Mexican Roasted Carrots (Elote Style)

I’m serving up these Oven Roasted Mexican Carrots elote style. Similar to how you’d dress grilled street corn, these delicious tender carrots are topped with lime, crumbled cheese, jalapenos and cilantro. So crazy good! 

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I’m trying to remember back to the first time I tried Mexican Street Corn … I can’t recall exactly when it was, but I do know that I was instantly hooked.

Grilled corn that’s slathered in a tangy cream sauce and sprinkled with chili powder, cotija cheese and fresh cilantro. Really, it’s hard for me to eat corn on the cob any other way now. I love it so much that I even made it into these Mexican Street Corn Chicken Tacos.

In an effort to get even more street corn flavor into my life I came up with the idea of topping roasted carrots with all those same flavors going on – chili powder, cumin, tangy lime juice, creamy cotija cheese and spicy jalapenos. And as much as I love glazed carrots, these have taken over reign in our house. 

I mean, these are so good you guys!

Ingredients needed

• Carrots – I like to look for small to medium carrots, since they tend to be sweeter and more tender.
• Olive Oil
• Spices – Chili powder (or, try one of these chili powder substitutes), cumin, salt & pepper
• Lime Juice
• Jalapeno – This is optional. You can also use serrano pepper for more heat.
• Garlic
• Honey
• Fresh Cilantro – If you don’t like cilantro, you can try one of these substitutes.
• Cotija Cheese – Or, queso fresco, parmesan or feta.

How to make Mexican carrots

• Peel the carrots and cut them in half lengthwise.
• Arrange the carrots on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, toss with chili powder and cumin, and season with salt & pepper.
• Roast for 15-20 minutes, until tender when pierced with a fork.
• Meanwhile, combine lime juice, jalapeno, garlic and honey in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Arrange carrots on a serving platter and drizzle with sauce.
• Sprinkle with cilantro and crumbled cheese.
• Serve hot or at room temperature. Enjoy!

Note: I’m roasting these carrots in the oven, since we don’t happen to have a grill at the moment. But these would also be amazing thrown on a hot grill. They’ll get nice and smoky and caramelized.

How long do you roast carrots in the oven?

• Roast carrots 15-20 minutes at 450-degrees.  When carrots are done, they will pierce easily with a fork. 

How to make ahead & store

You can roast the carrots up to three days ahead of time. When you’re ready to eat, you can serve them at room temperature, or pop them in the microwave for about 1 minute. Then, top them with the sauce and cheese and enjoy!

Wine pairings

• Try a creamy, fruit forward Viognier or unoaked Chardonnay. Fruit-forward, with a bit of body to them, they stand up nicely to the spices on the carrots.

More roasted vegetable recipes

• Roasted Miso Cauliflower
• Roasted Delicata Squash
• Roasted Fennel Pasta with Ricotta
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic Reduction & Cranberries
• Roasted Broccoli with Garlic & Basil Tahini Sauce

More street corn inspired recipes

• Mexican Street Corn Chicken Tacos
• Mexican Street Corn Soup
• Elote Salad with Shrimp
• Mexican Street Corn Salad with Pearl Couscous
• Corn Queso

Did you try these Mexican Style Carrots?

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Love carrots? Check out these 27+ tasty carrot recipes! Plus, these Mexican Pickled Carrots are a crowd favorite!

This post was originally published in 2020. It was updated in 2023 to add new information. The elote carrots recipe remains the same. Enjoy!