Garlic Roasted Carrots and Zucchini, a super easy sheet pan roasted vegetable recipe with only 5 ingredients and ready in 40 minutes.
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Love roasted carrots? Love roasted zucchini? Roast them together! Zucchini and carrots are a great roasted vegetable combination, especially when topped with a generous sprinkling of sliced garlic and herbs.
If you’re still on the fence about this combo, here’s why you should make it:
- It’s easy. Only five ingredients and 40 minutes baking on a sheet pan. It doesn’t get easier than that.
- It’s versatile. This simple recipe can be made as is, or dressed up with fresh herbs and spices.
- It’s tasty. Simple doesn’t have to mean boring; this recipe pops with flavor from only a few key ingredients.
Ready to learn how to make this oven roasted zucchini and carrots recipe? Let’s do it!
🥕 How to make (step-by-step photos)
1️⃣ Step One: Preheat oven and prep vegetables
First, preheat the oven to 400° F (200° C). While the oven is heating, wash the zucchini and carrots, remove stems, and slice.
👉 Should I cut carrots and zucchini lengthwise or into rounds? Because both carrots and zucchini are long vegetables you could also slice them lengthwise, but we’ve found that roasted zucchini are very soft and they fall apart easier when sliced thin.
2️⃣ Step Two: Add vegetables to the roasting pan
Next, add the cut vegetables to a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil and, using your hands or a spatula, toss the vegetables until they’re completely coated with oil. Sprinkle the vegetables with sliced fresh garlic, salt, pepper, and either fresh or dried herbs (optional, but recommended).
3️⃣ Step Three: Roast vegetables until they soften and begin to brown
Finally, roast the vegetables in the oven until they begin to soften and become brown around the edges. This takes anywhere from 30-40 minutes, depending on your oven.
About halfway through cooking, toss the vegetables so they brown on all sides, we did this about every 10-15 minutes.
Remove the roasted vegetables from the oven and serve immediately as a side dish, or you can let them cool and use them to top salads and bowls.
❓ Recipe questions + quick tips
- What type of carrots should I use? Any type of carrots will be delicious roasted. We prefer to roast larger carrots like Tendersweet and Touchon carrots, but when we want a good variety of colors we choose Kaleidoscope carrots.
- Should I peel carrots before roasting? As long as you wash carrots well, you do not need to peel them before roasting. In fact, unpeeled carrots are delicious because the outer layer browns when baked and provides deeper flavor through a process called the maillard reaction when the natural sugar in carrots is heated.
- What type of zucchini should I use? Any type of zucchini or yellow squash will be delicious roasted.
- What kind of herbs should I use? We used dried basil because it is what we had on hand, but fresh or dried oregano, thyme, or rosemary would also be delicious.
🌿 Herb + spice flavor ideas
This recipe is simply prepared with just olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. However, the herb and spice flavor possibilities are endless! Here are a few to try out in your roasted vegetable recipe:
- Rosemary, shallots, and garlic: roast zucchini and carrots with sliced shallot and garlic, then sprinkle with fresh rosemary when finished
- Garlic, red onion, and fresh herbs: roasted carrots and zucchini with garlic and sliced red onion, then top with fresh herbs like oregano
- Turmeric, paprika, and cayenne pepper: make it spicy by roasting carrots and zucchini with a sprinkle of turmeric powder, paprika, and a dash of cayenne
- Make it crunchy with nuts or seeds: add a bit of crunch by topping roasted zucchini and carrots with sliced almonds, pine nuts, sunflower seeds, or sesame seeds
♻️ Sustainable kitchen + cooking tips
We’re all about sustainability here at Fork in the Road, so here are some tips and tricks for getting the most out of your ingredients.
Take advantage of carrot and zucchini season! The best time to make recipes using carrots and zucchini is during the height of their growing season, which just so happens to overlap in late summer and early fall. To find out when they’re in season in your area, search Seasonal Food Guide’s seasonality calendar.
Use carrot and zucchini stem scraps to reduce food waste! Don’t toss those stems after cutting — add them to a food scrap vegetable stock to flavor stocks for soups and to use as a liquid for cooking grains like rice and barley
Don’t throw away carrot greens! Did you buy carrots with their leaves? Great! Reuse carrot tops in sauces like pesto, in a carrot top soup, or sauté the carrot greens to eat on their own as a side dish (yes, they’re edible!).
🥕 More roasted carrot recipes
Looking for more roasted carrot recipes? Try our other favorites:
- Roasted Green Beans and Carrots
- Roasted Carrots and Bell Peppers
- Roasted Carrots and Brussels Sprouts
- Roasted Carrots and Leeks
Looking for roasted zucchini recipes? Try our Baked Zucchini and Eggplant, Roasted Zucchini and Squash, or Baked Tomatoes and Zucchini recipes.
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Garlic Roasted Carrots and Zucchini Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound carrots
- 1 pound zucchini
- 2 whole garlic cloves, sliced thin
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- Optional: 1 teaspoon dried or fresh herbs like basil, oregano, or thyme
Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (200 C)Prep vegetables: Wash zucchini and carrots, remove stems, and cut into ¼ inch (½ centimeter) slices.
- Roast vegetables: Arrange the carrots and zucchini on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, tossing the vegetables to completely cover with oil and sprinkle with sliced garlic, salt, pepper, and herbs. Place sheet pan in the oven and roast for 35 minutes, stirring every 10-15 minutes to roast on all sides.
- Serve vegetables: Remove pan from oven, arrange vegetables on a plate and serve as a side dish or as a salad topping.
Recipe Notes
- Tools Needed: sheet pan, knife set, cutting board
- Prep Ahead: Wash and cut vegetables ahead of time to reduce prep time before cooking. If serving cold on salads or bowls, you can make this recipe up to three days ahead of time.
- Leftovers and Storage: Vegetables should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. For best taste and texture, do not freeze and reheat.
- Nutrition notes: Nutrition information is estimated for only ingredients in the recipe, not the additional spice options given. This simple roasted carrots and zucchini recipe is a good source of fiber, vitamin A, and vitamin C.
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