“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, unsalted 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.
How to Make Glazed Carrots
A little sweet, a little savory, and just the right amount of crisp. Most importantly, they require none of that precious Thanksgiving day oven space. Three ingredients, and a few minutes on the stove and you’ve got yourself a lovely little accompaniment that will give all the traditional stars of the show a run for their money. Now that’s my kind of side dish. 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.