I always have these Easy Pickled Red Onions in my fridge. They are tangy, sweet, and one of the best ways to give almost any dish a bright pop of lively color and flavor! The best part? No cooking required!
The easiest, quickest way to jazz up any dish is with pickled red onions. I swear! They are tangy, sweet, and one of the best ways to give almost any dish a bright pop of lively color and flavor!
I ALWAYS have pickled red onions in my fridge. They add an amazingly tart crunch to sandwiches, salads, crunchwraps, and so much more. Pretty much everything you can imagine! 😂
And it gets better. Pickled onions are the easiest to make. No cooking is required! All you do is create a simple brine solution with vinegar, slice your onions, combine, and refrigerate. Even when I am feeling like my laziest self, I can bring myself to make these bad boys because they are just that easy, necessary, and delicious!
I’m so excited to see what you pair these pickled red onions with. Be sure to leave me a review and let me know how they jazzed up your favorite meal!
WHY YOU’LL LOVE THESE PICKLED RED ONIONS
- Sweet and tangy, these guys pack the most irresistible punch of flavor!
- No cooking required. Just mix the ingredients and let time do the work.
- Use to jazz up any meal!
- So versatile! Burgers? Delicious. Tacos? Perfect. Salads? Amazing! Eat straight up? ✅
INGREDIENTS
- Red onion – The star of the show! You’ll want to use a red onion for this for the best flavor.
- Vinegar – I like using a combination of apple cider vinegar and white distilled vinegar.
- Sea salt
- Sugar
- Water
HOW TO MAKE EASY PICKLED RED ONIONS
- Slice your onions. Slice thinly, about 1/8-inch if possible. I typically just use a kitchen knife, but a mandolin is awesome for this if you have one.
- Prepare the pickling liquid. Mix vinegars, salt, sugar, and water. I usually mix in the glass container I’m going to store the onions in. Zero clean up!
- Add your onions to the liquid. Make sure they are just submerged in it.
- Give it a quick stir. Then, place in fridge!
It really is as easy as mixing up a quick brine solution and pouring it over a thinly sliced onion. No cooking required. 😉
TIPS FOR THE BEST PICKLED ONIONS
- Slice onions as thinly as possible. The thinner they are, the quicker they will soak up and absorb the vinegar. And something about super thin onions just make them taste better on things. Don’t ask me why. 🤣
I recommend slicing them at roughly 1/8-inch if you can. Will these pickled onions still be great if they aren’t that thin? Of course! And I’ll admit, sometimes I’ll just cut and they’ll be a lot thicker, sometimes even resembling diced onions. They’re still great, but just BEST when they are sliced as thinly as possible. - Give special consideration to the vinegars you use. Technically speaking, you can use strictly apple cider or white distilled vinegar. You can even use white wine vinegar if you wanted to. I’ve just found the BEST pickled onions come from a combination of apple cider and white distilled vinegar.
- Let sit at room temperature for an hour before putting in the fridge. This allows the onions to start absorbing the liquid more quickly, kicking off the pickling process.
- Wait at least 12 hours before eating. Not necessary, but the longer you wait, the more the onions will have pickled and the better they will be!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
This is all personal preference, but I have found my favorite to be a combination of apple cider vinegar and white distilled vinegar. Using the two vinegars gives it another depth of flavor than any one vinegar alone.
Let your pickled onions sit at room temperature for an hour to kickstart the pickling process. You can then store them in the fridge or use them for a meal. However, I recommend waiting at least 12 hours before eating them for more flavorful onions. The longer you wait, the stronger the pickling effect will be.
When stored in an airtight container, the pickled onions will last two to three weeks. (If they make it that long!)
WHAT TO DO WITH PICKLED RED ONIONS
- Burgers: Add them to a delicious, juicy burger!
- Salads: Top them on salad for great flavor and crunch.
- Crunch wrap + sandwiches: Stuff them in a crunch wrap or sandwich. You’ll be amazed how it elevates these simple dishes! They’d be amazing with my Avocado Chicken Salad Cool Wrap or Egg White and Spinach Breakfast Crunchwraps.
- Burrito bowl: Add to a veggie or burrito bowl. These pickled onions pair well with grains and Mexican flavors.
- Tacos: Pile them on some tacos for beautiful color and yummy taste!
MORE WAYS TO USE PICKLED ONIONS
CHICK-FIL-A NACHOS
CHEESEBURGER SALAD
MEAL PREP CHEESEBURGER BOWLS
CARNITAS BOWL
WANT TO MAKE THIS RECIPE?
If you try these pickled onions and love them, please rate this recipe!
You can also tag me on Instagram, @LaurenFitFoodie. It makes my day seeing your yummy recreations!
Easy Pickled Red Onions
I always have these Easy Pickled Red Onions in my fridge. They are tangy, sweet, and one of the best ways to give almost any dish a bright pop of lively color and flavor! The best part? No cooking required!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar (60g)
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar (60g)
- 1 Tbsp granulated sweetener of choice - sugar, Truvia, Splenda, Swerve
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 1 cup water
- 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Add white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt, and water to a container and whisk to combine. I just used a glass food storage container, but a mason jar or any other closed container works too.
- Add sliced onions to vinegar brine and toss around. It's okay if all the onions are not submerged in the brine, they will shrink as they start to absorb the brine.
- Store in fridge for at least 12 hours (best after 24+ hours) before using. Use pickled onions for your salad, sandwich, crunch wrap, anything your heart desires for a pop of sweet tang flavor!
Notes
MFP entry: LFF Pickled Onions
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
30gAmount Per Serving: Calories: 19Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gCarbohydrates: 3.2gFiber: 0.5gSugar: 2.9gProtein: 0.3g
