Orange Glazed Carrots

This orange glazed carrots recipe is going to be your new go-to easy side dish. With just 3 ingredients they couldn’t be more simple to prepare. I guarantee everyone will love them as they are definitely a crowd-pleaser. Who doesn’t love carrots, right? Even picky eaters will love this delicious side dish.

These carrots with orange glaze make a wonderful holiday side dish, but go well with any main course and are perfect to bring to those summer barbeques, picnics, or potlucks. Serve them alongside this Sweet & Sticky Grilled Chicken or this Smoked Pork Loin this summer for the perfect family-friendly weekend meal. 

Glazed Carrots

You can definitely make these carrots ahead of time and warm them up when you are ready to serve them. Just make sure not to cook them too long or they’ll be soft and mushy when you reheat them. Store the carrots in the fridge in an airtight container for  4 days or freeze them for 3 months. Leftovers can be repurposed and tossed in a salad, or soup or eaten with your favorite dip. In our house, carrots never go to waste. 

I sometimes like to make a double batch of this carrot recipe so we have a quick and easy, healthy snack or side dish in the fridge for a few days. They travel well too so you can send them in lunch boxes and they most likely won’t come home uneaten.

If you like these orange glazed carrots,  I’m sure you’ll love these other delicious side dish recipes: Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts, New Potatoes, and Peas, or this recipe for Garlic Cheese Asparagus. 

Ingredients for Orange Glaze For Carrots

Baby carrots: Store-bought baby carrots are great for this orange-glazed carrots recipe as all you need to do is open the bag. No peeling, dicing, or cutting is required.

Orange juice: I used clementine juice instead of orange juice and the carrots were amazing. You can use store-bought or homemade orange juice from fresh oranges. 

Brown sugar: Brown sugar sweetens the carrots. You can also use maple syrup or honey to sweeten these cooked carrots. 

Butter: I used unsalted butter but you can use salted and adjust the amount of salt you add. You can also use olive oil instead of butter but you won’t get the same rich flavor. 

Salt: Add salt to suit your taste. 

How to Make This Recipe for Orange Glazed Carrots

First: Place carrots in a small saucepan in a single layer and cover with water. 

Second: Boil until desired tenderness, drain carrots, and then place carrots back in the pan.

Third: Over medium-high heat, pour orange juice, sugar, salt, and butter over the top, and simmer until sugar and butter are melted. You want to have a nice orange juice sauce coating the carrots. 

If desired, elevate the already tasty glazed carrots by topping them with fresh herbs, nuts, or cheese. We used fresh thyme, goat cheese, and crushed walnuts. 

Love it? Pin it!

If you love this recipe for baby carrots make sure that you don’t lose it! Pin it to your favorite Pinterest recipe board before you go!

Substitutions and Variations

• If you have a bag of full-sized fresh carrots in your fridge feel free to use them. Just dice them into big chunks. No need to peel them unless you want to. 

• Mix in some minced garlic for more flavor.

• Top the carrots with fresh herbs like Thyme, parsley or cilantro. 

• Top with chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans. 

• Top with cheese. 

• Sprinkle the carrots with black pepper. 

Tips & Tricks

• For a more intense orange flavor add orange zest to the finished dish.

• If your baby carrots look dried out, the best way to hydrate them is to place the carrots in a large pot of water and let them soak for an hour or so. 

• Instead of boiling the carrots, you can steam the carrots in the microwave. Place the carrots in a microwave-safe dish with a cup of water and cook until they reach your desired tenderness. Cooking time will vary based on the strength of your microwave. 

Orange + Carrots

Carrots and oranges – go well together and their stand-alone flavors can’t be beat. Here are some more recipes that use carrots and oranges.

• Cauliflower & Carrot Gratin (pictured above)
• Carrot Bundt Cake
• Chocolate Orange Banana Bread
• Carrot Coffee Cake with Brown Butter Glaze
• Picnic Carrot Bars
• Blueberry Orange Bread
• Fresh Orange Bars
• Orange Ginger Refrigerator Cookies

There’s no easier way to make an everyday vegetable more enticing than glazing it with orange juice and maple syrup, the perfect combination.  Take carrots from humdrum to delicious and make this recipe your go-to for a weeknight dinner or holiday meal.