Roasted Vegetable Secrets

You are what you eat, you know.  Shouldn’t you be gorgeous and full of good stuff, just like a properly prepared platter of roasted vegetables?  Of course you should!

Whether prepared on a grill, in the oven, or with an air fryer, the basics are the same.   The goal is to end up with roasted vegetables that are cooked in a manner that brings out their best.  Here are some tips for making it happen:

• Peel carrots before roasting them.  The flavor will be much better and they will be more tender.
• Cut your vegetables into similar sized pieces.  On carrots, that means you will slice the fat end in halves or quarters so that each of those pieces is roughly the same size as the skinny end pieces.  Chunk your squash (whether zucchini or yellow squash) into even sized chunks.  On your colored peppers, you can remove the stem and seeds and cut the peppers into a collection of flat squares or you can slice them into thick slices.
• Your squash will look more appealing it you cut the slices on a slight slant.
• Toss the squash in a little olive oil before roasting and sprinkle on your favorite vegetable seasoning.  I prefer Citrus Grill or Florida Sunshine, but even salt and pepper can work, especially if it is mixed with some Italian herbs..
• Low and slow is NOT the way to go.  I like to roast my veggies at 400 degrees.
• Stop before you reach the mush stage.  I can’t even tell you how unappetizing it is to be served mushy zucchini.  You want to cook it until it is warmed all the way through and slightly tender.  That’s it.
• When it comes to peppers, there is a point at which the flavor changes and becomes much sweeter.  Usually that means there is a little tiny bit of browning on the pieces.   Again, stop before they get mushy.
• As for carrots, we like them quite tender at our house, so we look for that sweet spot when they have their Love Me Tender moment. If you prefer your carrots big, steam them in the microwave first before you roast theml

I particularly like air fryer roasted vegetables. Preheat in two minutes. Cook in 1/3 less time of other methods. Don’t heat up the house and don’t trudge outdoors.