The BEST Stovetop Glazed Carrots (Simple + Delicious!)

This easy, stovetop glazed carrots recipe is amazing! Lightly sweetened, delicately seasoned and perfectly glazed! These carrots make an amazing side dish that both kids and adults can’t get enough of!

Glazed Carrots bring to mind an expression that I heard used recently – “Dirt Candy”. To me, these glazed carrots are the epitome of what sweets growing from the ground would taste like – Just cooked enough to barely be tender, then finished with a lightly-sweet glaze tinged with lemon, and sprinkled with fresh thyme.

Anyways… I’m always on the lookout for side dish recipes that can be made simply with vegetables that aren’t super perishable, and can hold up in your fridge for a week. Quite often I’m guilty of putting all of my focus on the main dish, and leaving the vegetables as an afterthought.

For that reason, I like to keep the basic, hearty vegetables on hand – carrots, broccoli, brussels sprouts.  All of these vegetables can be roasted or quickly steamed, and they seem to compliment a variety of dishes.

These are the BEST Glazed Carrots! Lightly sweetened, delicately seasoned & perfectly glazed. They make an amazing side dish that both kids & adults love. | platingsandpairings.com

This sweet carrots recipe comes together quickly on your stovetop.

Ingredients needed

  • Carrots
  • Salt
  • Sugar
  • Chicken Broth
  • Butter
  • Lemon Juice
  • Thyme – Or, try one of these thyme substitutes.
  • Pepper

You can use a pound of sliced carrots or baby carrots for this recipe. If using baby carrots, you will need to increase the carrot cook time from 5 minutes to 10-15 minutes. If using regular carrots, peel them then slice them on the bias (diagonally) about 1/4-inch thick.

How to make them

  • Bring carrots to boil in chicken stock seasoned with salt and sugar.
  • Simmer for 5 minutes, until barely tender.
  • Remove cover and increase heat to high.
  • Reduce liquid.
  • Add butter and sprinkle in lemon juice.

Flavor variations

  • Maple Glazed Carrots: Swap out the sugar for maple syrup.
  • Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots: Swap out the white sugar for brown sugar.
  • Honey Glazed Carrots: Swap out the sugar for honey.
  • Glazed Carrots with Orange Juice: Swap out the lemon juice for orange juice.
  • Glazed Baby Carrots: Substitute baby carrots for the sliced carrots and increase the carrot cook time to 10-15 minutes
Overhead shot of bowl of glazed carrots.

Recipe FAQs

Can I make them in the oven?

Yes! Just increase the butter to 3 Tablespoons and melt in a small skillet. Add salt and sugar and stir to combine. Toss carrots with butter mixture and bake in a 425-degree oven for 20 minutes. Toss with lemon juice and thyme and serve. Note: You won’t use chicken broth for the oven method. 

Why are my glazed carrots watery?

If your glazed carrots seem watery, you may need to reduce the liquid further in step 2 of the recipe instructions.

Can they be made ahead of time?

These carrots taste best when prepared fresh. However, if needed, they can be made ahead and kept in the fridge for up to three days. To reheat, add to a skillet and heat over medium-low heat, adding a splash of water if necessary.

What to serve with them

More side dish recipes

Did you try this glazed carrots recipe?

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If you love carrots, you’ve got to try my tasty Oven Roasted Carrots too! Or, check out these 37+ carrot recipes!

These are the BEST Glazed Carrots! Lightly sweetened, delicately seasoned & perfectly glazed. They make an amazing side dish that both kids & adults love. | platingsandpairings.com

Stovetop Glazed Carrots

These are the BEST Glazed Carrots – Lightly sweetened, delicately seasoned, and perfectly glazed. These carrots make an amazing side dish that both kids and adults can’t get enough of!
4.97 from 30 votes
Print Pin
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Slice the carrots, on the bias, about 1/4 inch thick.
  • Bring the carrots, salt, 1 tablespoon of the sugar, and the chicken broth to a boil in a 12-inch skillet, covered, over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are almost tender when poked with a fork, about 5 minutes. Uncover, increase the heat to high, and simmer rapidly, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons, 1 to 2 minutes.
  • Cut the butter into 4 pieces and add it to the skillet along with the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Toss the carrots to coat and cook, stirring frequently, until the carrots are completely tender and the glaze is light gold, about 3 minutes. Off the heat, add the lemon juice and minced thyme and toss to coat.
  • Season to taste with pepper and serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?Mention @platingsandpairings or tag #platingsandpairings!

Nutrition

Calories: 111kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 378mg | Potassium: 388mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 19030IU | Vitamin C: 7.7mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 0.4mg

Note: This post was originally published in March 2015 – It has been updated with new photographs but the recipe remains the same.

Check out the web story here.

22 thoughts on “The BEST Stovetop Glazed Carrots (Simple + Delicious!)”

  1. Mmm those sound delicious. And I love your NY story. My husband is from the “other” NY too (Rochester). He gets crap from people when he claims he’s from Upstate NY. Those from NY will say, “no, you’re not from Upstate, your from Western NY.” 😉

    Reply
  2. 5 stars
    We make veggie sides most every night in our house – and these are in my and my son’s top 2 of all-time! He’s 6 and we also make them together, which is fun. These carrots are so flavorful. We always eat every last carrot and usually spend most of the meal talking about how great the carrots are. 🙂 We like them the best when we leave out the lemon (although we both looove lemon, so that’s odd?), but otherwise we make no changes. Thanks for one of our favorite recipes! 🙂

    Reply
  3. These are so delicious! Super easy to make! My husband and I ate the whole batch. We will have to double the recipe next time 🙂

    Reply
      • I made this recipe to go with our lamb loin chops. I use fresh rosemary in the marinade for the chops. Somehow I thought the carrot recipe called for rosemary and not thyme and I used rosemary. It turned out to be a yummy accident for this meal.

        Reply
  4. 4 stars
    I have prepared this dish and like it very much, however…
    The recipe instructions are not reflecting X2 or X3 selection.
    The number of tablespoons of sugar called for in steps 2 and 3 do not change from the X1 levels when you select X2 or X3. Step 2 always says “1 tablespoon of the sugar” and step 3 always says “the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar.”
    If it is too difficult to program the instructions to change along with the X2 and X3 ingredient amounts, then you should use generic descriptions. In this case, say “one third of the sugar” in step 2 and “the remaining sugar” in step 3. It will be a little less confusing.

    Reply

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