Learn how to make the bright, crunchy, and easy Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onions Recipe. Give sandwiches, salads, bowls, and more a “bright pop of flavor.” With only four ingredients, you’ll end up with a sweet and tangy topping for either breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
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Recipe for Pickled Onions
If you’ve been following me for a while or have been watching my Instagram stories or live cooking sessions, you know I love making dish-enhancing elements such as sauces and sides. This may be my Ukrainian background speaking, but I find that there’s something very special about elevating an entire meal with very simple additions, like Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onions.
Pickled onions and vegetables are also a huge nostalgic item for me. Making them brings up fond memories of being in the kitchen as a child, watching my mom and grandma spend time cutting up a variety of vegetables to pickle over the winter. We would bring jar after jar down into the basement with heaps of other yummy varieties.
It doesn’t get much easier than this. Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onions Recipe is ready to enjoy in only FOUR steps! Here’s how it’s done:
How To Make Pickle Red Onions
- Chop your red onion in half and slice thinly into half-circle slices.
- Add them to a bowl, rinse with warm water, and lightly squeeze the onions to drain the excess water.
- Place the onions into a mason or Weck Tulip jar. Add in the salt, warm water, and rice vinegar, and finish by mixing with a spoon or sealing the jar with a lid to shake.
- Refrigerate the pickled onions for at least 4 hours, or for the best results, leave them overnight.
Keep a full jar of Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onions in your fridge so they’re on hand when you need to spruce up a meal. This recipe will last up to two weeks in the refrigerator, however, they’re so delicious, they may not even last that long! My family goes through an entire batch in less than a week.
What Onions To Use For Pickling?
My favorite onions to use are red onions and shallots, because of the oink hue they give to your dishes. But here are some others you can play around with or use what you have. If you only have white or yellow onions and happen to have a raw beet, you can add a few slices to give you that beautiful pink hue too.
- Red Onions – my favorite onions to use, you will get great pink color from them.
- White Onions – will be stronger in flavor once pickled.
- Sweet Onions – will add a natural sweetness.
- Shallots – will add a stronger and more pungent flavor to your dishes with a light pink hue.
Best Vinegar For Pickling?
Pickled onions can be used with any variety of vinegar. This is the time to experiment if you want! I suggest using a combination of vinegars, one strong + one more mellow for a smoother tangy flavor.
- Rice Vinegar is my favorite vinegar to use, because of its mild flavor.
- Champagne Vinegar will add a touch of natural sweetness to the onions.
- White Wine Vinegar will also add a touch of sweetness.
- Apple Cider Vinegar will add a little more funky flavor to the onions.
- White Vinegar will give you the strongest flavor, I would use less vinegar to water ratio.
Vegetables For Pickling
This pickling recipe is not exclusive to red onions! As I did as a child, you can pickle almost any vegetable and transform it into a tart, tangy, and sweet garnish. Swap the onions for your favorites, or try any of these suggestions:
- Thinly sliced cucumbers
- Radishes, thinly sliced or quartered
- Carrots, cut into matchsticks
- Cabbage (for this, I add a few cloves of garlic, fresh dill, and a bay leaf)
- Daikon radish, either sliced thinly or cut into matchsticks
Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onion Recipe Tips
- Slice the onions very thinly: The thinner the red onions are, the quicker they will absorb the vinegar and pickle faster. Use a sharp knife or a mandolin to achieve this.
- Rinse your onions: Rinsing the onions before pickling will prevent the onions from being that strong onion flavor. I just squeeze them a bit in warm water and then add to the jar.
- Choose the vinegar wisely: No sugar added rice vinegar is my top choice for this recipe. It’s a very neutral flavor that compliments the red onions, and the finished results are not too sweet. White wine or champagne vinegar are nice alternatives but will taste slightly sweeter. I would NOT recommend using apple cider or white vinegar as they both resulted in an overpowering flavor.
- Be patient: In only four hours, these easy pickled red onions are ready to munch on. However, for the absolute best results, I highly recommend leaving them in the fridge overnight. This way, the onions will soak in all of the flavors and become much more flavorful.
- Make multiple batches at a time: This recipe is extremely flexible. Easily double or triple the batch and seal them in mason or Weck jars. Consider gifting small jars of the pickled onions to friends or family!
- Reuse the liquid: After your first batch is all used up, you can reuse the pickling liquid up to 4 times. Adjust the vinegar, salt and add some hot water to the next batch.
How To Use Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onion Recipe
A jar of Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onions Recipe is always on my table, ready to compliment my next meal. They go well with either breakfast, lunch, or dinner! As to not overwhelm you, my quick-pickled onions will allow any of the following recipes to shine:
- Smoked Salmon Street Tacos
- Game Day Taco Salad
- Low Carb Asian Pork Lettuce Cups
- Healthy Taco Bowls With Mexican Beef
- Fully Loaded Keto Deviled Eggs
- Low Carb Mediterranean Burger Salad
- Crispy Chicken Cutlet Sandwich
- Low-Carb Breakfast Bowl
If you make LENA’S KITCHEN PICKLED ONIONS Recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love hearing from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photo’s of your creations is my favorite!
