Roasting vegetables are the best way to eat them and when it comes to parsnips, it totally changes the texture and makes them deliciously crispy. For these Honey Roasted Parsnips, we have added a little drizzle of honey and a spoonful of mustard and you have a delicious side dish that will be the star of any roast dinner - and it's super easy too.
We think that roasted vegetables are a must with any roast dinner. They add a nice contract in texture to the melt in your mouth meat and fluffy potatoes. The unique flavour of parsnips are just intensified when roasted and gives them incredible crispy edges.
Take roasted parsnips to the next level by smothering them in a mixture of honey and mustard before roasting. These honey roasted parsnips will seriously upgrade your next roast dinner.
Looking for some other roasted vegetables to try? Why not try our Italian Roasted Vegetables, Roasted Tenderstem Broccoli, Balsamic and Garlic Roasted Cauliflower or Garlic and Parsley Roasted Carrots.
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What you will need
- Parsnips - You can use this recipe for carrots too, or use a mixture of them both.
- Olive oil - Use the best quality cooking olive oil you can afford. Vegetable oil will work fine too.
- Honey - You could use maple syrup to keep it vegan.
- Dijon mustard - Whole grain mustard would work too.
Step by step
One: Peel the parsnips and cut into batons. Place the cut parsnips in to a pan of boiling water and simmer for 5 minutes.
Two: Drain and add to a baking dish or roasting tin with the oil, honey and mustard. Season with salt and pepper and mix well.
Three: Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 for 20-25 minutes, until crispy on the outside and soft inside.
Why should you try it?
- A delicious way to eat parsnips - If you have never tried parsnips before, or are not sure what to do with them, then this is a good place to start.
- Just 4 ingredients - Just honey, mustard, oil and parsnips go in to making this, and then you can season it with salt and pepper too if you like.
- An easy side dish - This is so easy to put together. Just par boil the parsnips and then mix everything together and put it in the oven to get nice and crispy.
- The perfect addition to any roast dinner - Take your roast dinners to the next level with these honey roasted parsips.
Health benefits of parsnips
Parsnips are full of important nutrients. One cup (133 grams) contains 25% Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) of Vitamin C, Vitamin K and Foliate; 10% RDI of Vitamin E, Magnesium and Thiamine; and 7% RDI of Phosphorus, Zinc and Vitamin B6.
Parsnips are rich in antioxidants and they are high in soluble and insoluble fibre. They are also low calorie at just 75 calories per 100 grams.
How to cut parsnips
If you want the perfect roast parsnips, then you need to make sure that they are cut correctly. It's not like there is a secret way to do it or anything, but you need to make sure that they are all the same size so that they cook evenly. The worst thing is when you have some with really burnt edges, and others that aren't even cooked all the way through.
Firstly, when you are picking your parsnips in the shop, choose all ones that are the same size. Then, when it comes to cutting them you want to cut them in half width-ways and then cut the top (larger) half in to four length-ways and the bottom half in to two length-ways, so you end up with 6 pieces for each parsnip. This should give you all fairly even parsnips.
Variations
Honey and mustard are a delicious flavour match. The combination of the sweet from the honey and the spicy from the mustard just works in a sauce or dressing.
We used dijon mustard to make this, as it makes the sauce nice and creamy. But, you could use English mustard to give it even more of a kick or wholegrain mustard so it have some texture to it. It just depends on how spicy you like things.
Honey not only makes these roasted parsnips nice and crispy, but it really brings out the sweetness of them. You want to use a really good quality runny honey, so it has the best flavour.
If you want to keep these roasted parsnips vegan, then swap the honey for maple syrup. They might not get quite as crispy though.
We added a sprinkling of fresh parsley before serving, as it really lightens them up, however there is no reason why you can't add some herbs to the mix before putting them in the oven. Woody herbs like rosemary and thyme work well with honey roasted parsnips.
You could use this recipe as a base to roast lots of different vegetables. Add some carrot, potato and beets too and roast them all together in the sweet honey sauce. It would make a really filling side dish that is easy to make a big batch to feed a crowd. They are perfect for Christmas Dinner.
