Roasted Carrots with Spiced Yoghurt and Honey Hazelnuts - Easy Side Dish

These roasted carrots with spiced yoghurt and honey hazelnuts give one of the most underrated vegetables in your fridge the STARRING ROLE it absolutely deserves. Roasted with cumin, cinnamon, garlic and Greek yoghurt until golden and caramelised, then finished with honey toasted hazelnuts. Pantry staples, almost zero effort, and it uses up that last bit of yoghurt always lurking in the fridge. Let's cook!

Why These Roasted Carrots Work

Spiced roasted carrots with honey hazelnuts, on the table in under an hour, from things you almost certainly already have. The trick is the yoghurt: mixed in with the spices and garlic before roasting, it coats everything in a thin tangy layer that caramelises against the hot tray into a golden crust you simply cannot get from oil alone. This one was inspired by Ottolenghi. I was reading one of his cookbooks when those Persian combinations of cinnamon, cumin, honey and yoghurt made me think of sweet carrots and how beautifully it would all work together. After more than 20 years cooking professionally in London I had incredible food cultures and ingredients on my doorstep, and living now down here in the South Island, cookbooks are often where the ideas come from instead.

Recipe Details

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 35 to 40 minutes
• Total Time: 45 to 50 minutes
• Serves: 4 as a side dish
• Difficulty: Easy
• Special Equipment: Lined baking tray

The yoghurt is the secret weapon here, and the timing of the hazelnuts is the other half of it. The cumin and cinnamon are a classic pairing with carrot, warm and slightly sweet and deeply fragrant, and the onion roasts down alongside everything into soft, sticky, almost jammy pieces. The nuts only go in for the last stretch, because even after 8 minutes hazelnuts start colouring up fast, and the last thing you want is them going hard and bitter. So they get scattered on when everything else is nearly done, and they come out golden, crunchy and smelling incredible. It is a very simple plate of food that tastes anything but.

Ingredients

For the Roasted Carrots:

• 4 carrots, peeled and cut into batons or halved lengthways
• 1 onion, cut into 8 wedges
• 2 tablespoons Greek yoghurt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 clove garlic, finely grated
• Drizzle of olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to season

For the Honey Hazelnuts:

• 30g hazelnuts, lightly crushed (more if you like, the more the merrier!)
• 1/2 teaspoon honey, plus extra to drizzle at the end if you like
• Drizzle of olive oil

How to Make Roasted Carrots with Spiced Yoghurt

1. Preheat the oven: Heat your oven to 190°C (170°C fan / 375°F / Gas Mark 5) and line a large baking tray.
2. Mix and coat the carrots: In a large bowl, combine the carrots and onion wedges with the Greek yoghurt, cumin, cinnamon, grated garlic, a drizzle of olive oil, and a generous seasoning of salt and pepper. Toss everything together until the carrots and onion are evenly coated in the spiced yoghurt mixture.
3. Roast: Spread everything out in a single layer on the lined baking tray. Roast for 35 minutes until the carrots are tender, golden, and starting to caramelise at the edges and the onion is soft and sticky.
4. Prepare the honey hazelnuts: While the carrots are in their last 10 minutes, lightly crush the hazelnuts and toss them in a small bowl with the honey and a drizzle of olive oil.
5. Add the hazelnuts: After 35 minutes, scatter the honey hazelnuts over the tray and return to the oven for a final 5 to 10 minutes until the hazelnuts are golden and toasted. Keep a close eye on them as they can burn quickly!
6. Plate and serve: Transfer to a serving plate and drizzle with a little extra honey if you like. Serve immediately while everything is still warm and the hazelnuts are crunchy!

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• Turns everyday carrots into something genuinely special: A few pantry spices and a spoonful of yoghurt is all it takes to make this the most exciting vegetable on the table.
• Uses up the last of your yoghurt: That tablespoon or two sitting in the bottom of the pot has found its purpose!
• The honey hazelnuts are everything: Crunchy, sweet, fragrant, and the perfect finishing touch.
• Pantry staple ingredients: Cumin, cinnamon, garlic, oil, honey. Nothing fancy required.
• Seasonal and budget friendly: Carrots are one of the cheapest, most reliable vegetables going all year round in NZ.

Chef's Tips for Roasted Carrots

Add the hazelnuts at the very end: This is the one that matters. Even after 8 minutes hazelnuts start to colour up quickly, and the last thing you want is them going hard and turning bitter. Keep them in the bowl until everything else is nearly done, then scatter them over for the final 5 to 10 minutes.

My rule for roasting any nut: I have roasted probably hundreds of kilos of nuts over my career, and the number I always come back to is 175°C for 7 to 8 minutes. That will get almost any nut pretty much perfectly roasted, so it is a useful one to keep in your back pocket well beyond this recipe.

