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    Home • Side Dishes • Smoked Beets with Goat Cheese

    Smoked Beets with Goat Cheese

    Published: Aug 14, 2018 · Last Modified: Nov 29, 2022 by Beyond Mere Sustenance with 2 Comments· This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads ·

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    Do you love the flavor of smoke? If you do, you'll love my Smoked Beets with Goat Cheese! A cold smoke gun is all you need to infuse fresh beets and their greens with lots of smoky flavor, and only 4 main ingredients. Toss in some goat cheese and toasted walnuts for a simply fantastic and healthy side dish. Sage browned butter optional.  😉

    Smoked Beets with Goat Cheese and Walnuts in a beige bowl and a copper charger.
    Jump to:
    • 👩🏻‍🍳 Tamara Talks - About Cold Smoke Gun!
    • 📋 Ingredients for Smoked Beets
    • 🔪 Instructions
    • 💭 Tips
    • ❓ FAQ
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 🍅 More Interesting Vegetable Side Dishes
    • 💬 Comments

    👩🏻‍🍳 Tamara Talks - About Cold Smoke Gun!

    You know I like to play with my food, right? Well, I got a new toy! A cold smoke gun (similar). Yippee  😆 I love smoke flavor (ie. bacon), but let's be honest, bacon can't go in everything! So now I have a whole plethora of ideas turning in my wheelhouse... I'm so excited. This gadget literally imparts amazing smoke flavor in minutes!

    First up, I attended the Everything Food Conference in May of this year, and watched a really cool demonstration by the awesome Chef Katie Wienner, and she used a smoke gun on a beet salad. It wasn't at all like this one, but the seed was planted. The flavor of the smoked beets rocked.

    I love pairing beets and goat cheese/chèvre as in my Passionfruit Vinaigrette with Greens & Roasted Beets. I've used different nuts in combination, but walnuts are always a favorite. The addition of crispy sage and browned butter is optional, but worth the extra effort IMHO!  🙂

    📋 Ingredients for Smoked Beets

    Here is a quick look at the ingredients in the recipe – it’s handy to use at the grocery store or as a summary of what you need. Skip to the recipe for quantities.

    Ingredients for the smoked beets - Beet greens, beet root, beet stems, walnuts, fresh sage, and goat cheese (chevre).
    • beets - Using all parts of the beets - greens, roots, and stems - is part of the appeal of this side dish. Look for beets with healthy looking greens. If you eat with your eyes (like I do), consider using a mix of red, gold, and chioggia (candy cane striped) beets.
    • walnuts - Walnut pieces are fine. You don't need whole walnuts. You may want to rough chop them if you have whole walnuts.
    • goat cheese/chèvre - The goat cheese melts a little bit into the warm beets, and it acts almost like a dressing. You can substitute other cheeses (feta would probably be good), but it won't melt into the beets.
    • fresh sage - Crispy fresh sage and browned butter are optional, but a little chopped fresh sage is good too!

    🔪 Instructions

    The fresh beets broken down into coarse chopped beet greens, chopped beet stems, and the whole red and gold beets.
    • Prepare the beets - Cut the tops off the beets and place them in a sink full of cold water. I soak the beets in a bowl of cold water until I'm ready to peel them. Next, the beets get peeled and cut into wedges or one inch cubes. I tend to prefer cubes if the beets are large, and wedges if they're small. The choice is yours. Root vegetables hide a lot of dirt!  🙄 Peel the beets, and cut in wedges. Rough chop the greens. Dice the stems.
    A pot with a strained full of prepared beets before smoking them.
    • Steam the beets - The beets and stems go into the steamer first. I steam them for about 15 minutes, then add the rough chopped greens. They'll require another 10 minutes for a total of about 25 minutes.
    Smoked Beets and Greens with Goat Cheese and Walnuts - beets in a pan with the smoking gun tube and smoke escaping.
    • Smoke the beets - My wood chips came with an assortment of chips in different "flavors." To be perfectly honest, I've not paid any attention to which ones I used while developing Smoked Beets and Greens. Follow manufacturers instructions for your specific smoking gun. Mine is super simple. I pack the small chamber with the wood shavings, plug it in, place the end of the tube in the cooking vessel, and cover. Press the "on" button, and wait for the magic to happen! It typically takes about 5 minutes with mine. I let it go until the wood shavings are spent.
    • Finish - Once the beets are smoked, place them in a good-sized mixing bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Mix well. Drizzle with the browned butter (if using), reserving the crispy sage for garnish.
    • Add the toasted walnut bits and crumbled goat cheese. Garnish with crispy sage leaves and/or fresh sage as desired. Enjoy!
    A cream colored bowl with a plated side dish of the beets with goat cheese (chevre) and walnuts.