Lena’s Kitchen Pickled Onions Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
- ¾ cup rice vinegar, you can sub with white wine vinegar or champagne vinegar only
- 2 cups water, hot
- 1 ½ tbsp sea salt
Instructions
- Chop red onion in half. Peel and slice very thin into half-circle slices. Use a mandolin if you have one.
- Add the onions into a bowl with warm water, and lightly squeeze the onions to release the onion flavor. Drain the water.
- Place the onions into a jar. I use a 35.9oz Weck Jar, or you can use a wide mouth 32 oz mason jar. You want to have enough space for everything to fit. In a measuring cup add the salt, hot water, and rice vinegar. Mix with a spoon. Pour on the onions.
- Let cool on the counter. Then cover with a lid and refrigerate for at least 2-4 hours, or leave them overnight in the refrigerator for the best results. (Reuse the liquid up to 4 times. Adjust vinegar and salt each time if needed.)
Maureen
They are really good!
Ramona
A staple in my Home!! Just made 3 jars for a big bbq party at my place and it was the best topping for my brats! Everyone wanted the recipe!
Irena
I love this recepie ? such a perfect addition to my sandwiches and salads!
Lena, you are amazing! ❤️ I also have made it with cucumbers and it was amazing side as well!
Thank you for this recepie.
Javidan Gurbanova
I just made this pickled onion and they turned out just great!
Victoria Wright
Such a perfect addition to any meal! I really enjoyed with my smoked salmon, scrambled eggs, and arugula salad this morning for breakfast! This will have to be a weekly remake to always have in my fridge!!
Emilia
This pickled onions are so good!!! It goes with literally everything! Thank you for sharing this recipe with us!
Ashley
This is now a must have in our fridge it is so good!! I usually do a 1/2 recipe in a normal sized jar, with rice vinegar. I have tried it with champagne vinegar too but it didn’t turn out as well (a bit too potent of a flavor for us). Love that I can quickly throw this together in the evening, and it’s ready to use the next day for lunch!
Mila
I love this recipe
Now its my favorite ?
Natalie
I put this on EVERYTHINGGG NOW ?
Soo easy & good and it’s always in our fridge now! A MUST TRY!
Thank you Lena!
Lindsey
So easy to make and so delicious! I used white wine vinegar since I couldn’t find rice vinegar. But it was tasty either way!!
Mila
Deliciousness!!! Perfect toppings for anything and everything!
Thank you Lena!
Irina
I had these at my friends house and was so exited to make them . They are SO good on basically anything salad avo toast etc. I’m sure I’ll keep in making them over and over
Malana
We put onions on everything and so I had to try this and we love it! I even made a few batches for my parents and in-laws ! ❤️❤️Soo good. A must try ?
Brooke
My 3 year old even loves this onion mix! It’s a winner in our house.
Ami
Super yummy! Will be a staple in our kitchen.
Julie
First time making the pickled onions and Lena’s recipe is a hit! And a keeper. Recommend this recipe!
Angie
These are sooo good! Had to make another batch because we ate them so fast! ?
Abby S
SO good! Made some for my parents as well. Will be a staple in my home. I put them on everything!
Janine Zornes
So easy to make and so delicious!
Amanda Chaney
So yummy and SO easy!! They taste so good with any dish, but I love eating them with salads, tacos and avocado toast! Thank you for the wonderful recipe!!
Tiffany Baker
These onions are amazing. I use them in so many recipes because they add flavor to all types of food. We’ve used them with BBQ sandwiches, in homemade tartar sauce and recently on Taco Pizza. They’re an awesome gift to share with friends.
Kika
Love love love, I literally put them on almost everything. So easy and so good!
Ruth
So simple and yummy!! ?
Elane
Such amazing flavor for something that’s so easy to make! Putting these on everything! Xo
Teresa
These are the absolute best pickled onions! You will be putting them on just about everything! Thanks Lena
Donnette Corona
Omg ! GAME CHANGER !!!
We constantly have these pickled onions in our fridge for sandwiches, tacos, grilled salmon – or just to even snack on ! So easy and delish!!
Nat
So easy & so good !! Thank you Lena ! I’m obsessed with pickled onions cause of you :).
Caroline
Amazing! These will never not be in my fridge!
Nisreen
Best topper for ANYTHING! The crunch , the unique taste, and best, easy to make! A must try!
Al
I could eat these by the spoonful! They top so many foods so well.
lena
So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks a lot for making it!
Renata
This is love in a jar
Claudia
Love this recipe cause you can pickle so much more then just onions. The liquid is reusable up to 4x ? (that was a shocker to me). I also love that the vinegar is not to strong so you can eat it with anything cause you won’t have heartburns or anything afterwards.
Thank you Lena for sharing your recipes with the world ?
Charlotte
So good!!!
Breanna
The onions were delicious and a wonderful addition to my shrimp tacos!
Johana
I go through these like crazy! So delicious, and adds the perfect flavor to my meals!