Mexican Carrots Side Dish (Roasted 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! 

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!

Halved carrots on baking sheet before roasting.

🛒 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, cumin, salt & pepper
  • Lime Juice
  • Jalapeno – This is optional. You can also use serrano pepper for more heat.
  • Garlic
  • Honey
  • Fresh Cilantro
  • 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.

Oven roasted carrots on baking sheet.

🕕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 and 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.
Roasted carrots in bowl with spoon.

🥕 More Roasted Vegetable Recipes

🌽 More Street Corn Style Recipes

Hand holding bowl of oven roasted carrots.

Did you try these Mexican Roasted Carrots?

If you loved this Mexican carrots side dish I would appreciate it so much if you would give this recipe a star review! Also, be sure to snap a picture of your finished dish and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #platingsandpairings and tagging me @platingsandpairings.

For more great Platings and Pairings recipes, be sure to follow me on  InstagramTikTokPinterest and Facebook.

Love carrots? Check out these 27+ tasty carrot recipes!

Roasted carrots in bowl with spoon.

Mexican Carrots Recipe

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! 
5 from 15 votes
Print Pin
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 6 people

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds small to medium carrots (peeled and halved lengthwise)
  • 3 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/3 cup lime juice
  • 1 jalapeno (thinly sliced)
  • 2 cloves garlic (finely grated)
  • 2 teaspoons honey
  • 1/2 cup cilantro (chopped)
  • 2 ounces cotija (queso fresco, parmesan or feta, crumbled)
  • Salt and pepper (to taste)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 450-degrees.
  • Arrange carrots on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, toss with chili powder and cumin, and season with salt & pepper.
  • Roast 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!

Notes

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!
Did you make this recipe?Mention @platingsandpairings or tag #platingsandpairings!

Equipment

Baking Sheet

Nutrition

Calories: 147kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 188mg | Potassium: 386mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 19149IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 1mg

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

Check out the Mexican style carrots web story here.

9 thoughts on “Mexican Carrots Side Dish (Roasted Elote Style)”

  1. 5 stars
    It’s like you’re reading my mind! I’ve been loving this seasoning I got that’s basically a Mexican street corn seasoning, so these carrots are right up my alley. The sauce sounds delicious, too! Can’t wait to try this!

    Reply
  2. 5 stars
    Delicious! Made the Carrots for dinner tonight. Next time I would use two seeded Jalapeños because they tasted so good with the carrots and toppings. I let the jalapeños marinate in the lime juice mixture while the carrots cooked. I added a little more honey to balance the lime juice.

    Reply
  3. 5 stars
    Omgosh, just served this with dinner and we’re both so impressed and looking forward to making it again this week! I never knew carrots had such potential!

    Reply

Leave a Comment

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.