The Everyday Chef: Raw Beet Noodle Salad

Andrew Dole, RDN, CEC
Everyday Chef, Fruits & Veggies—More Matters

So you bought some beets. Now what?

Beets get a bad rap. The canned and brined versions have tainted generations of potential beet lovers against ever trying them. Nowadays we can find roasted and boiled beet recipes in abundance, helping to improve the lowly beet’s popularity. Both of these cooking methods make for great vegetable sides, but what about raw beets; fresh, vibrant, naturally sweet, and addictively crunchy!

Raw beets are remarkably easy to incorporate into salads. For example, a simple cheese grater and a peeled beet will create lovely shards of crunchy sweet goodness. Why stop there – how about a spiralizer!

The spiralizer (such a fun kitchen tool) turns everyday vegetables into superb noodles and ribbons for both raw and cooked vegetable dishes. Beets with their firm texture and wide round shape are perfect for making noodles with a spiralizer!

When choosing beets, look for small firm vegetables, without gashes or nicks. The skin should be firm and taught, not saggy and wrinkled. If the beets are soft and spongy, they tend to be starchy and less sweet.

This video shows how easy it is to use a spiralizer and how beautiful beets can be as the main attraction!



Photo Credit: Andrew Dole