These buttery, Bourbon Glazed Carrots are the perfect side dish to spruce up any holiday or special occasion menu. They’re cooked in a skillet on the stovetop with an irresistible brown sugar-bourbon glaze.
Looking for more ideas? Try my Honey Roasted Carrots and Brussels Sprouts and Brown Sugar Dill Carrots.
There are not many things that smell better than butter, brown sugar, and bourbon simmering away on the stove. It’s a comforting, mouth-watering, appetite provoking aroma that will draw people from all of the nooks and crannies of your house into the kitchen to find out what’s cookin’.
These Bourbon Glazed Carrots are my version of a recipe from the one and only Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman. The concept is simple but the result is fabulous.
The orange juice typically used to make classic glazed carrots is swapped for bourbon in this recipe. After the bourbon reduces, it leaves behind it’s smoky-sweet essence without being overly boozy. The combination of bourbon and brown sugar are a heavenly way to enhance the flavor of carrots and bring out their natural sweetness.
While my Sheet Pan Roasted Vegetables and Sautéed Green Beans are my go-to vegetable side dishes for an average night, these buttery, brown sugar and Bourbon Glazed Carrots make a lovely holiday side dish. I’ve served them with my Dry Brine Turkey at Thanksgiving and they are outstanding paired with Roasted Beef Tenderloin at Christmas or your Easter ham.
Ingredient Notes
- Carrots: You’ll need a couple of pounds of carrots, peeled and sliced slightly on the diagonal into approximately 1 ½-inch pieces.
- Bourbon: Any brand of bourbon whiskey you happen to have lying around will do the job (well, hello Jim Beam) . If you’re not a bourbon drinker, pick up a few of those mini airline size bottles stocked at liquor stores. It’s less expensive and you won’t be left with bourbon that you won’t drink. Or, buy a small pint-size bottle so you’ll have enough left to make my Sweet Potato Bundt Cake, Bourbon Pecan Pie, and Whiskey Balsamic Steak.
- Remaining glaze ingredients: Butter, light brown sugar, salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Garnish: Chopped fresh chives
How to Make Bourbon Glazed Carrots
- Brown the carrots: Sauté the carrots in melted butter until browned and just barely tender. Transfer the carrots to a dish and set aside.
- Reduce the bourbon: Return the pan to the heat and add the bourbon and cook, stirring to deglaze the pan. It will reduce quite a bit and almost disappear.
- Make the glaze: Add additional butter and the brown sugar to the pan and stir to combine.
- Finish: Add the browned carrots and bring the glaze to a good simmer. Reduce the heat, cover the pan, and cook for a few minutes, until the carrots are beginning to get tender. Remove the lid, season with a little salt and pepper, and cook until tender. Sprinkle the chives over the top and serve.
Tips for the Best Bourbon Glazed Carrots
- Prep-Ahead: While I don’t recommend making this recipe in advance, the carrots can be peeled and sliced up to 1 day ahead. Just pop them in zippered plastic storage bag and refrigerate them overnight.
- Even Size Carrots: Choose carrots that are an even thickness so they will require the same amount of time to cook to a tender state.
- Heavy Bottomed Pan: To get the best sear on the carrots, use a heavy bottomed pan, like a cast iron or enameled cast iron skillet.
- Simmer Gently: Once you’ve combined the ingredients for the glaze, simmer it gently until it thickens slightly. Be careful not to let it boil vigorously, as this can cause the sugars to caramelize too quickly and burn.
- Garnish: Sprinkle chopped fresh herbs, like chives or parsley, over the glazed carrots before serving to add a pop of color and freshness.
More Side Dish Recipes You’ll Love
- Maple Brown Butter Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Creamy Au Gratin Potatoes
- Roasted Delicata Squash
- Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic and Goat Cheese
- Maple Glazed Sweet Potatoes
- Browse my entire collection of side dish recipes for more menu inspiration!
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Bourbon Glazed Carrots
Ingredients
- 11 or 12 carrots, 2 to 2½ pounds, peeled and sliced slightly on the diagonal into 1½-inch pieces
- 7 tablespoons butter, divided
- ½ cup bourbon whiskey, I used Jim Beam
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar, packed
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Instructions
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet (cast iron is best) or sauté pan over HIGH heat. Add the chopped carrots before the butter begins to brown and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned. Transfer the carrots to a dish and set aside.
- Return the pan to MEDIUM. Add the bourbon and cook, stirring to deglaze the pan. It will reduce quite a bit and almost disappear. Add the remaining 5 tablespoons butter to pan and the brown sugar. Stir to combine and then add browned carrots and bring to a good simmer. Reduce to LOW, cover the pan, and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes, or until the carrots are beginning to get fork tender.
- Remove the lid and season with a little salt and pepper. Continue to cook until the carrots are fork tender and the glaze has thickened, 3 to 4 minutes more. Transfer to serving dish and garnish with chives.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
This post was originally published on March 19, 2015. It has been updated with new text and images.
Great recipe, everyone enjoyed! Will make these again.
Absolutely perfect recipe!!
The carrots were a big hit. Followed recipe according to what was written. Used multi colored baby carrots and it made for a lovely looking dish. I have extra glaze left over and all I can think about is using it on my homemade vanilla bean ice cream and top with chopped pecans and whipped cream. Yum. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
This recipe sounds delicious and I am going to try it! Meantime, for anyone who doesn’t want to use bourbon in their recipe, I have another great way to make glazed carrots using unsalted butter, a touch of nutmeg and to sweeten I use a couple tablespoons of apricot jam. First I cook the carrots partially through in a little water then add the rest of the ingredients to simmer till done. Salt as needed. Your recipe sounds great and I am going to make it tonight with some pork chops!
These came out good. The only thing I found tricky was trying to sauté the carrots on high heat. They tended to burn very quickly until I reduced the heat to medium. I did not add as much butter as called for with the brown sugar as I found it was not necessary. There was plenty of glaze with half the butter.
Do you taste a lot of bourbon? I don’t want it to over take the dish.
The alcohol mostly cooks off and what is left is just the flavor essence of the bourbon combined with butter. We find this to be very agreeable but if you dislike the flavor of alcohol in a dish, I wouldn’t recommend this one for you.