    💭 Tips

    This dish is best with all parts of the beets. It's often difficult to find beets with decent looking tops. You can substitute a sturdy green if necessary. I include the stems as I love textural contrast. I cut the tops off and place them in a sink full of cold water. I soak the beets in a bowl of cold water until I'm ready to peel them. Root vegetables hide a lot of dirt!  🙄

    I rinse and swish the heck out of the greens. I then cut away the stems, and painstakingly cut away any soft rot using my kitchen shears. The stems get a fine chop and the greens get a rough chop.

    Cut the beets into wedges or one inch cubes. I tend to prefer cubes if the beets are large, and wedges if they're small. The choice is yours.

    ❓ FAQ

    Is this side dish good leftover?

    To be perfectly honest? I don't think so. This is a dish that highlights farm fresh produce. Re-heating it might be a mess. We allow 3 beets per 2 servings, and the accompanying greens and stems.

    If you're lucky enough to have a cold smoking gun, kudos!  😀 If not, put one on your wish list. (You do have a kitchen wish list, don't you?) If you enjoy the flavor of smoke in a brisket or pulled pork, I think you'll love playing around with one. Yay or nay? Let me know in the comments s'il vous plait?

    📖 Recipe

    Smoked Beets and Greens with Goat Cheese and Walnuts in a beige bowl with copper tongs.

    Smoked Beets with Goat Cheese

    Tamara Andersen
    A healthy, flavorful side dish that features all parts of the beets infused with the flavor of smoke and tossed with toasted walnuts and goat cheese. Kick it up a notch with crispy sage and browned butter!
    Dairy Free
    Gluten Free
    Peanut Free
    No ratings yet
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    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Cook Time 30 minutes mins
    Total Time 45 minutes mins
    Course Salad/Side Dish/Lunch, Side Dish
    Cuisine American, Eclectic
    Servings 6 servings
    Calories 250 kcal

    Useful Equipment

    • cold smoke gun

    Ingredients

    Smoked Beets and Greens with Goat Cheese and Walnuts

    • 2 bunches beets - with greens (see notes)
    • olive oil
    • sea salt/fresh ground pepper
    • ¼ cup walnuts - toasted and chopped
    • 2 ounces chèvre (goat cheese) - more or less as desired

    Crispy Sage and Browned Butter

    • 4 ounces good salted butter - I like European butter
    • fresh sage leaves to taste - I do 12-15, pat them dry!

    Instructions

    Smoked Beets and Greens with Goat Cheese and Walnuts

    • Remove beets from their stems and greens. Thoroughly clean everything, cutting off any soft rot on the leaves. (See post for more information).
    • Peel and cut the beets in either wedges or large cubes. Fine chop the stems. Rough chop the greens.
    • Place the beets and chopped stems in a steamer. Steam 15 minutes before adding the greens. Continue steaming until the beets are tender but firm (depends on size but about 10 minutes).
    • While the beets steam, set up your smoking gun (according to manufacturers instructions), and prepare the crispy sage and browned butter if using.
    • Insert the smoking gun tube in the pan with the beets. Don't constrict the tube. I let the lid rest on top of the tube, and place a towel over the slightly open side to keep more smoke in the pan. I have an induction cooktop so this works. Foil might be a better option with an open flame. Continue smoking the beets until the wood shavings are spent.
    • Remove to a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the browned butter (reserving the crispy sage for garnish).
    • Gently toss in the toasted walnuts and crumbled goat cheese. Garnish with the crispy sage if using. Eat it!

    Crispy Sage and Browned Butter (Optional)

    • Cut the butter into 3 or 4 pieces, and add them to a small saute pan over medium heat. When the butter foams up, add the sage leaves.  When the foam disappears and the solids drop to the bottom, the sage leaves should be crisp. Remove them with a slotted spoon to drain on a paper towel. Add the browned butter in with the olive oil.

    Notes

    I used 2 good-sized bunches of beets (golden and chioggia striped). The greens were in pretty decent shape. If yours aren't, I think kale or chard would be a nice substitute. I wouldn't use the kale stems, but you can treat the chard stems the same way I did the beet stems.
    We enjoy this dish with grilled fish or chicken and a glass of dry rosé. 
    Note: I used 2 ounces of local goat cheese, ¼ cup walnuts, and ½ stick butter to arrive at the macros. The choice of beets and amounts won't change it much.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 250kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 16g

    NOTE: Macronutrients are an approximation only using unbranded ingredients and MyFitnessPal.com. Please do your own research with the products you’re using if you have a serious health issue or are following a specific diet.

    Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and/or star rating! Email us with any questions: tamara@beyondmeresustenance.com

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    Comments

    1. Kelly | Foodtasia says

      September 26, 2018 at 2:18 pm

      Looks so delicious! Love all the flavors! Cool smoke gun - I think I'd so overuse it!

      Reply
      • Tamara says

        September 26, 2018 at 5:11 pm

        Yes Kelly! I have so many ideas rolling around in my head. I did some watermelon radishes with local goat cheese, and they were amazing! You ought to get one. 😉

        Reply

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