Murasaki tamanegi to renkon no amazuzuke / red onion and lotus root in sweetened vinegar

A handy small side dish or condiment to accompany other dishes or in a bento box. Its pleasant color and refreshing taste offer a nice change of pace. While red onion alone would become vivid purplish pink in the vinegar, adding another pale color ingredient -- lotus root in this case -- results in a much softer pink for both ingredients.

Whole recipe (solid ingredients):
111 calories; 2.7 g protein; 0.2 g fat; 29.3 g carbohydrate; 21.8 g net carbs; 46 mg sodium; ０ mg cholesterol; 3.9 g fiber


<Ingredients>

1/2 red onion (147 g in photo)
3-4 cm renkon lotus root (79 g in photo)
      1-2 tbsp rice vinegar (to boil lotus root; not in photo)

For amazu sweetened vinegar
4-5 tbsp rice vinegar (5 tbsp in photo)
1-2 tbsp water (1 tbsp in photo)
1 1/2 tbsp erythritol
4 drops liquid stevia
1/2 tsp shiokoji salted rice malt

<Directions>
1.

In a stove-top safe container or small pot, put all ingredients for amazu.

Bring to boil, remove from heat, and cool.
(Can be done in microwave).

2.

Skin and slice lotus root 3-4 mm thick.
If large root, halve or quarter, as desired.

Immediately boil with vinegar for 1+ minute. 

Drain, and cool.

3.

Slice red onion.

4.

When both sweetened vinegar and lotus root are cool (at least to room temperature), put red onion and lotus root in sweetened vinegar, and put in fridge.
Turn once or twice a day for even marinating.

Ready to eat from Day 2.
(Day 3 in photo)

<Notes>

• The amount of sweetened vinegar above is much less than the solid ingredients. When more sweetened vinegar is used (or smaller amount of solid ingredients), marinating process is much faster. When solid ingredients are all submerged in Process 4, there is no need to turn them.
• Keeps in the fridge 10+ days.
  
• Red onion only was marinated in sweetened vinegar in the center of bento at right.
• Above nutrition figures, other than sodium figure, are based on the assumption that one-fifth of sweetened vinegar is absorbed by solid ingredients. Sodium figure is calculated based on sodium remaining in the marinade after 7 days.
• Erythritol and liquid stevia (both 0 calories, 0 net carbs) are substitutes for sugar.