The yoghurt coating caramelises in the oven: This is the magic of this recipe. That thin coating of spiced yoghurt sets and caramelises against the hot tray, giving the carrots a gorgeous golden crust and a depth of flavour you just cannot get from oil alone. Every so often you get a little roasted nugget of it on the tray and it is absolutely divine.

Cut your carrots evenly: Try to keep them a similar size so they all cook at the same rate. Halved lengthways or cut into thick batons both work beautifully and look gorgeous on the plate.

Don't overcrowd the tray: If your carrots are piled on top of each other they will steam rather than roast and you will lose that gorgeous caramelisation. Use a large tray and give everything space.

More hazelnuts is always the answer: 30g is the baseline but honestly pile them on. They are the best bit!

A drizzle of honey at the end: Optional but brilliant. Just a tiny extra drizzle over the finished dish adds a lovely gloss and sweetness that ties everything together.

Substitutions & Variations

• No hazelnuts: Walnuts, almonds, or pumpkin seeds all work beautifully instead.
• No yoghurt? Leave it out entirely and it will still taste absolutely delicious, just roast the carrots in oil and spices. I love what the yoghurt does for carrying the flavour, but the dish does not fall apart without it.
• No cinnamon: Leave it out or swap for a pinch of smoked paprika for a slightly different flavour profile.
• Add harissa: A teaspoon of harissa paste mixed into the yoghurt coating gives a lovely warmth and depth.
• Add fresh herbs: A scatter of fresh coriander or flat leaf parsley over the top to serve is absolutely gorgeous.
• Make it vegan: Swap the Greek yoghurt for coconut yoghurt and the honey for maple syrup.

Storage

Best eaten fresh: These carrots are at their absolute best straight from the oven while the hazelnuts are still crunchy and everything is warm and golden.

Fridge: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven or air fryer at 180°C for 8 to 10 minutes to bring back some of that roasted character. The hazelnuts will soften slightly on reheating but will still be delicious. You can also toss the carrots in the spiced yoghurt up to 24 hours ahead and keep them raw in the fridge until you want to roast them.

Freezer: Not recommended. Roasted carrots go soft and watery once frozen and defrosted, and the hazelnuts lose their crunch completely.

Avoid: Do not microwave the leftovers. The carrots turn limp and the hazelnuts go chewy. Give them a few minutes of dry heat in the oven or air fryer instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you prepare roasted carrots ahead of time? Yes. Toss the carrots and onion in the spiced yoghurt mixture and keep them covered in the fridge for up to 24 hours before roasting. Do the hazelnuts fresh on the day.

My carrots are not caramelising, what do I do? Make sure the oven is properly preheated and the tray is not overcrowded. If they are steaming rather than roasting, spread them out further and give them another 5 to 10 minutes.

Can I cook these carrots in an air fryer? Yes. Air fry at 190°C for 20 to 25 minutes, adding the hazelnuts in the last 5 minutes only. Keep a very close eye on the nuts in an air fryer as they toast much faster than in the oven.

Do you need to peel carrots before roasting? You don't have to. Scrubbed unpeeled carrots have a lovely rustic look and the skin gets beautifully crispy. Just give them a good wash first.

Can I use baby carrots instead? Absolutely. Baby carrots work brilliantly here and look gorgeous on the plate. Leave them whole and reduce the roasting time slightly as they are smaller.

What temperature should you roast hazelnuts at? On their own, 175°C for 7 to 8 minutes is my rule for pretty much any nut. In this recipe they go in with the carrots at 190°C for the final 5 to 10 minutes, which does the same job while everything finishes together.

What do you serve with roasted carrots and spiced yoghurt? This is a side dish, so it is brilliant alongside roast chicken, lamb, or a piece of white fish. It also works as part of a mezze spread with flatbread and a few other salads.

Can you make this without honey? Yes. Maple syrup works exactly the same way and keeps it vegan. Or leave the sweetener out and just toast the nuts in a little oil.

You Might Also Like

Roasted Yams with Piri Piri Sauce and Sweet Spiced Seeds - The same idea taken somewhere smokier and spicier, with sweet spiced seeds instead of hazelnuts.

Butternut Squash and Blue Cheese Bake - More gorgeous seasonal vegetable inspiration from The Weekly Veg.

5-Minute Asian Green Beans - Another brilliantly easy vegetable side that punches way above its weight on flavour.

These roasted carrots with spiced yoghurt and honey hazelnuts are proof that the most humble vegetable in your fridge can absolutely steal the show. The spiced yoghurt caramelises into a golden crust, the onion goes sticky and sweet alongside, and those honey hazelnuts on top bring the crunch that ties it all together. It costs almost nothing, uses up the dregs of a yoghurt pot, and looks like you have gone to a great deal more trouble than you have. The not-so-rock-and-roll carrot has finally had its moment.

Enjoy!

Del x

Spiced yoghurt roasted carrots with sticky onions and honey toasted hazelnuts on top.