Swedish beetroot salad – easy, quick & tasty!

Swedish beetroot salad is a classic side dish of diced beets in a savoury, creamy dressing. It’s a fabulous accompaniment to all sorts of meals.

As a family, we do enjoy Swedish food. Although we have no family connection to Sweden, DH used to work there for a few weeks every year and still has good friends in the country. We’ve been there on holiday and have great memories of our trips and all the delicious things we ate! We’ve even picked up a few Swedish phrases – Hej hej!

Swedish food / Jewish food

There’s also quite a bit of overlap between Swedish food and Ashkenazi Jewish food. Both feature herring in abundance, smoked and cured salmon, loads of fresh dill, and delicious recipes using potatoes and fresh dairy products.

We just won’t mention the Swedish meatballs in cream sauce….. LOL!

Swedish cuisine, especially in the South of Sweden, also uses lots of fresh, seasonal vegetables. And during the long, cold, Northern European winters, it uses pickled and preserved vegetables too.

Swedish Beetroot Salad

Swedish beetroot salad – rödbetssallad in Swedish – appears on the table year-round. It’s traditionally made with pickled beetroot, so it can be made at any time.

It’s a simple side dish consisting of diced beets, with a creamy dressing. Some versions also contain a small amount of diced apple or onion with the beetroot. The dressing usually has mayonnaise, and sometimes a dairy element such as sour cream, creme fraîche or just cream.

It is lightly seasoned, often just with a little salt and maybe pepper. Some recipes call for a dash of mustard, a squeeze of lemon, or a few leaves of fresh herbs. I guess that every Swedish family makes their beetroot salad slightly differently!

Smörgåsbord

Swedish beetroot salad is often a feature of a traditional Swedish smorgasbord. A smorgasbord is a classic Swedish style of meal, where multiple dishes are served, buffet style. The dishes can be hot or cold, and there may be several courses.

Traditionally, the smorgasbord starts with bread and butter, plus cold fish dishes and accompaniments, like this delicious beetroot salad. Then there may be a hot fish or meat course, and finally a dessert. Smorgasbord is often served as a celebratory meal with friends and family, and each person can choose from the buffet exactly what they want to eat.

Beetroots – pickled vs. cooked

Although traditionally this delicious Scandinavian salad is made with pickled beets, I wondered if it was possible to make it using vacuum packed cooked beets. I often have a packet of these in the fridge, as it’s a good standby vegetable that will last for a while until we’re ready to use it.

You can also usually get these cooked beets for Pesach – a time when a simple, low-input dish is a real bonus!

To replicate the flavour, I experimented with the dressing until I was happy that this salad tasted ‘just right’! The vinegar in the dressing gives the gentle ‘pickled’ taste of the original. If you’d rather use pickled beets instead, simply substitute them for the cooked beetroot, and omit the vinegar from the dressing.

If you make rosl – fermented beetroot vinegar or ‘beet sour’ – you can also use the fermented beets to make this salad.

Ingredients in Swedish Beetroot Salad

To make this easy Swedish beetroot salad, you will need:

• Cooked beetroot – I used vacuum-packed ready-cooked beets, but you can also use home-cooked beetroot
• Mayonnaise – or use a vegan alternative
• Red onion – for pungency
• White wine vinegar – to give tang and acidity
• Freshly chopped dill – brings freshness and a delicious herby flavour
• Salt and pepper to season

How to make beetroot salad

This salad really couldn’t be easier!

First make the dressing by grating or whizzing up the onion and combining it with the mayonnaise, vinegar and seasonings.

Then cut the drained beetroot into small dice.

Finally, combine the beets, chopped dill and dressing and mix well. Garnish with more dill and serve!

When to eat Swedish Beetroot Salad

This yummy salad often features on our Shabbat lunch menu. It’s part of our standard ‘salad rotation’ that also includes Israeli red cabbage salad, classic French-style carrot salad, and ‘Coronation’ potato salad.

As I mentioned above, it’s also a great choice on Pesach, as part of a YomTov meal or a regular weekday lunch.

This beet salad goes really well with herrings, smoked salmon and gravadlax, and other Ashkenazi/Swedish preserved and cured fishes. Smoked mackerel, sardines, and grilled trout are all good too.

Swedish beetroot salad is also great in a lunch box with other salads. You can even put it in a sandwich with some sliced cheese or hard boiled egg for a delicious and easy-to-eat packed lunch.

Time to tuck in!

Enjoy your meal. Or, as they say in Sweden, “Smaklig måltid!”

If you want deliciously easy, family-friendly recipes like this one delivered straight to your inbox, simply click here to subscribe. (Of course, I’ll never pass on your email address to anyone.)

📖 Recipe

More quick and delicious salad recipes

I’m linking this recipe up with #CookBlogShare.