Often when we are looking for a vegetable side dish to have with our meal, we tend to fall back on a few of the basic things we are used to making; steamed broccoli, a salad, mushy peas, etc. Well there is a preparation of vegetables that is easy, flavorful, and can add a little variety to your meals. I’m talking about roasting vegetables. I’ve seen non-veggie eaters turn into fans when served crispy roasted broccoli! Now you may be familiar with certain roasted vegetables, especially root vegetables, like carrots, potatoes (including sweet potatoes), parsnips, and beets. But did you know that there are tons of other vegetables you can roast for awesome flavor? Brussel sprouts, tomatoes, peppers, cauliflower, asparagus, and even broccoli can be roasted with great results. Here’s a quick run through on how to roast vegetables:
The first key to roasting veggies: You want to roast at high heat so your veggies caramelize on the outside, so preheat your oven to 450f. I usually take a baking sheet and line it with foil, but you can use a traditional roasting pan as well. I like to cut my vegetables up into smaller pieces, say half inch bite size pieces. Toss with a little oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. (by a little oil I mean about a half of a tablespoon for something like a sweet potato)
The second key to roasting veggies: roast them uncovered, and don’t crowd them together on the pan or they will steam and become mushy rather than roast and become crispy. Then roast in the oven until done. Your hardier root vegetables will take longer to roast than your more delicate vegetables. On the long side you’ll have your carrots, sweet potatoes, parsnips that may take up to 45 minutes at 450f, down to your delicate asparagus, cauliflower, and broccoli that may only take 15 minutes.
Here is a handy list of veggies and roasting times from Better Homes and Gardens. Of course these are just suggested times, as all ovens vary a little and your cut size may vary, etc. If you are cooking multiple veggies at once, you may need to remove the delicate veggies early and the let the hardier ones roast longer.
The final key to roasting vegetables: when you take them out of the oven, don’t pile them up on a serving dish, or the veggies underneath will start to steam and lose their crispness. It’s best to get them onto the final plate as soon as you can.
Now you’ve got the basic tools to go ahead and roast up your favorite veggies for dinner.
