Fries will always dominate my comfort food world. It can be potato, sweet potato, zucchini, rutabaga, parsnips, you name it  I will eat them. The one I really crave for in winter is the masala carrot fries.
Carrots have this incredible natural sweetness that caramelises beautifully when you hit them with high heat. By tossing them mix of  spices you transform this bright orange root vegetable into a highly addictive snack. This dish is naturally gluten-free, vegan-friendly, and packed with fibre and whatever carrots can offer.  It strikes that perfect, magical balance between sweet, smoky, savory, and tangy. I bet you cant keep your hands off them.

Ingredients for carrot fries

Carrots: The colour of the carrots chosen to make this masala fries does not matter. you can have purple, yellow or orange carrots though orange is the most popular colour available. Choose firm and thick carrots which are fairly straight. This makes it easy to cut even batons.  

Oil: though we are not deep frying the oil helps to coat and create the crispy roasted top for the carrot fries. Any neutral oil is good enough like sunflower oil, vegetable oil or avocado oil. If using coconut oil or sesame oil, it will add the fragrance to the fries. 
Spices and seasoning: Salt and pepper remains the key seasoning for these fries. The spices that upgrade it to masala fries is cumin powder, chaat masala and the kashmiri chilli powder. Cumin powder adds a smoky flavour, the chaat masala a zing and peppiness and the kashmiri chilli powder a mild spice level. Kashmiri chilli powder is similar to paprika with a tiny bit more spiciness. If you prefer a bit more spice you can use chilli or cayanne powder. 

Lets make carrot fries

Preheat your oven to 180°C.

Prep the carrots : wash and pat dried the carrots Peel your carrots and trim the tops. Cut 1cm-thick sticks. Try to keep them all roughly the same size so they cook at the exact same rate.

Pat your carrot sticks thoroughly dry with a paper towel after cutting add them into a large mixing bowl.

Spicing the carrots: sprinkle a mix of salt, cumin, paprika and chaat masala on the carrots sticks  Drizzle with oil and give them a good toss.

Spread Out and Bake:  Spread the carrots out onto your prepared baking tray. Leave a bit of breathing room between each stick. If they are piled on top of each other, they will steam instead of roast. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, giving them a good flip halfway through the cooking time to ensure they get evenly golden and crisp on all sides. Be gentle with them at this point.
Once done the carrots turn crisp and glossy.
Remove on to a serving dish and enjoy with a dip.

Can carrot fries get crispy like potatoes ?

If you’ve ever tried baking carrots before, you know they tend to go a bit soft and limp. That is because carrots are packed with water and lack the natural starch of a potato. To beat the sogginess in the oven, use these two methods as nonnegotiable
The Paper Towel Pat-Down: Getting the carrot sticks completely dry before adding oil stops them from steaming in their own juices.
The Starch Dusting: A tiny sprinkle of cornflour  or rice flour acts like an invisible shield. It absorbs moisture and creates a crisp, micro-textured crust as it bakes. Ensure that you toss the spices in with the cornflour before dusting so it coats evenly.

Can carrot fries be made in the airfryer?

Oh yes, follow the steps of prepping and spicing. Then spread the carrots with enough gaps between them. These fries turn out more crispy. 

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The carrot fries are undoubtedly one of our favorite fries. We love this with a cooling dip like Cacik, hope you do too. 

These masala carrot fries have been on our blog from Oct 2018. Funnily enough I hardly looked back at it till recently when it popped up on my socials as a memory. Coincidentally it was carrots special on Sunday Funday, so both together, It was time for this update. Hope you like it and please leave your comments below of how it turned out for you.

Here are some of the other carrot recipes from fellow bloggers.

• Carrot Cake Muffins from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Carrot Pudding from Sid’s Sea Palm Cooking
• Carrot Roulade from Sneha’s Recipe
• Grilled Carrots from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Nomato Soup – a Faux Tomato Soup with Carrots from A Messy Kitchen
• Roasted Carrots with Burrata from Amy’s Cooking Adventures
• Spicy Carrot Ginger Dressing from Food Lust People Love

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• They are one pot so much less effort.
• The starchier sweetness improves your baking adding a ton more cozy feeling.
• When I bake my kitchen is warm at the same time.
• It is a recipe that you can do as a big batch with minimal prep and have all week long in the fridge.
• It pairs well with pasta, rice or any grains,can be rolled as wraps or made into a salad.

Ingredients for baked root vegetables.

The vegetables: the baked vegetable tray is one recipe that allows you so much flexibility in terms of what you can have. You can make it as colourful as you like or as monochrome as you prefer. Here is a list of vegetables I like to throw into the tray.

• Sweet potatoes
• Carrot
• Turnip
• Potato
• Radish
• Swedes
• Beetroot

For roasting: Olive oil, salt and herbs are the ones that work. The herbs I have chosen is rosemary and oregano. You can use thyme or basil as well. 

Lets make baked root vegetables

The baked vegetables is the best use of a roasting tray.

Prep the vegetables: choose starchy tough vegetables to start with. Wash thoroughly. Cut them into big chunks or dices as you prefer. Keep the beets separately. The carrots, potato sweet potato, radish, parsnip, swedes, turnip can all go together.

Coat them in flavours. Since the vegetables are going to be soft and bland, it is best to coat them with flavours. Sprinkle salt, pepper abd drizzle oil and toss them well. For flavours I prefer to add fresh study herbs that just dont burn away. Rosemary, oregano and thyme are my first choice. Go with what feels natural to you. You can replace the pepper with chilli flakes if you like the heat. Lets the vegetable mix sit while you preheat the oven
Ensure that the beets are coated and kept separate.

Bake: preheat the oven at 180 degrees for 10 minutes. Place the vegetables on a roasting tray. Spread them out evenly. Poke in pieces of beets into the gaps so they cook along. Roast the vegetables for 35 to 40 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius on heat both from up and down. Half way through the time, flip the vegetables over to ensure even roasting. After about 35 minutes the vegetables will be ready and fork tender. Remove from heat and direct to the table. Or cool and proceed for storage.

Meal prep and storage

The baked root vegetables are wonderful to add bulk to any meal or in the lunch box.

Is this a vegan recipe?

Baked root vegetable is an excellent vegan platter. It is filling, a mix of good healthy fibre and carbs and perfect for any vegan meal.

How to make baked root vegetables into a salad?

Once you have the baked veggies in meal prep you can have a hearty salad with it. For the dressing I prepare a generous mix of lemon and lime juice with some pepper and salt. Then you need some freshness. Chop up some tomatoes, a cucumber and handful of oregano, mint and parsley. Add all this into the mixing bowl with double the quantity of baked vegetables. Pour the dressing over it. Toss well and serve immediately. They are great sides to meals and double up as salads. You can add a bunch to your breakfasts to as hash.

How do you ensure the beets don’t leech the colour all over?

There are a couple of ways you can achieve this. If you peel chop and place the beets separately, then place them on the tray to bake it will have zero leaching.
Another method is to ensure you add the beets right at the end, a quick toss in the oil and salt and straight into the oven.

Other baked recipes from us that make a good mealprep

Baked whole cauliflower

Dried peas nuggets

Baked veggie sheek kebabs

Paneer puffs

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Hope you enjoy making this batch of low effort baked root vegetables. When you make your batch using this recipe, do share your thoughts and improvements in the comments below.
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