Honey Roast Parsnips - Side Dish Recipe

Roasting parsnips with honey caramelizes the natural sugars, producing crispy parsnips with an extra depth of flavour from the garlic.

Not only an essential side for Christmas dinner and a must-have addition to all Sunday Roasts!

How to make honey roast parsnips?

One of my favourite ways to prepare parsnips is by glazing them with honey and olive oil. Before roasting them in the oven. 

Whether planning a Sunday roast or looking for something special to accompany your festive meals, these honey roast parsnips promise to be a crowd-pleaser.

After the recipe card, you can read more below for serving suggestions, storage and helpful cooking tips.

Ingredients

Let's start by looking at the ingredients needed to make the best roast parsnips with garlic and honey glaze.

• Parsnips- A versatile root vegetable with cream-coloured skin and a sweet, nutty flavour. For the best taste, choose small to medium-sized parsnips without blemishes, as larger ones can be woody and bland.
• Honey - Honey adds sweetness and a sticky coating that crisps up during roasting. We recommend using a squeezy bottle of runny honey for ease, but any clear honey, maple syrup, or agave syrup will work well.
• Olive Oil- Helps smooth out the honey glaze and prevents burning, ensuring an even coating on the parsnips.
• Herbs- Fresh thyme works wonderfully; add it at the end for a burst of flavour. Dried herbs can be mixed into the glaze if you prefer.

Equipment

So, let's go through what we need to bring this delicious honey parsnip recipe to life.

Foil can be used instead of parchment paper; it is just to prevent the sticky honey-glazed parsnips from sticking to the roasting tin!

Instructions

How to prepare parsnips for roasting?

Young, small or baby parsnips can be cooked without peeling; older, larger parsnips with tougher skin should be peeled.

Cut the parsnips into even-sized batons so they all take the same time to roast. If using smaller parsnips, you can cut them in half.

Do I need to parboil parsnips?

When using firm, fresh parsnips, there is no need to parboil before roasting parsnips.

Make Garlic and Honey Glaze

Next, make the garlic and honey glaze. It is easier to do this in a separate bowl or jug so it combines well before adding it to the parsnips.

Mix olive oil, honey, garlic, and some salt and pepper.

Place the chopped parsnips in a bowl, pour the glaze on top, and stir to ensure they are evenly coated before transferring the prepared parsnips to a baking tray.

How to roast parsnips?

I suggest cooking parsnips in a preheated oven dedicated to only the parsnips, using a shallow roasting tin, as the low sides allow the heat to spread evenly over the vegetables, leading to perfectly crispy roast parsnips.

It is best to use parchment paper on the roasting tray to prevent the parsnips from sticking to the tin. It also saves on scrubbing the roasting tray's stuck-on bits!

Cooking Time and Oven Temperature

Roast in the centre of a preheated oven at 200°C fan / 220°C / 425°F / Gas Mark 7 for about 25 minutes.

Turn the parsnips halfway through cooking time to ensure they cook evenly.

Parsnips chopped in larger chunks or, when cooked with other trays in the oven, may take up to 35 minutes to cook.

If they are browning too quickly but not quite cooked, you can add some foil over the top!

Serving suggestions

Season with salt and pepper before serving the honey-roasted parsnips. I also like to add some fresh thyme leaves.

Serve with your favourite roast dinner, beef, lamb, pork or turkey with all the trimmings.

Seen here served with our delicious roast pork loin with crackling, green beans with bacon, carrot and swede mash, goose fat potatoes, Yorkshire puddings and apple sauce.

We always make our honey roasted parsnips for Christmas Dinner! Serve your Turkey Crown on top of them with other vegetables and pigs in blankets!

Honey parsnips seen below served with our delicious slow cooker roast beef.

Prepare ahead

To prepare honey-roasted parsnips in advance, peel and chop the parsnips, then store them in salted water to maintain their colour and freshness.

The honey glaze can be made beforehand, kept covered at room temperature, and ready to pour over the drained parsnips.

Cook Ahead

Take them out of the oven before they become overly browned. Let them cool, then store them covered in the fridge for upto 3 days.

Cook for 20 minutes at 200°C fan / 220°C / 425°F / Gas Mark 7 until golden brown and crispy. 

Freezing parsnips

Or transfer to a freezer bag and freeze for up to 6 months. 

Oven cook from frozen at 200°C fan / 220°C / 425°F / Gas Mark 7 for about 30 minutes.

This is the perfect way to have sweet parsnips on hand for Sunday roast dinner!

More Parsnip Recipes

If you enjoyed this honey roast parsnips recipe, check out our Parsnip and Sweet Potato Gratin.

We also created a similar vegetable side dish, where we roasted brussel sprouts, carrots and parsnips together with maple syrup for the glaze. Perfect Christmas side dish.

More Roast Dinner Recipes

We have so many roast dinner recipe ideas for you. Here are a few of our favourites.

There's nothing better than coming home after a long day and digging into some warm roasted parsnips! Thanks to the honey marinade, they have such a sweet taste.