Glazed Balsamic Carrots on the Grill
Add some drama to your table with these vibrant, sweet, caramelized glazed balsamic carrots on the grill. Ready in about 20 minutes.
A perfect side dish for BBQs, potlucks or a holiday meal.
I bought some beautiful young fresh carrots at the farmers market the other day to use for an upcoming potluck.
I found a promising recipe for glazed grilled carrots on the New York Times Cooking blog that I used as a guide.
Apart from a couple of minor tweaks to the glaze, I decided to alter the cooking method. Instead of grilling the carrots for 20-25 minutes (and paying close attention to avoid burning), I parboiled them. This reduced the grilling time to 5-6 minutes.
Bottom line: This is a great vegetable side dish of pretty, tender carrots with great flavor. And easy to make.
Tailor To Your Taste
Here are a few variations and substitutions you can try.
- Substitutes:
- For every 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, substitute 1 tablespoon cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar) plus ½ teaspoon sugar
- Replace the maple syrup with honey or brown sugar.
- Substitute lime with lemon.
- Use whatever fresh herbs you like such as rosemary, marjoram, chives or thyme. If you don’t have fresh, the rule of thumb is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
- Try rainbow carrots – purple carrots, red carrots, yellow carrots and orange.
- Garnish with orange zest for extra zing.
How to make balsamic glazed carrots on the grill
The only trick to this recipe is to try to get the carrots approximately the same thickness to ensure even cooking.
What to serve with balsamic glazed carrots
The grilled carrots pair with almost any main course.
Here’s a few good options: Grilled Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms, Grilled Turkey Breast , Juicy Grilled Pork Chops or Sous Vide Flank Steak.
This grilled carrots recipe would also be perfect in our Red Quinoa Salad With Roasted Carrots. Just replace the roasted carrots with the grilled carrots.
Make Ahead
- The carrots can be made many hours ahead and left on the counter. Serve them at room temperature or warmed for 40-60 seconds in the microwave (or 10 minutes at 350F/177C in the oven). Sprinkle on the garnish just before serving.
- Alternatively, parboil the carrots and make the glaze, leaving the final grilling to just before serving.
- Keep leftover carrots in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Other easy carrot recipes you might like
- roasted honey glazed carrots
- red quinoa salad with roasted carrots
- roasted glazed carrot tzimmes
- best instant pot potatoes and carrots
Grilled Carrots With Balsamic Glaze
Ingredients
- 2 pounds (910 kg) whole carrots, peeled (about 30 smaller, thin carrots or 10-15 medium carrots)
- Garnish: chopped green onion, thyme or chives
Balsamic Glaze
- 3 tablespoon good quality balsamic vinegar, Note 1
- 1 1/2 tablespoon maple syrup (or honey or brown sugar)
- 1/2 tablespoon lime juice (or lemon juice)
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (or pinch ground ginger)
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 teaspoon fresh chopped fresh thyme leaves
Instructions
- HEAT GAS GRILL to medium-high heat, 425-450F/218-232C. Spray grates with oil or oil grates with a paper towel dipped in oil.
- PARBOIL CARROTS: If using medium or larger carrots, cut the carrots lengthwise in half or quarters to about 1/2-3/4 inch/1.27-1.9 cm thickness for quicker cooking (try to get carrots to about the same thickness for even cooking). Bring 1-2 inches/3-5 cm of water to boil in large saucepan. Add pinch of salt. Add carrots and boil for 7 minutes or until tender and easily pierced with a knife. Cooking time will depend on thickness of carrots. Drain carrots.
- MAKE GLAZE: While carrots are boiling, combine all glaze ingredients in a small bowl.
- GRILL CARROTS: Place carrots on a large baking sheet and brush with glaze. (I also spray them with some oil to be extra sure of no sticking to grill). Transfer to grill in a single layer. Close lid. Grill over direct heat for 5-6 minutes total, turning and glazing a couple of times.
- SERVE: Transfer to plate, drizzle with leftover glaze. Garnish with fresh thyme, green onions or chives. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt if you like. Serve.
Notes
- Balsamic vinegar substitute: Use 3 tablespoons cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar) plus 1½ teaspoon sugar.
- Variations:
- Use whatever fresh herbs you like such as rosemary, marjoram, chives or thyme. If you don’t have fresh, the rule of thumb is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
- Try rainbow carrots – a mix of purple, red, yellow and orange carrots.
- Garnish with orange zest for extra zing.
- Make Ahead: The grilled carrots can be made many hours ahead and left on the counter. They can be served at room temperature or warmed for 40-60 seconds in the microwave (or 10 minutes at 350F/177C in the oven). Alternatively, parboil the carrots and make the glaze, leaving the final grilling to just before serving. Store leftovers in airtight container in fridge for 3-4 days. Do not freeze.
Nutrition
Glazed balsamic carrots on the grill has been updated with new information and edits.
