Honey Harissa Roasted Carrots: The Spicy-Sweet Thanksgiving Side Gen Z Hosts Are Making

Harissa came to the Thanksgiving conversation this year by way of a carrot. In its 4 November report on how Gen Z is rewriting Thanksgiving, USA Today names gochujang Brussels sprouts and harissa honey-glazed carrots as examples of a spicier holiday table, and quotes a Tastewise analyst saying that about 1 in 10 Gen Z Thanksgiving foods include something mashed, spicy, barbecued, mini, gluten-free or deviled.

The idea is easy to like. Carrots already carry sweetness, so a glaze of honey and chilli paste pushes them toward sticky and savoury at once. Harissa is a hot chilli paste from Tunisia, made from roasted peppers, garlic, caraway, coriander, cumin and olive oil, and the oil is what carries the spice onto the vegetable. Honey-glazed carrots are already a fixture on holiday lists: a Yahoo roundup of 50 Thanksgiving vegetable sides, dated 10 November, includes several versions.

The trick is timing. Honey burns at oven temperatures long before a carrot is tender, so the carrots go in plain, and the glaze goes on only for the last stretch.

There is a texture argument too. Roasting on a preheated tray drives off the carrots' water quickly, which concentrates their sugars and gives the cut faces real colour before the glaze ever touches them. A carrot steamed under foil, or crowded onto a cold tray, comes out soft and pale, and the glaze then slides off it. Thin-skinned carrots in mixed colours look good on the plate, but plain orange ones are sweeter and more reliable.

Ingredients

Serves 6 as a side. Total time about 45 minutes, including 10 minutes of prep.

• 900 g medium carrots, scrubbed, not peeled if the skins are thin
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3/4 tsp fine salt
• 2 tbsp harissa paste (use 1 tbsp for a milder dish)
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 150 g thick Greek yoghurt
• 30 g shelled pistachios, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley or coriander

Method

1. Heat the oven to 220 C (200 C fan) and put a large, heavy baking tray inside to heat for 10 minutes.
2. Halve the carrots lengthwise, and quarter any that are thicker than a thumb, so the pieces are a similar size.
3. Toss the carrots with the olive oil and salt on the hot tray, spread them cut side down in one layer, and roast for 20 minutes without stirring.
4. While they roast, whisk the harissa, honey, melted butter and lemon juice in a small bowl until smooth.
5. Turn the carrots over. They should be browned underneath and just starting to give when pierced.
6. Spoon the glaze over the carrots and toss on the tray. Roast for another 8 to 10 minutes, turning once, until the edges are dark and sticky and a knife slides in easily.
7. Spread the yoghurt over a warm serving plate with the back of a spoon.
8. Pile the carrots on the yoghurt, scrape any glaze left on the tray over the top, and finish with the pistachios and herbs.

Tips, swaps and make-ahead

Brands of harissa vary a lot in heat and salt. Taste the paste first, and if it is very salty, cut the added salt to 1/2 tsp. Rose harissa is gentler and a little floral. A teaspoon of ground cumin in the glaze brings it closer to the Tunisian original.