The Ultimate Last-Minute Side Dishes.
The Very Best Glazed Carrots.
Just when you thought that side dishes don’t get any simpler than a green salad, along came these glazed carrots. Calling for just three ingredients, plus salt and pepper, and ready in about 15 minutes, our glazed carrot recipe is made for busy weeknights, harried holidays, and everything in between. If you have extra time on your hands for a slightly more involved recipe may we suggest our Braised Greens with Golden Raisins and Maple, Braised Leeks with Beurre Blanc or Green Beans with Apples and Sage Butter.
“Glazed Carrots” is Kind of Just a Glitzy Way of Saying Sautéed Carrots
And now you know! While some glazed carrot recipes call for oven time, or pre-boiling the carrots, we’re all about keeping things simple as can be. And we’re NOT all about mushy, lifeless carrots. A quick sauté is all you need—your carrots will be cooked, but not overcooked. Their sweet flavor will be perfectly preserved, brought to life with a glaze comprised of:
- Butter! It always comes down to butter, doesn’t it? When a recipe has just three ingredients, that means two things. 1) the recipe will be easy. 2) don’t make any subs! So, use real-deal, salted butter—no substitutions, please.
- Brown sugar! Brown sugar—either light or dark is fine—complements the sweetness of the carrots, and helps to give them their shiny glaze.
- A little salt and pepper. OK so we fibbed a little—if you count the salt and pepper, this is a five-ingredient recipe. But we don’t count them, because they’re just a given! Right? That’s TMP math for you.
How to Make Glazed Carrots
A little sweet, a little savory, and just the right amount of bite. Most importantly, they require none of that precious Thanksgiving day oven space. Here’s how to cook them:
- Peel the carrots and cut super thick ones in half lengthwise.
- Melt the butter and add the carrots.
- Cook slowly, stirring sometimes. Let the carrots cook—their natural sugars will sweeten as they cook, making them into something resembling lightly caramelized carrots—and the butter brown.
- Finish with a sprinkle of brown sugar. Stir it in over the heat, so that it melts into the browned butter and creates a glaze thick enough to coat the cooked carrots.
- You did it! Add a little salt and pepper to taste, and pop that beaut on the table.
Tools You’ll Need:
- Sharp knife.
- A good vegetable peeler.
- A big skillet.
- Tongs are handy for turning the carrots as they cook.
Other Easy Carrot Recipes
Here are a few other carrot-licious dishes you might like, too!
They’re Basically Buttered Carrots—What’s Not to Love?!
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