These pickled red onions are made with no added sugar. With a prep time of just 15 minutes, they are intensely flavorful and incredibly easy to make.
I make these pickled red onions often because I enjoy their unique flavor. I like them even better than quick pickles. They pair well with any meat or poultry dish and last in the fridge for about a week. The store-bought ones are okay, but they are often too sweet. Making your own is so much fun and allows you to control the ingredients and level of sweetness.
Ingredients and Variations
See the recipe card for exact measurements. Here are my comments on some of the ingredients.
- Red onion: You can use yellow onions, but red onions have a milder flavor and are prettier. Here's a look at onion types and how they differ.
- Vinegar: I use white vinegar.
- Seasonings: Dried bay leaves and whole peppercorns. The bay leaves are non-negotiable! They greatly enhance the flavor of these pickles.
- Variation: Sometimes, I add a few peeled garlic cloves and/or a sliced jalapeno to the jar.
Instructions
The detailed instructions and step-by-step photos are included in the recipe card. Here's a quick overview.
Place the onion rings in a heatproof jar. In a small saucepan, boil the remaining ingredients. Turn the heat off, remove the saucepan from the heat, and let it cool slightly. Pour the liquid on the onions.
Close the lid tightly and allow the jar to sit at room temperature for 2 hours before serving. Serve as a delightful condiment with just about any dish you can think of!
Recipe Tip
These onions taste good after just a couple of hours, but they get better the longer they sit. As they rest in the fridge, they soak up more of the vinegar, salt, and seasonings, and their flavor becomes deeper and more balanced. You'll start to notice the color turning brighter and the texture softening.
It's totally fine to make them on the same day you plan to serve them, especially if you give them that two-hour rest. But if you can plan ahead, making them the day before really pays off. An overnight rest in the fridge gives the pickling solution enough time to fully transform the onions into something tangy, vibrant, and irresistible.
Recipe FAQs
You can add a teaspoon of sugar, but it's unnecessary. Many recipes call for adding sugar - some lots of it, others just a teaspoon. I don't use any sugar in this recipe, and the onions are absolutely delicious.
This is where red onions differ from other types of quick pickles. The onions mellow out the brine because they release sugars and water when pickled and have a porous structure that helps the brine penetrate evenly. All of that dilutes and softens the acidity.
Firm vegetables like green beans, cauliflower, and mini peppers are lower in sugar and don't release much water, so they absorb the brine's acidity without softening it. That's why the same brine tastes perfect on onions but too acidic on other veggies, and that's why I recommend adding a sweetener when pickling those veggies but not when pickling onions.
Yes! You can use red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar. White vinegar changes the color of red onions and turns them pink, as you can see in the photos on this page, so if you prefer a darker color, as shown in the photo below, red wine vinegar is a good option. 
You can, but after trying it (the photo below shows the onions in a jar with a raw apple cider vinegar brine), I'm not a fan. Raw apple cider vinegar, especially the unfiltered kind with "the mother," has a stronger, more pungent aroma and flavor compared to white vinegar, which has a clean and sharp taste.
Quick pickling, as we do here, involves heating an acidic solution of vinegar, water, and salt and immersing vegetables in the solution. The acidic solution changes the vegetables' flavor and texture and acts as a mild preservative. However, since they are not pasteurized and don't contain preservatives, you should keep these onions in the fridge.
After the initial two hours of pickling at room temperature, you can keep them in a sealed glass jar in the fridge for about a week. They rarely last that long in our house! We go through them quickly since they pair well with a wide range of dishes.
Serving Suggestions
These delicious onions are perfect with almost any meat or chicken dish, including baked pork chops, turkey burgers, and tri-tip. The image below shows a recent meal of pulled chicken, served in lettuce wraps and topped with these onions.
They also work with bold-flavored fish and seafood, as shown in the image below - you can see that I served them with blackened salmon and cucumber tomato salad. It was a lovely dinner!
I especially enjoy them with cold, sliced leftover meat and poultry. In the photo below, you can see that I served them for a quick lunch with slices of cold, leftover baked chicken breast. The plate also contains tomatoes, dill cucumber pickles, and grainy Dijon mustard.
Recipe Card
Pickled Red Onions
Video
Ingredients
- 1 red onion - large
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 1 ½ cups water
- 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or 1 teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
- 4 dried bay leaves
- 6 whole peppercorns
Instructions
- Peel the onion and slice it into thin, ⅛-inch slices. Separate the slices into rings and place them in a jar large enough to accommodate all of them (a 1-quart jar works well). Make sure you use a glass jar that can withstand hot, near-boiling water.
- In a small saucepan, combine the vinegar, water, and salt. Add the bay leaves and peppercorns. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring until the salt dissolves. Turn the heat off. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow it to rest and slightly cool for about 5 minutes.
- Pour the liquid over the onions, pressing down on them with a spoon to make sure they are well covered.
- Close the lid tightly and allow the jar to sit at room temperature for 2 hours before serving. Alternatively, you can cool it at room temperature for about 1 hour, then refrigerate until ready to use and up to a week.
- Serve this delightful condiment with any dish you can think of!
Notes
- You can use red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar. White vinegar changes the color of red onions and turns them pink, as you can see in the photos on this page. So, if you prefer a darker color, red wine vinegar is a good option.
- Raw apple cider vinegar, especially the unfiltered kind with "the mother," has a stronger, more pungent aroma and flavor compared to white vinegar, which has a clean and sharp taste. I tried it and I'm not a fan.
- You can add a teaspoon of sugar to the brine, but I think it's unnecessary. The onions mellow out the brine because they release sugars and water when pickled and have a porous structure that helps the brine penetrate evenly. All of that dilutes and softens the acidity.
- You can keep the leftovers in a sealed glass jar in the fridge for about a week. They rarely last that long in our house! Since they go well with so many dishes, we go through them quickly.
Nutrition per Serving
Save this Recipe!
We'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
We will also add you to our weekly newsletter. Unsubscribe anytime. See healthyrecipesblogs.com/privacy/ to learn how we use your email.
Disclaimers
Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate. Please verify it independently. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.
