Roasting Vegetables

Image From Pixabay 

Vegetables are so important for our healthy diet. However, they can also give people trouble in the kitchen. Apartment Therapy has found a great simple way to make any vegetable for your dinner tonight. Keep reading and choose your favorite vegetables to start experimenting.





Roasting vegetables can be a game changer for people who don't like vegetables. Maybe it's the slight caramelizing, maybe it's because they get a little crispy, or maybe it's the added fat. Who knows? But I do know that one of the biggest vegetable fans I know — a man here in South Carolina who started an all-local farmers market and has been local produce's biggest supporter — did not like okra. You can't love South Carolina produce without loving okra. That's just a fact. Anyhow, I taught him my method, and his life changed. Roasted okra never makes it to the table in my house. We eat it up like French fries.


I hope my son will learn to buy what's on sale, and what he likes, without worrying about elaborate preparation. Rather than teaching him how to roast every single vegetable, I gave him a list of tips.

10 Tips for Roasting Vegetables

Preheat the oven to 425 to 450°F. The higher temperature will let the vegetables caramelize, which is part of what makes them so good.

Chop or slice your vegetables. The smaller and thinner the pieces, the quicker they'll cook.

Don't feel like chopping? Whole vegetables roast, too; it'll just take longer. (You can use the time to clean your room or call your mom.)

You can use one pan for different vegetables. Add the longer cooking vegetables first, and remove the pan to add the rest mid-roast.

Drizzle the oil, because you don't need much. For new cooks, I recommend a pour spout, because it makes it easier to drizzle just a little. Any kind of oil with a high enough smoking point will do; the smoking point is often listed on the label. If it isn't? You may use a teeny tiny bit of our data plan to 

Google it from the grocery store. Or just call me!

Shake the pan to distribute the oil. You could toss the vegetables and oil in a bowl, but that means one more dish to wash. Skip it.

Really feeling lazy? Line your pan with tinfoil before adding the vegetables. And put the foil in the recycling bin if your area allows. And just don't tell me, so I won't feel compelled to lecture you about waste. (Please don't use tinfoil. It won't kill you to scrub a pan. It'll help your tennis game, because of all that muscle!) 

Go light on the salt and pepper. You can always add more later.

Test for doneness with a fork. Or just eyeball it. Use the light in the oven to see, or just open and close quickly, because you don't want to waste energy.

Keep the leftovers. You can use them later in a salad, omelet, or burrito. Or you can toss them into pasta.