After cooking for a family of seven for over 30 years, I know a vegetable side dish has to be simple yet truly delicious to pass the test. This recipe for Honey Glazed Carrots delivers. With just four ingredients and high oven heat, the carrots caramelize beautifully, maximizing their natural sweetness and creating irresistible crispy edges.
Luckily, it is mostly hands-off, making it perfect for busy weeknights, yet special enough to add to your Easter recipes, or any holiday table. This is a crowd-pleasing recipe you'll want to make again and again.
Once you start roasting veggies in the oven, it is hard to stop. Years of getting a veggie on the table with dinner has taught me that high heat is best. It brings out their natural sweetness and gives caramelized edges that makes them actually crave-worthy. Seems dramatic to say that about carrots, but I promise, this little trick will change the way you eat your vegetable side dishes.
For these honey roasted carrots we slice the carrots instead of leaving them whole. More surface area means more caramelized edges, plus they cook up faster. Plus, the little bit of honey encourages even more natural sweetness to come out.
It is hard to stop roasting vegetables once you start. Our Garlic Parmesan Carrots, Roasted Cauliflower, and Maple Roasted Brussels Sprouts are just a few of the ways where we use this method to create a truly delicious side dish.
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Why this recipe made the cut
Every side dish recipe on Borrowed Bites is made over and over to ensure it's something you are proud to serve! Here's why this one earned its spot:
- Easy: Just toss the sliced carrots with a simple honey butter sauce and pop in the oven. No extra brain powered required.
- Simple: Four ingredients (plus salt and pepper) is all you need. No fancy equipment or complicated prep.
- Flavorful: It all comes together for the perfect balance of sweet and savory for a bite you are going to want to keep eating.
Ingredients for honey roasted carrots
This recipe only requires a few simple ingredients! Amounts are in the recipe card below, but here are a few tips.
- Carrots: Whole carrots that are about an inch thick are best. Give them a good scrub and dry thoroughly before peeling.
- Honey: A lighter colored honey is best for this recipe, but whatever one you like the flavor of is fine.
- Butter: We use salted butter for its flavor. Oil can be used, but it isn't quite as tasty as butter.
- Garlic: We like to use pre-minced garlic from the produce section, but feel free to mince them yourself.
- Salt & Pepper: Just a touch to really brings out the flavors.
Helpful kitchen tools
How to make honey glazed carrots
This really is a simple way to roast carrots. Start by making sure your carrots are clean and very dry, and preheat the oven to 425º so that it is nice and hot when you are ready to pop these in.
Slice carrots on the diagonal to make large oval-shaped coins. They should be about a quarter-inch thick.
Combine the butter and honey together in a large bowl. Add in the garlic, salt, and pepper. Give a good stir to mix all the ingredients together.
Add in the sliced carrots and stir until the carrots are evenly coated.
Spread them out on a baking sheet, making sure that they are in single layer. If they are too crowded, the carrots will steam instead of caramelize. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until they are tender and getting nice brown edges.
Hint: Our favorite is an XL sheet pan, especially when we want to make a larger batch or planning for leftovers. It means better caramelization since the carrots have more room to spread out.
Variations and substitutions
- Honey: Feel free to use hot honey or even switch it out for maple syrup. Agave syrup would work as well.
- Butter: Swap for olive oil or avocado oil, but we do think the flavor is best with butter.
- Herbs: These would be delicious with fresh thyme, chives, rosemary, or sage.
What to serve with
Any of these main dishes would go perfectly with roasted honey carrots:
How to store
Store any leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
FAQs
The best herbs for carrots and honey are rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano, and parsley. We are partial to fresh herbs, but dried herbs are great in a pinch.
Whole carrots are a bit too big for this recipe. The exterior will burn before that interior is tender. If you need to use baby carrots, slice in half lengthwise and place the flat side down on the pan for the most amount of browning.
Tips & tricks
- Try and keep the carrot slices as even as possible so they cook at the same rate. If you notice a few small slices getting done before the larger ones, just remove them from the sheet pan and pop the rest back in.
- Take an extra few seconds to make sure the carrots are not overlapping which helps them caramelize instead of steam.
- If using fresh herbs, sprinkle them on halfway through the cooking so they do not burn.
More recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
- Green Beans Almondine (With frozen beans!)
- Scalloped Potatoes
- Skillet Fried Potatoes
- Shortcut Baked Sweet Potatoes (30 Minutes!)
- Easy Frozen Peas
- Carrot Cake Bars
- Creamy Lemon Chicken
- Italian Sliders
Recipe
Honey Roasted Carrots Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lb carrots clean and dry
- 4 tablespoon butter melted
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Peel and cut carrots into large diagonals that are ¼ inch thick.2 lb carrots
- Melt the butter and honey in a medium bowl. Add in the garlic, salt, and pepper.4 tablespoon butter, 2 tablespoon honey, 2 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper
- Add in the carrots and toss until fully coated in mixture.
- Spread mix onto a sheet pan in a single layer and roast for 20-25 minutes or until they are caramelized and tender.
Notes
- Try and keep the carrot slices as even as possible so they cook at the same rate. If you notice a few small slices getting done before the larger ones, just remove them from the sheet pan and pop the rest back in.
- Take an extra few seconds to make sure the carrots are not overlapping which helps them caramelize instead of steam.
- If using fresh herbs, sprinkle them on halfway through the cooking so they do not burn.
Add Your Own Notes
Nutrition
All nutrition information is provided by a third party and is an estimate only. Use your own nutritional calculator for more specific measurements.
Danielle says
Such a simple side. Great for something quick to throw together.