WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS For this sweet and savory salad, we enlisted our preferred roasting technique, but with a twist, wrapping the beets together in aluminum foil rather than individually. We then roasted them until they were soft and tender and their skins were ready to slip away. Peeling, cutting into wedges, and tossing the roasted beets in the marinade while they were still warm helped them absorb the potent dressing. Orange segments, shaved Pecorino Romano cheese, and toasted walnuts arranged over the top added layers of complex flavors. To ensure even cooking, look for beets of similar size—2 to 3 inches in diameter. Red or golden beets work equally well in this recipe. Peel the cooked beets over the leftover foil packet to minimize mess. This recipe requires you to refrigerate the marinated beets for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
Serves 4
TOTAL TIME: 2 hours 15 minutes
INGREDIENTS
- 1 pound beets, trimmed
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup sherry vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- Salt and pepper
- 2 oranges
- 4 ounces (4 cups) baby arugula
- 2 ounces Pecorino Romano cheese, shaved
- ½ cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
INSTRUCTIONS
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees.
- Place 16 by 12-inch piece of aluminum foil on rimmed baking sheet. Arrange beets in center of foil and lift sides of foil to form bowl. Add water to beets and crimp foil tightly to seal.
- Roast until beets can be easily pierced with paring knife, 1¼ to 1½ hours. Open foil packet to allow steam to escape and let cool slightly.
- Whisk vinegar, oil, thyme, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper together in large bowl.
- Once beets are cool enough to handle, rub off skins with paper towels. Halve each beet vertically, then cut into ½-inch-thick wedges and add to bowl with vinaigrette. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
- Cut away peel and pith from oranges. Holding fruit over small bowl to catch juice and fruit, use paring knife to slice between membranes to release segments.
- Arrange arugula on serving platter. Spoon beets over arugula and drizzle with remaining dressing from bowl.
- Arrange orange segments over salad and top with Pecorino and walnuts. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with extra oil and serve.
VARIATIONS
- MARINATED BEET SALAD WITH PEAR AND FETA:
Substitute 1 halved, cored, and thinly sliced pear for oranges; ¾ cup crumbled feta cheese for Pecorino; and 2 tablespoons toasted pistachios for walnuts.
- MARINATED BEET SALAD WITH RASPBERRIES AND BLUE CHEESE:
Substitute ⅔ cup raspberries for oranges, ¾ cup crumbled blue cheese for Pecorino, and skinned toasted hazelnuts for walnuts.
