Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Carrots, an easy sheet pan roasted potatoes and vegetable recipe with only 5 ingredients and ready in under 40 minutes. Your new favorite side dish!
Love roasted carrots? Love roasted sweet potatoes? So do we! Between the two we could never choose a favorite, but thankfully you don’t have to because they are delicious when roasted together.
Here are 3 reasons you should be tossing carrots and sweet potatoes together to roast:
- It’s easy. Simply cut your veggies and potatoes, toss in oil on a sheet pan, and roast until golden brown.
- It’s super tasty. Roasting brings out a depth of natural flavors in vegetables and sweet potatoes.
- It’s versatile. Go simple with salt and pepper, or build flavor with spices and herbs.
Ready to learn our favorite way to bake carrots and sweet potatoes together? Let’s do it!
🍠 How to make (step-by-step photos)
1️⃣ Step One: Preheat oven and cut vegetables
First, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 C). While the oven is heating, wash the vegetables to remove dirt.
Next, cut the sweet potatoes and carrots into similiarly-sized cubes.
- How to cut sweet potatoes: You could also cut them lengthwise into long strips, but we’ve found that smaller 1/2 inch (1.25 centimeter) cubes makes spearing them on a fork and eating much easier.
- How to cut carrots: When roasting vegetables together, you ideally want them to be the same general size and shape to make for easier eating. You can cut the carrots into the same size cubes as the sweet potatoes, or just slice them into 1/4 inch (about 0.5 centimeter) slices and then any big slices can be cut in half.
2️⃣ Step Two: Add vegetables to the roasting pan
Next, add the cut carrots and potatoes 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 (optional), salt, and pepper.
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 when the potatoes and carrots had been roasting for about 20 minutes.
Remove the sheet pan from the oven and serve the roasted veggies as a side dish, or you can let the them cool and use them to top salads and bowls.
❓ Recipe questions + quick tips
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.
As long as you give sweet potatoes a good wash, you do not need to peel them before roasting. In fact, unpeeled sweet potaotes are delicious because the outer skin browns and becomes crispy when baked. However, if you don’t like the peels it is perfectly fine to peel sweet potatoes before roasting.
Carrots can be roasted whole, cut longways (or lengthwise) into halves or quarters, or cut along the length of a carrot into rounds or thicker 2-3 inch (5-7 cm) long pieces. For this recipe we recommend slicing carrots into 1/4 inch (about 0.5 cm) slices to match the size of the sweet potato cubes.
Sweet potatoes can be roasted whole, cut into rounds (or medallions), cut into strips for baked sweet potato fries, cut into halves or quarters, or cut into cubes of any size. For this recipe we are roasting sweet potatoes with carrots, so we cut both vegetables into the size size cubes, or squares, so they are easier to eat together.
🌿 Herb + spice combination 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:
- Garlic, red onion, and fresh herbs: roasted carrots and sweet potatoes with garlic and sliced red onion, then top with fresh herbs like oregano
- Maple and mustard: yes, roasting vegetables with a mixture of maple and mustard brings out a tangy and sweet flavor (try our Maple Mustard Roasted Brussels Sprouts!)
- Turmeric, paprika, and cayenne pepper: roasting carrots and sweet potatoes with a sprinkle of turmeric powder, paprika, and a dash of cayenne for a sweet and spicy combo
♻️ 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 sweet potato season!
The best time to make any roasted vegetable dish is when they are fresh and in-season. Luckily, both carrots and sweet potatoes are typically available year round, however they peak in the fall so we usually enjoy this dish during cold weather months.
Use your veggie scraps to reduce food waste!
Don’t toss those stems and leaves after cutting — add them to a food scrap vegetable broth to flavor stocks for soups and to use as a liquid for cooking grains like rice and farro.
Don’t throw away carrot greens!
Did you buy carrots with their leaves? Great! Reuse carrot tops in sauces, use carrot greens as a side dish or in salads, and even use carrot leaves in soup.
🥕 More simple roasted carrot and sweet potato recipes
- Easy Baked Sweet Potato Medallions (or Rounds)
- Oven-Baked Broccoli and Carrots
- Baked Carrots and Cauliflower
- Maple Cinnamon Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- Easy Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Carrots
- Oven-Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts
- Baked Sweet Potatoes and Zucchini
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Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Carrots Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound carrots, washed and trimmed
- 2 pound sweet potatoes
- 2 whole garlic cloves, sliced thin
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (200 C)
- Prep vegetables: Wash sweet potatoes and carrots. Cut stems from sweet potatoes and cut into 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) cubes. Cut stems from carrots and slice into 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) slices, then cutting any large slices in halves or quarters to match the size of the sweet potatoes.
- Roast vegetables: Toss the carrots and sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, tossing the vegetables to completely cover with oil and sprinkle with sliced garlic, salt, and pepper. Place sheet pan in the oven and roast for 30-40 minutes, stirring halfway through to roast on all sides.
- Serve vegetables: Remove pan from oven, arrange vegetables on a plate and serve as a side dish or cool them and use as a salad or grain bowl 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 carrot and sweet potato recipe is a good source of fiber, vitamin A, and vitamin C.
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