This roasted carrot recipe teaches you how to transform this humble root vegetable into a vibrant side dish with a bold taste.
As they roast, the carrots become tender inside and caramelize outside, developing a delicious sweet and savory flavor that will leave you craving more.
Table of Contents
Oven-roasted carrots are a crowd-pleasing side dish and can be served for a cozy family meal or a special holiday dinner.
You’ll love the simplicity of this recipe and how raw carrots transform into a mouthwatering flavor-packed side dish with a tender texture, caramelized coating, and rich taste.
You’ll also love its versatility! Have oven-roasted carrots as a luscious side dish, or add them to salads, bowls, and spreads.
You only need a hot oven and a mixture of olive oil and spices to make them. You can add a touch of maple syrup or honey to boost their natural sweetness. That’s it!
Roasted carrots video
Ingredients & Substitutions for roasted carrots
Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
Carrots
You can use fresh carrots, from orange to black, yellow, or rainbow.
If you use baby carrots, remember that they’ll cook faster.
Olive oil
Pick a good quality extra virgin olive oil. It has a pleasant fruity flavor and is stable at high temperatures thanks to its high antioxidant content.
You can substitute regular olive oil for extra virgin.
We recommend oil instead of butter because, guys, it’s a lot healthier for you.
Salt and pepper
We season oven-roasted carrots carrots with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Spices
Spices are optional. We like to add a pinch of ground cumin, which melds perfectly with the sweetness of the carrots. We also add a couple of cloves of crushed garlic.
You can substitute fresh herbs like fresh thyme or sage for cumin. Or you can use other spices such as cinnamon, chili powder, paprika, or garlic powder.
Maple syrup
Maple syrup is optional. We like to add some to help the carrots caramelize and bring out their delicious natural sweetness.
We recommend pure maple syrup that comes in a glass bottle and only has one ingredient on the label.
Substitute honey or agave syrup for maple syrup.
Fresh herbs
Fresh herbs should only be used after roasting the carrots, as they will burn in the hot oven. We recommend fresh parsley (flat-leaf Italian parsley is best), cilantro, or fresh mint.
How to make roasted carrots
Preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C.
Peel the carrots, cut them into bite-size chunks, and add them to a baking tray or rimmed sheet pan.
Toss them with olive oil, cumin, salt, and black pepper and arrange them on a single layer without overlapping.
Tip: You can keep the peel on if your carrots are organically grown.
Add 1/2 cup of water on the baking tray, then bake at 400°F or 200°C for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on how thick they are (thicker takes longer).
Tip: The water helps the carrot steam and retain moisture while cooking.
Take them out of the oven, toss them with maple syrup, and add two crushed garlic cloves.
Put back in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 more minutes or until the carrots are tender inside and caramelized outside.
Optionally, serve with a sprinkle of fresh parsley.
Serving suggestions
Oven-roasted carrots are the perfect side dish and can be served for a cozy family dinner or a special holiday meal.
Try them next to a flavor-packed mushroom Wellington with mushroom gravy, sautéed green beans, and creamy mashed potatoes.
That’s a perfect dinner menu from Thanksgiving to Christmas.
Nico’s serving tip
Transform oven roasted carrots into a fulfilling and nutritious main course by serving them on a bed of cold Greek yogurt mixed with a pinch of salt, cumin, coriander, and a tablespoon of olive oil.
Top them with drained cannellini beans tossed in lemon juice, salt, parsley, tahini, and water.
Drizzle everything with parsley pesto and pickled red onions. Dig in with warm pita bread and enjoy!
Variations
Honey roasted carrots
Honey-roasted carrots are an excellent alternative to maple syrup-roasted carrots. Follow the instructions above; substitute your favorite honey for maple syrup.
Roasted baby carrots
Roasted baby carrots are pretty and delicious. They cook faster than regular carrots, so keep an eye on them at around the twenty-minute mark to ensure they don’t burn.
You can add maple syrup honey or have them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and cumin seasoning.
Optionally, you can drizzle them with a tangy and garlicky chimichurri sauce.
Roasted potatoes and carrots
A fun and colorful alternative to roasted carrots, roasted potatoes and carrots are a sure crowd-pleaser.
Check out our roasted potatoes and carrots.
Roasted broccoli and carrots
Roasted carrots and broccoli are another delicious alternative to roasted carrots. Add broccoli florets and bite-size carrot chunks to a baking sheet.
Check out our roasted carrots and broccoli recipe.
Roasted whole carrots
The most important tip I can give you when making roasted whole carrots is to make sure all carrots are about the same size and thickness.
If some carrots are thicker than others, cut them in half to facilitate even roasting. Aside from that, the recipe is the same as our oven-roasted carrots.
In the picture, we pair them with our green goddess dressing.
Air fryer roasted carrots
Cut your carrots into bite-size chunks of the same size. Put them in a bowl and toss in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and Italian seasoning.
Transfer into your air fryer basket – the carrots can overlap; they don’t have to be on a single layer.
Air fry at 400°F or 200°C for about 20 minutes, shaking the basket every 5 minutes to allow for even cooking.
Roasted Brussels sprouts and carrots
Deliciously nutty and slightly bitter Brussels sprouts meet the natural sweetness of roasted carrots.
