Q: Are the pickled beets that come in a jar good for you, or are all the nutrients gone?
A: Any food has some nutrition, even starch-based packing peanuts. It’s a question of what kind and what fits into your diet.
The nutrition analysis of commercial products, or even of homemade versions, differs widely depending on the recipe. In general, 1 cup of pickled beets has about 75 calories, 18 to 20 grams of carbohydrates and 2 grams of protein. It would also contain vitamin C, iron, magnesium, potassium, folate and manganese.
Unfortunately, all of that comes with a high amount of sodium – 350 to 500 milligrams, depending on the brand and around 16 grams of sugar, about the same amount as four teaspoons of sugar. So if you eat pickled beets, keep the quantity small.
Kathleen Purvis, McClatchy Newspapers
