10 TIPS FOR ROASTING VEGETABLES
Originally published by Tramontina USA
Sometimes you just can’t imagine eating another salad, but you still want to get your veggies in for the day. Turn your gaze to roasting—a cooking method that concentrates natural sugars and crisps up edges. Chop up some of the season’s best vegetables, toss them with a little oil and spices, and set them in the oven until they’re crispy on the outside and tender in the middle. Roasting concentrates the natural sugars and makes veggies taste candy-like. Eat them with cooked grains, a tasty sauce, a grilled piece of meat, or just straight off the pan. You may never go back to your salad-a-day life.
CHOOSE WISELY
Not all vegetables are roast-able. Spinach, arugula, kale, and other leafy greens will turn into a crisp if you throw them into a hot oven. More importantly, you want to make sure you’re choosing the right combination of veggies to roast. Root vegetables, onions, and even peppers can handle a longer time in a high temperature oven. Asparagus, on the other hand, will cook much faster. In other words, don’t throw sweet potatoes and asparagus on the same pan or you’ll either be digging out asparagus seven minutes in or eating raw sweet potatoes. You also want to be aware of moisture content. Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and zucchini have a high water content and can make vegetables sharing the same pan soggy.
SIZE IT UP
Uniformly cutting veggies is essential if you want everything to cook evenly. If you cook half a butternut squash next to diced potatoes, you’re not going to like the results. The potatoes will burn and the squash will still be raw. Instead, cut the squash into the similarly-sized pieces.
USE OIL (BUT NOT TOO MUCH)
You’ll need to make sure the veggies are coated in oil. Not enough oil will dry them out, and too much can make them soggy. A light coating of olive or coconut oil—enough to make the salt and spices cling—is perfect.
SALT, PLEASE
Don’t be afraid of salt. Sprinkle kosher salt over the veggies, making sure to hit every piece. Salt helps bring out the all the natural flavors of those roasty morsels.
ADD AROMATICS, HEARTY HERBS, AND SPICES
Salt and oil will do the trick, but adding aromatics, herbs, and spices are a great way to mix it up. Aromatics can be anything from grated garlic and ginger to chopped shallots and onions. Hearty herbs are plants like rosemary, thyme, and sage, as they can stand up to the heat without burning.
Favorite Combinations
Butternut squash + yellow onion + garlic + cumin + cayenne + cinnamon
Broccoli + red onion + grated ginger + curry powder + chili flake
Yukon gold potatoes + shallots + thyme + rosemary
LINE THE PAN
You can cook the veggies directly on the pan, but cut down on clean up by lining the pan with foil or parchment paper.
DON’T OVERCROWD
As much as you want to efficiently cook all those vegetables in one pan at once, it’s better to keep everything in a single layer, with a little space in between each piece. Overcrowding the pan can cause them to steam instead of roast, making for a big mushy mess.
GO HIGH
Use high heat to roast veggies, between 400-450ºF for most, and generally cook 25-45 minutes. If you roast tomatoes, however, it’s better to go low and slow (300ºF for 1-1½ hours).
FLIP
Halfway through the cook time, flip the veggies so they get browned and caramelized on all sides.
TASTE TEST
25-45 minutes is quite the range. The best way is to taste as you go, being careful to let it cool down a bit before taking a bite.
Asparagus: 7-10 minutes
Root (carrots, potatoes): 35-45 minutes
Winter squash (butternut, acorn): 35-45 minutes
Cruciferous (broccoli, cauliflower) and onions: 25-35 minutes