no straight forward answer to this, unfortunately. Using vinegar and hot water will destroy some of the nutritional value of the carrots (some of the vitamins, especially vitamin A for example). However the fibre remains, which is an important part of our diet.
The apple cider vinegar in itself has some health benefits (see above) and a certain amount of salt is necessary for any healthy diet.
It is important to note that these particular pickles have not been fermented so they have less nutritional value than fermented vegetable pickles such as sauerkraut which will give you probiotics and extra vitamin B.
So basically, I would say that eating only vegetables that have been quick pickled will not give you the vitamins and minerals that you need. However, in moderation, as part of a balanced diet that includes lots of fresh vegetables, they are not considered unhealthy.
What Goes Well With Quick and Easy Pickled Carrots?
These Quick and Easy Pickled Carrots elevate many different kinds of dishes. From Tacos to asian dishes to avocado toast, the possibilities are endless! Your imagination is the limit!
Here is some inspiration from the blog for ways to use your Quick and Easy Pickled Carrots:
Have you tried this recipe? Let me know how it turned out and what you ate it with in the comments! I love to hear from you 🙂
Quick and Easy Carrot Pickle
Equipment
- 500 ml glass jar
Ingredients
- 3 medium carrots
- 1 1/2 tbsp white sugar
- 1 tsp fine table (kosher) salt
- 190 ml apple cider vinegar
- 125 ml hot water
Instructions
- Bring some water to the boil in a kettle
- Put the salt and sugar into a 500ml clean glass jar then slowly pour in the hot water. It is important to do this very slowly otherwise the glass may shatter from the heat.
- Pour in the apple cider vinegar, put the lid on the jar and shake until the salt and the sugar are dissolved. Be careful not to burn yourself, as the jar will be hot. Use a tea towel to hold the jar if necessary.
- Add the carrots to the hot pickle juice, put the lid back on the jar and leave to cool.
- Once the pickles have cooled, you can eat them immediately or, better still, keep them in the fridge for at least 24h.
Légèrement acidulés et croquants, ces pickles fait maison ont ajouté une touche de fraîcheur à mon repas.
J’ai pu donner un goût unique à mon plat et impressionner mes invités.
Le petit plus, c’est qu’ils peuvent se préparer à l’avance !
Merci beaucoup! Je suis contente que ça t’a plu!