Steamed Baby Beets with Garlic Scape Vinaigrette
Jul 02, 2020, Updated Jul 22, 2026
A Simple Recipe using Ingredients from a local Farmers’ Market. It’s easy to steam beets! Add to an assertive and zesty vinaigrette with Green Garlic Scapes; the curly shoot of the garlic bulb… they’re like scallions with a garlic kick!
A bunch of Fresh Beets from a farmers’ market makes a whole lot of scrumptious Beet Salad!
For the best flavor choose baby or young early-season beets.
I recommend healthy steaming beets until just cooked through and easy to slip off their peels to maximize their nutrition and flavor. Their concentration of phytonutrients, such as betalains, is diminished by heat.
(Although I really enjoy the flavor of roasted beets too, which cook for a longer time.)
Garlic Scapes are the flower bud of the hardneck garlic plant. The bud is removed to encourage the bulbs to thicken up.
The green shoots, or stems, that grow from those roots are known as garlic scapes!
The tops of the stem are the most tender – slice the remaining thinly.
They have a milder taste than the garlic cloves, similar to shallots or chives.
What to do with Garlic Scapes:
Since they taste like garlic, but a bright, fresh, green-colored version of it – you can use them anywhere you would use regular garlic!
They are usually sold in bunches – but at some farmers’ markets they are sometimes sold singly.
With a bunch, a favorite thing to do is make a batch of pesto!
You’ll get one with bright color and a similar but mellow flavor.
Think about using them like scallions – slice and add to a sauté.
Fabulous in a stir fry, accompanies potatoes wonderfully – and the perfect addition to pasta with olive oil and grated parmesan.
Enjoy this simple and delicious beet salad!
Karen
ALSO SEE:
Quattro Colore Beet Salad with Shallot-Thyme Vinaigrette
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Steamed Baby Beets with Garlic Scape Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 2 pounds baby beets
- 1 recipe Garlic Scape Vinaigrette, see below
Instructions
Steam the beets:
- Make the Garlic Scape Vinaigrette. Steam the beets: Trim the tops off the beets. Wash and scrub dirt from them. Add enough water to the bottom of a pot so that it does not rise above the steamer basket. Add basket and beets into the pot. Steam until beets are fork-tender, about 30 minutes (this will depend on the size of your beets.) Allow beets to cool until easy to handle and peel warm beets in the sink by nudging the peel off. If necessary – nudge the peel off with the back of a pairing knife. TIP: Fresher beets usually take less time to cook than older beets because older beets lose their tenderness over time.
For the salad:
- Cut beets as you wish. I like 1/4 inch sliced circles – you may like to dice them. Add warm sliced beets to a bowl to fit. Add some vinaigrette to coat generously. Use any leftover vinaigrette for another recipe. TIP: The acid in the vinegar will extend the freshness of the salad.
Garlic Scape Vinaigrette: See recipe below in Notes.
Notes
Garlic Scape Vinaigrette:
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon fresh garlic, peeled and minced or finely grated
- 1 teaspoon dehydrated parsley
- 1/4 teaspoon pure cane sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
- 2 tablespoons Garlic Scapes – minced
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil or neutral oil*
Method:
- In a medium sized bowl add the first 8 ingredients (vinegar through garlic scapes.
- Let stand 15 minutes to macerate.
- Measure the oil in a pyrex cup (it’s easier to drizzle in!)
- SLOWLY add the oil in a narrow stream while stirring  quickly with a wire balloon whisk.
- Continue until all the oil is added and emulsified.Store in a great glass container in the refrigerator. Will last at least 2 weeks.
*Neutral oil: with concerns about GMO’s and processing of oils, use a vegetable oil which has not been chemically treated, this is called expeller pressed. Garnish: I like to add an additional tablespoon of thinly sliced garlic scapes to the vinaigrette when using.
