Yucatán-Style Pickled Red Onions in Sour-Orange Juice Recipe

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Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt

Why It Works

  • Par-cooking the onions in water softens them while allowing you to keep the bright, fresh flavor of the citrus juice uncooked.
  • Using a combination of grapefruit, lime, and orange juice replicates some of the floral, bitter aroma of Seville oranges if they are unavailable.

These sweet, salty, and tangy pickled onions are the perfect accompaniment to braised, slow-roasted, or smoked meats. Use them in tacos, burritos, fajitas, or sandwiches.

Recipe Details

Yucatán-Style Pickled Red Onions in Sour-Orange Juice Recipe

Active 10 mins
Total 2 hrs 10 mins
Serves 16 servings
Makes 2 cups pickled red onions
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Ingredients

  • 1 red onion, finely diced

  • 15 whole black peppercorns

  • 15 whole allspice berries

  • 4 bay leaves

  • 1/3 cup juice from 1 grapefruit (2 1/2 ounces; 80ml) (see note)

  • 1/3 cup juice from 1 to 2 oranges (2 1/2 ounces; 80ml) (see note)

  • 1/3 cup juice from 4 to 5 limes (2 1/2 ounces; 80ml) (see note), plus a little extra just in case

  • Salt

Directions

  1. Place onion, peppercorns, allspice, and bay leaves in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat, drain carefully, and transfer onions to a sealable container, such as a Mason jar.

  2. Add grapefruit, orange, and lime juice. Onions should be submerged at this point; if they aren't, top off with extra lime juice. Stir to combine, season to taste with salt (they should be quite salty—use about 1 teaspoon of kosher salt or 1/2 teaspoon of table salt), cover, and refrigerate until color deepens, about 2 hours. Onions can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Do not eat peppercorns, allspice berries, or bay leaves.

Notes

Seville oranges are sometimes available in Latin markets. If available, use 6 tablespoons Seville orange juice in place of the grapefruit, lime, and orange juice combination.

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
10 Calories
0g Fat
2g Carbs
0g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 16
Amount per serving
Calories 10
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 73mg 3%
Total Carbohydrate 2g 1%
Dietary Fiber 0g 1%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 6mg 31%
Calcium 6mg 0%
Iron 0mg 1%
Potassium 41mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)