These baked parsnip fries are slightly sweet and plenty nutritious. Enjoy them as a snack or on the side for your veggie or regular burger!
Parsnips bake up slightly sweet and very crispy on the outside leaving a soft, starchy texture inside.
Look closely in the produce aisle and you might find this long ivory root next to it’s more familiar relative, the carrot. Sweet and creamy, this often overlooked root vegetable deserves its own spotlight.
Are parsnips like carrots?
Though parsnips look a lot like a white carrot, they deserve a spotlight all their own. Not unlike carrots, parsnips deliver a hefty nutrition punch.
They are a good source of vitamin C, potassium and folate. Fiber fanatics will be happy to hear that just one cup of parsnips provides almost 6 grams of fiber!
Best way to cook parsnips
Parsnips are versatile and can be enjoyed in many of the same ways you’d prepare carrots or potatoes. For the parsnip fry recipe below, I roasted the parsnips to bring out the natural sweetness. But that’s just a start.
Boil parsnips to create a deliciously smooth soup or julienne young parsnips for a sweet and crunchy slaw. Parsnips may soften a little faster than other root vegetables so add them during the last 20 minutes of cooking when making stew or soup.
Picking parsnips
Smaller parsnips are the most flavorful and tender while larger ones tend to be more fibrous and tough. Though you can find them year round in some supermarkets, parsnips are sweetest after a frost. So the cooler months are the peak season. Look for ivory colored, blemish-free parsnips that are firm. Store fresh parsnips in the refrigerator crisper for as long as 2-4 weeks.
With a slightly sweet and nutty flavor, these baked parsnips fries trump ordinary French fries when it comes to healthfulness.
No. They don’t taste like fried potatoes but they are deliciously different and sooo good! Let me know what you think!
Tips for success
- Make this dish when parsnips are in season – during fall and winter.
- Slice root vegetables like these into the same size pieces. This ensures more even cooking.
- Wash and slice the parsnips into ½ inch strips. If you want thicker fries, that’s fine. Just bake them a little longer to reach the desired tenderness.
Herb Roasted Parsnip Fries
Ingredients
- 2-3 medium parsnips
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme removed from the stem
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat convection oven to 425°F.*
- While the oven is preheating, slice parsnips into ½-inch strips.
- Whisk olive oil, garlic and thyme in a mixing bowl.
- Toss parsnip strips with the olive oil mixture until well coated. Spread the fries onto the nonstick countertop oven pan in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Bake 15 minutes with convection at 425°F, turning once. Remove from oven.
- Serve immediately.
- To use a regular oven, roast at 425°F for 20 minutes, turning once.
Notes
Tips for success
- Make this dish when parsnips are in season – during fall and winter.
- Slice root vegetables like these into the same size pieces. This ensures more even cooking.
- Wash and slice the parsnips into ½ inch strips. If you want thicker fries, that’s fine. Just bake them a little longer to reach the desired tenderness.
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