Roasted Honey Glazed Carrots with Cumin

Our roasted honey glazed carrots with cumin are quick to prepare and taste great. This simple recipe makes the very best of this humble root vegetable as roasting really brings out the sweetness of the carrots, with cumin seeds and honey adding extra layers of flavour.

We show you how to cook honey glazed carrots in the oven, this is straightforward cooking at it’s best. With few ingredients and very little preparation these carrots are ready in no time.

Honey glazed carrots with cumin are the perfect side dish for serving alongside the Sunday roast when you have the oven on anyway. You can also add in some parsnips to the mix as they work with these flavours too.

I also find it easier to get the kids to eat Honey Roasted Carrots, rather than plain boiled or steamed carrots. The roasting in the oven does bring out the sweetness in this root vegetable.

Do you peel carrots before roasting?

This is entirely up to personal preference you can leave the skin on or peel it off. What I will say is that there is a lot of nutrients and goodness in the skin of a carrot, so I like to give them a scrub and leave the skin on where possible. This is particularly true when I’m using carrots picked fresh from my garden.

Why you’ll love this recipe:

• A straightforward cook with very little preparation and few ingredients.
• Feeding a crowd? No problem this recipe is easily multiplied to suit numbers.
• Roasting brings out the natural sweetness in the carrots.
• For a vegan alternative simply swap out the honey and replace with maple syrup instead.

How to make honey glazed carrots with cumin:

• Preheat the oven to 200CFan/180C.
• Prepare the carrots and place onto a non stick oven proof tray.
• Drizzle over the olive oil, honey, cumin seeds and season with salt and black pepper. Give everything a good toss to ensure the carrots are evenly coated in the oil, honey and seasoning.

• Place the tray into the oven and roast for 30-40 minutes, giving the tray a bit of a shake every 10 minutes to stop the vegetables from sticking to the tray, ensuring the carrots become golden and crispy, but soft on the inside.
• Remove the tray from the oven and serve immediately while hot.

Recipe ingredients & substitutions:

• Carrots – use any variety or size of carrot. You can cook the carrots whole, just adjust the cooking time accordingly. If using larger carrots, cut them into batons.
• Cumin Seeds – pair beautifully with the flavour of the carrots. I like to use whole seeds, but you can substitute with ground cumin if you prefer.
• Olive Oil – is the oil I use for roasting these carrots. Don’t use extra-virgin olive oil as it has a low burn temperature and is wasted for roasting vegetables as you lose the flavour. You can also use rapeseed or sunflower oil.
• Runny Honey – is added for the final 5 minutes of the cook. I love the flavour of honey but you could also use maple syrup or agave syrup instead.
• Seasoning – always season with salt and black pepper, it improves the flavour on the finished dish.

Recipe variations:

Add other veggies to the mix! Don’t be limited to just using carrot, add in parsnips too. Honey glazed carrots and parsnips are the perfect combination of vegetables. This is one of my favourite easy vegetable sides for Christmas Day or indeed to serve alongside any Sunday Roast.

Spices: When it comes to spicing I love cumin with carrot. You could also use cinnamon, cardamon or even anise, as these spices all work with carrot.

Herbs: For a herbal twist try adding some fresh thyme leaves and garlic to the roasting pan. Alternatively scatter over some freshly chopped parsley just before serving.

Sweet/Sour Acidity: Swap sweet for sour flavours changing the honey out and adding balsamic vinegar or freshly squeezed orange juice and zest.

Serving suggestions:

These honey glazed carrots with cumin make a great side dish to serve alongside any main meal. We serve them here on top of our Lemon & Tahini Dressing, alongside our Chicken Shawarma Kebabs and some Easy Baba Ganoush. For more recipes read my Easy Mezze Platter Ideas post.

However, you can also serve them alongside the Sunday roast, ideal with our or our Stuffed Roast Leg of Pork, Slow Roast Pork Belly, Roast Guinea Fowl with Rich Jus or Roast Turkey Crown.

Storing leftover cumin roasted carrots:

Once cooled, leftover carrots can be stored an airtight container with a tight fitting lid, or a silicone bag.

• Fridge: store in the fridge for 2-3 days.
• Freezer: store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost thoroughly before warming through.

What to do with leftover roasted carrots?

Nothing goes to waste in my kitchen so any leftover carrots can be turned into a carrot soup. Dry up an onion and a clove or two of garlic, add some vegetable stock, check the seasoning and cook for 10 minutes. Then blitz and add a touch of cream or coconut milk if serving to vegan or dairy free diners.

Can you reheat honey glazed carrots?

Yes you can. Lay them out of a baking tray and place them back into a preheated oven at 180C fan and warm through for 5-10 minutes. Keep an eye on them as you don’t want them drying out. You can also heat them gently in a non stick pan on the stove.

Useful hints and tips:

1. This recipe is easily multiplied and can be doubled or trebled depending on the numbers you are serving.
2. If cooking for a crowd use 2 roasting trays to ensure that the carrots are laid out in a single layer and not piled up in the tray. You want the carrots to roast and not steam in the oven.
3. Use a non stick baking sheet, or a tray lined with baking parchment as this will stop the carrots from stick to the tray while roasting.
4. To make this dish suitable for Vegan diners replace the honey with maple syrup instead.
5. Allergy advice: gluten free, dairy free, egg free, soya free and nut free. For comprehensive and detailed allergy advice go to Allergy UK.

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Additional recipe suggestions:

If you like this recipe then try some of our other great tasting roasted vegetable sides:

• Easy Oven Roasted Asparagus
• Quick Roasted Tomatoes with Balsamic Vinegar
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon & Chestnuts
• Oven Roasted Pumpkin with Maple Syrup
• Honey Roasted Root Vegetables
• Gluten Free Cauliflower Cheese

For all my favourite vegetable recipes in one place, check our my 12 Best Vegetable Side Dishes post.

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