Pink Saturday - Pickled red onions

 Pink Saturday - Beverly at the blog "How Sweet the Sound" hosts Pink Saturday. Let the color pink inspire you!

Fall brings the harvest, and traditionally, farmers and cooks spend autumn days preserving this bounty for winter meals. Fruits and vegetables are dried or smoked or pickled for keeping. Mixtures of fruits and vegetables are put up as relishes or conserves, flavored with spices or herbs.

In Mexico pickled vegetables are enjoyed as condiments with meals, whether they're pickled jalapenos, or slices of carrots, cauliflower, onions or green beans. These dishes are called escabeches, encurtidos, and vinaigretas

One Mexican pickle that's super easy to make is pickled red onions. I like to have a couple of jars of it in my fridge to serve anytime we have roast or grilled meats, especially smoked pork.

Pickled Red Onions

1 pound large red onions, cut in half and sliced into half-rings about 1/8" thick.
3 cups cider or pineapple vinegar
1 cup - or to taste - sugar
Spices of your preference - Cinnamon stick, allspice berries, star anise, small dried chiles, black peppercorns, whole cloves, dried oregano, bay leaf
3- 4 whole garlic cloves

Bring a saucepan of water to a boil, and when it's boiling, put in the onions. Keep them in for 30 seconds, then remove and drain.

Mix the vinegar, sugar, spices and garlic. Put the onions in a clean glass jar, pour the vinegar mixture over them. Fill with water until the onions are covered, if the brine mixture doesn't cover them.

You can keep the jar in the fridge for a couple of month. They're great with grilled meats, served on burgers, or even added to sandwiches and salads.

The acid of the vinegar causes a chemical reaction with the pigment in red onions - as it does in red cabbage, When these vegetables contact acid they turn a brilliant magenta pink.

Make some this Pink Saturday!