What to serve with honey roast parnsips
These roasted parsnips are definitely a roast dinner essential. But, parsnips by themselves don't make a roast dinner. Why not serve them with some of these recipes:
- The BEST Creamy Mashed Potato
- Slow Cooker Roast Beef
- Harissa Roasted Chicken
- Balsamic Roasted Brussel Sprouts
- Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes
- Honey Roast Duck
- Easy Cauliflower Cheese
- Slow Cooker Whole Chicken
- Balsamic and Garlic Roasted Cauliflower
- Vegetable Mash
- Lemon Rosemary Chicken
- Slow Cooker Red Cabbage
- Garlic and Parsley Roasted Carrots
FAQs
Similar to carrots, parsnips have a little bit of sweetness to them, but they have a more earthy, nutty flavour. We aren't a massive fan of plain boiled parsnips or even parsnip mash (unless it is mixed with other mashed veg too), but we love them roasted.
When you add the mixture of honey and mustard, it totally transforms them and makes them really sweet.
We like to par-boil ours first, as it makes them a bit fluffy first so you can bash the sides making them get nice and crispy when roasted. Boiling them a little first also means they take less time in the oven - which is good if you are making a big roast dinner and limited on space. Add on some cooking time if you aren't par-boiling them.
If you end up with leftovers of these, which is never a problem in our house as they are the first thing on the plate to be eaten, then they are easy to store, or re-purpose.
You can keep them in the fridge in an air tight container for 2 days and then just fry up in a pan to heat through. However, we prefer to re-purpose them and use them in a different meal. You could mash them up to use in our Broccoli Bites.
As long as the mustard you use is gluten free and there is no cross contamination, then this is a gluten free side dish.
Extra tips
- We used Dijon mustard to make this, but you could use English mustard to give it even more of a kick or wholegrain mustard so it has some texture to it.
- You could keep this side dish vegan by using maple syrup instead.
- You could use a mixture of vegetables rather than just parsnips. Try a mix of parsnips, carrot, potato and beets to make honey roasted vegetables.
- Make sure that the parsnips have plenty of space in the baking tray. If they are too close together, they will steam rather than bake and won't get crispy.
More side dish recipes
If you’ve tried these Honey Roast Parsnips, or any other recipe on the blog, then let us know how you got on in the comments below, we love hearing from you!
Tag us in your creations on Instagram @hungryhealthyhappy - we love sharing photos when people make our recipes. You can use the hashtag #hungryhealthyhappy too.
Recipe
Mustard and Honey Roasted Parsnips
Ingredients
- 6 parsnips cut in to battens
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Place the parsnips in to a pan of boiling water and simmer for 5 minutes.6 parsnips
- Drain and add to a baking dish with the rest of the ingredients and mix well.2 tablespoon olive oil, 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper, 2 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C/400°F/Gas6 for 20-25 minutes, until crispy on the outside and soft inside.
Notes
- We used Dijon mustard to make this, but you could use English mustard to give it even more of a kick or wholegrain mustard so it has some texture to it.
- You could keep this side dish vegan by using maple syrup instead.
- You could use a mixture of vegetables rather than just parsnips. Try a mix of parsnips, carrot, potato and beets to make honey roasted vegetables.
- Make sure that the parsnips have plenty of space in the baking tray. If they are too close together, they will steam rather than bake and won't get crispy.
Shaneise Rahman
hiya, do i peel the parsnips?
Dannii
Top and tail then with a knife and then use a shape peeler to peel them top to bottom.
Ashley
These are by far the best parsnips recipe I have come across my whole family loves them! My British husband and my fussy toddler are happy everytime I make these. Thank you for the recipe!
Dannii
That's so great to hear. Thanks for sharing <3
marie johson
Parsnips have a unique flavour and roasting them brings out the sweetness. This is a good combination of flavours, and a nice alternative to plain roast parsnips. :)
salifestylevillages
wow yummy i love it.
Naveen Sohail
I must say it is a yummy dish with full of nutrients. I actually add this into my diet plan.
Shanika
I love that these are covered in a Mustard and Honey sauce! I've never really had Parsnips, but I have to try this sure!
Pam Greer
Oh, I haven't had parsnips in ages! I used to roast them too, but I didn't use honey and mustard - such a good idea!
Andrea Metlika
I definitely need to try these. They sound awesome.
Valentina
I think parsnips are underrated and this is a sure fire way to have everyone to fall in love with them. They look so perfectly caramelized and with they honey and mustard, oh my! :-)