Homemade Pub-Style Pickled Onions

Homemade pub-style pickled onions are easy to make, crunchy and sour with a hint of sweetness, perfect with sharp cheddar cheese or in a dirty martini. 

Any pub in the UK worth its salt will have jars of pickled onions to serve with a ploughman’s lunch of cheese, bread and ham. The better ones will offer you pickled onions they’ve made themselves. Honestly, it’s so easy, they really all should. 

The only fiddly thing is peeling the tiny onions and that is made easier by covering them in boiling water and then refreshing them in iced water. The skins just slip right off. Save them to throw in your next stockpot so they don’t go to waste. 

Homemade Pub-Style Pickled Onions

Ideally, you should make this using genuine Sarson’s Malt Vinegar or, failing that here in the States, at least make sure you use malt vinegar. This recipe is adapted from one on the Sarson’s website.

Ingredients

2 cups or 475ml malt vinegar

1 lb or 450g small pickling onions 

2 tablespoons fine sea salt

1/2 cup or 100g granulated sugar

10 peppercorns

2 teaspoons mustard seeds

1 teaspoons coriander seeds 

2 bay leaves

Method

Put the onions in a large heatproof bowl. Cover them with boiling water and stir for about 30 seconds. Drain them in a colander them return them to the bowl and cover with iced water. Drain again. 

To peel them cut off the stem end and squeeze the little onion out of its peel. Or if you tend to lose another layer of onion this way, you can cut off both end and use a sharp knife to remove the skins. 

Once the onions are peeled, put them in non-reactive bowl and sprinkle them with the salt. Cover the bowl with a upturn plate or some cling film and leave overnight or up to 24 hours. When you think about it, give the onions a good shake to make sure they are all equally as salted.

Meanwhile pour the vinegar and sugar into a large saucepan with the peppercorns, mustard seeds and bay leaves. My bay leaves are fresh but you can certainly use dried ones. The Sarson recipe didn't specify. 

Put the lid on the pan, bring to the boil then remove from the heat and set aside to allow the spices to infuse.

The following day rinse the onions with cool running water and then pat them dry.

Pack the onions into a sterilized 20 oz or 600ml jar with the bay leaves. 

Pour over the vinegar, along with the mustard, peppercorns and coriander. Completely cover the onions with the liquid. Seal and leave to pickle in a cool place for 6 weeks. Since it’s a warm summer where I am right now, I left mine to pickle in the kitchen for three days and then refrigerated the jar for the rest of the time. 

Enjoy these pub-style pickled onions with cheddar and ham or in a dry martini. 

It’s the first Wednesday of the month and that means it’s time for our Foodie Extravaganza party. This month we are celebrating National Pickle Month. Check out of the great pickle recipes below. Many thanks to our host, Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla. 

• Haitian Pikliz by Magical Ingredients
• Homemade Pub-Style Pickled Onions by Food Lust People Love 
• Lemon Pickled Lotus Root by Palatable Pastime
• Pickled Ramps by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Pickled Rhubarb by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Quick Pickled Zucchini and Red Onions by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Stuffed Gunda / Lasoda Pickle With Mango by Sneha's Recipe

Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays by cooking and baking together with the same ingredient or theme each month. Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board.

Pin these Homemade Pub-Style Pickled Onions!

 .