Let’s take a quick look at how to cook carrots in the microwave today. It’s easy, quick, and you can season them however you want. 🥕🥕🥕
Carrots are vitamin-rich, starchy vegetables that are extremely versatile and filling.
Cooked carrots are a staple side dish to many a holiday dinner or in a crock pot bubbling under a nice roast beast.
If you’re in a hurry, cooking carrots in the microwave is an excellent option when you want to avoid pulling out the junk food or going through a drive-through.
It’s a quick method of cooking carrots and you end up with a side dish at dinner that’s not out of a box.
Hot Tip: Make it even easier on yourself and instead of peeling whole carrots, just cut a bag of baby carrots into thirds and follow the rest of the recipe from there.
While roasting carrots in the oven elevates their rich, earthy flavor, sometimes there just isn’t time.
Let’s take a look so you can get dinner on the table.
How long does it take to cook carrots in the microwave?
It takes between 7 to 10 minutes to cook carrots in the microwave.
The cook time will vary depending on how you cut the carrots and how many carrots you are cooking at once.
How do you know when carrots are cooked?
The best way to know if carrots are done is to pierce a piece of carrot with a fork.
If a fork easily goes into the carrot, then the carrot is done and ready to eat.
Note that you don’t want to overcook the carrots because if you do, they will become mushy.
Carrots tend to taste best if they still have a bit of “bite” to them, which just means that they still have a bit of chewiness or texture to them.
What kind of carrots to use
We used plain, orange grocery-store carrots in our recipe but you could also use baby carrots or rainbow carrots.
Do I need to peel the carrots to cook them?
You don’t have to peel carrots before eating them.
We have a couple of reasons why we recommend peeling carrots before you cook them in the microwave.
The reason that we recommend peeling carrots is because it will improve the texture.
Another reason to peel the carrots is to remove any dirt that tends to build up in the “wrinkles” of carrot skin.
Peeling also helps get rid of the bitterness that can come from leaving the outer skin on.
The only exception to this is if you are using baby carrots from a bag.
Baby carrots are already peeled and ready to be cooked.
Ingredients for microwaving carrots
We only require a few ingredients for how to cook carrots in the microwave.
You can add any additional spices that you desire to enhance the flavor, but we usually just add a bit of salt, pepper, and a pat of butter.
- carrots
- water
- salt
We keep this recipe simple, and since carrots are a sweeter vegetable, we find this is easy and still delicious.
Supplies to gather
Tools:
- Cutting board
- Paring knife
- Vegetable peeler
- Medium microwave-safe bowl
- Measuring spoon
- Measuring cup
- Microwave-safe plastic wrap or cover
Ingredients:
- Carrots (whole or baby)
- Water
- Salt
- Optional: Seasoning blend, pepper, and/or butter
How to cook carrots in the microwave
The best way to peel a carrot is with a vegetable peeler.
Quick tip: If you cut each end of the carrot before peeling it, it will be easier to hold and maneuver the carrot as you rotate it while peeling.
We experimented with various thickness and if the carrot slices are too thin they become mushy.
If the slices are too thick they don’t cook nice and even.
We used a medium size glass bowl because it held all of the carrots and was easy to manage.
Be very careful at this stage because there will be steam and steam burns.
- The first thing that we need to do is wash, dry and peel the carrots.
- Peel the carrots thoroughly and cut off a bit from each end.
- Slice the carrot into 1/2” thick rounds using your sharp knife and cutting board..
- Add the carrot slices, water and salt to a microwave safe bowl.
- Cover the bowl with a plate, lid or microwave-safe plastic wrap.
- Cook the carrots on high for 4 minutes.
- Carefully remove the lid or wrap from the bowl. Stir.
- Cook the carrots for another 3 minutes or until they are fork tender.
This cook time will vary depending on your carrots, bowl and microwave.
You may want to check them after 2 minutes and every minute after that.
When the carrots are fork tender, they are done and ready to serve.
I recommend adding any fat and seasoning after they are fully cooked and ready to serve.
The bottom line
When it’s time to learn how to cook carrots in the microwave, I hope that this quick recipe and list of instructions has helped you.
Keep an eye on the microwave timer so you can keep checking your carrots—you don’t want to overcook them or undercook them.
We find that it takes about 7 to 10 minutes to cook five sliced carrots covered in the average microwave.
Whether you cook carrots in the microwave or eat them raw, always be sure to wash them. 🥕🥕🥕
How To Cook Carrots In The Microwave 🥕🥕🥕
Ingredients
- 5 carrots
- 3 T water
- ½ t salt
Instructions
- Wash and dry five carrots.
- Peel the carrots and cut off the tough ends from each.
- Slice into 1/2″ thick rounds.
- Place the carrot rounds in a microwave-safe bowl.
- Add the water to bowl.
- Add salt to bowl.
- Cover the bowl with a lid or microwave-safe plastic wrap.
- Add bowl to microwave and shut the door.
- Cook the carrots for 4 minutes on high.
- With hot pads or mitts, remove the bowl so you can stir the carrots.
- Carefully remove the lid or gently and carefully pull back the cellophane plastic (be cautious of hot steam) and stir the carrots gently.
- Return bowl to the microwave and cook for another 3 minutes.
- Test one or two carrot slices with a fork. Fork should easily go halfway into a carrot piece without resistance.
- For softer carrots, or if you’ll be mashing them, cover again and cook another two minutes.
- Optional: Add seasoning and butter to taste. Serve hot.
Notes
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