We recommend serving roasted Brussels sprouts and carrots with our sweet, tangy honey mustard dressing.
Check out our roasted carrots and Brussels sprouts recipe.
Balsamic roasted carrots
Balsamic roasted carrots have an even bolder, richer, and umami-packed flavor thanks to the caramelization of balsamic vinegar.
To make them, follow the recipe for our roasted carrots, then toss them with maple syrup and a couple of tablespoons of balsamic vinegar before putting them back in the oven to caramelize.
Questions
It comes down to personal preference. We recommend that if your carrots are organically grown, roast them with the skin on. If they are not, then you can peel them.
You can add spices before baking. Try ground cumin, coriander, crushed garlic, cinnamon, ginger, or dried herbs.
Alternatively, you can drizzle them with a tasty sauce once baked. We can recommend chimichurri, cashew sour cream, green goddess dressing, cilantro lime dressing, tahini sauce, and Italian salsa verde.
Carrots can take from 20 minutes for smaller ones to 1 hour for thicker ones.
To ensure your carrots get soft, pre-boil them in boiling water for 5 minutes before roasting, or add 1/2 cup of water to the baking tray while they roast.
Storage
Make ahead: To make roasted carrots in advance, we recommend baking them halfway through and doing the second part of the baking shortly before serving them.
Refrigerator: Store roasted carrots leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave for three minutes before serving.
Freezer: Let carrots cool down completely, transfer them into a freezer-friendly bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight or in the microwave. Reheat in the microwave.
More carrot recipes
If you love cooking with carrots, here are some more recipes for you:
- Easy carrot salad: a Frech-inspired salad with pineapple, cucumber, and a light vinaigrette.
- Raisin carrot salad with shredded carrot and an optional mayo dressing.
- Moroccan carrot salad with cumin dressing.
- Vegan carrot cake with cinnamon, nutmeg, walnuts, raisins, and all-spice.
- Carrot ginger dressing: Asian-inspired light and tangy condiment idea.
More roasted vegetable recipes
Get new and colorful ideas from these easy roasted vegetable recipes:
- Rainbow roasted vegetables: the tastiest way to cook a variety of vegetables.
- Easy roasted potatoes: creamy, tender, and crispy potatoes that work with any main dish.
- Tender roasted mushrooms: great in salads, pasta, and as a topping for bruschetta.
- Crisp roasted broccoli with lemon and garlic marinade; crispy and scrumptious broccoli florets.
- Roasted Brussels sprouts with mustard dressing.
- Roasted sweet potatoes and sweet potato wedges.
For many more side dish ideas, check out our sides category page.
Roasted Carrots
Ingredients
- 3 pounds carrots
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¾ teaspoon cumin or thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey, optional
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 tablespoon parsley chopped, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C.Peel 3 pounds carrots, cut them into bite-size chunks, and add them to a baking tray.Toss them with 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, ¾ teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper and arrange them on a single layer without overlapping.
- Add ½ cup water on the baking tray, then bake at 400°F or 200°C for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on how thick they are (thicker takes longer).
- Take them out of the oven, toss them with 2 tablespoons maple syrup, and add 2 cloves garlic (crushed).Put back in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 more minutes or until the carrots are tender inside and caramelized outside.Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon parsley (chopped).
- Nico's serving tip: serve the carrots on a bed or cold Greek yogurt mixed with a pinch of salt, cumin, coriander, and a tablespoon of olive oil.Top them with drained cannellini beans tossed in lemon juice, salt, parsley, tahini, and water.Drizzle everything with parsley pesto and pickled red onions. Dig in with warm pita bread and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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I have a 2 questions about the steps. The written directions say to initially bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 min. Remove and toss with maple syrup and crushed garlic and bake 15-20 min. more. But in the video Nico says to bake initially for 30 minutes and then toss with the maple syrup and garlic. Back to the oven again for 20 min.
I am not the best cook and I really don’t want to make a mistake. I plan to use baby carrots. So 20 minutes initially and then 20 minutes again? Also (2nd question) do I leave the crushed garlic in the pan after tossing? Or remove after tossing? Thank you so much.
Hi Linda,
Thank you so much for your message and apologies for the confusion with the video. Both methods work but we should have updated the video to match the written content.
If you are using baby carrots follow the written directions.
The crushed garlic should stay in the pan for the second bake, so do don’t remove it. It will infuse the carrots with a mild garlic flavor.
You can remove the garlic after baking, before serving the carrots.
I hope this helps, but do let us know if you have any other questions.
Have a wonderful day 🙂
Nico
Lovely recipe, I made this last night and my daughter who came later at night was snacking from it and couldn’t stop :). Thank you !
This recipe is so simple and delicious, like many of your other recipes! I loved this sweet flavor and the fragrance of cumin! It went really well with couscous. I am going to make it quite often!
Hi Nancy,
I’m so delighted you enjoyed the carrots (and the cumin!). Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment and a rating here ❤️
All the best,
Louise
Black bean salad, ¡tiene un sabor sorprendente! hoy la preparamos y ¡vamos a seguir preparándola! ¡muchas gracias! por compartir.
Such great flavor from the cumin. Will make this again and again!
Oh yay, Sharon, I’m delighted to hear! The cumin does lift them to another level, thanks for making them! Have a great Thursday, cheers Louise