This is how JB makes Glazed Carrots, the French way – carrot coins gently cooked in water, butter, salt and just a small amount of sugar until it reduces down into a glaze. Called Carottes Vichy or Carottes Glacées, it’s simple, elegant and far less sugary than the usual glazed carrots!
French Glazed Carrots – Carottes Vichy
Another day, another French cooking lesson from JB! Today it’s a simple glazed carrot dish called Carottes Vichy, named after the French spa town of Vichy which is famous for its mineral-rich water which was traditionally used to cook the carrots. JB tells me is one of the first things he learnt at Chef school because it’s such a French classic, served everywhere from bistros to fine dining restaurants and also made in homes.
It’s made by gently cooking sliced carrot rounds with water, butter, a small amount of sugar and salt until the carrots are tender and the liquid reduces to become a shiny buttery glaze. They are far less sweet than the usual glazed carrots which use considerably more sugar or honey, it’s more delicate and more elegant.
I especially like that the carrots aren’t boiled then drained so all that lovely carrot flavour stays in the pan, concentrated into the buttery glaze rather than tipped down the sink!
What you need to make French Glazed Carrots (Carottes Vichy)
Here’s what you need to make these carrots. Both JB and I agree that if there’s one vegetable worth buying organic, it’s carrots. They’re usually not that much more expensive, but the flavour is noticeably better – sweeter, more carroty and just so much nicer!
Carrots – 800 g / 1.75 lb of carrots which we will peel and slice into rounds.
Sugar – Just 4 teaspoons, a fraction of the amount usually used which is usually closer to 1/4 cup for the same amount of carrots!
Butter – This is a French recipe. You really didn’t expect to see olive oil here, did you?? (Though, you can if you want. 🙂 Shhh!! Don’t tell JB I told you that!)
Salt – We use cooking salt / kosher salt, so if you’re using table salt (which is much finer), use half the amount. If you’re using flakes (which are lighter – and more expensive!), increase the amount listed by 50%.
Water – To gently braise the carrots.
How to make French Glazed Carrots (Carottes Vichy)
I’m going to use the fancy-sounding word “cartouche” in these steps, but it’s just a piece of paper placed over the simmering carrots that helps them cook gently and evenly, and works better than a lid. But if, for whatever reason, you’re wildly opposed to spending the 27 seconds it takes to cut one, you can use a lid instead – but the carrots take about 10 minutes longer and don’t cook quite as evenly. (Yep, we tried. We had to know!) 🙂
Cut cartouche – This is just a round piece of paper cut to fit in the pan and sit directly on top of the carrots. It traps steam right against the carrots so they cook quickly and evenly, while allow just enough liquid to evaporate so the liquid reduces down into a glaze.
To make a cartouche (27 seconds!) – Tear off a sheet of baking paper slightly larger than the size of the pan. Fold it in half diagonally, then in half again, and keep folding to make a long pointy triangle. Hold the point over the centre of the pan, snip the paper where it reaches the edge, then unfold – voilà! A circle that fits neatly in the pan! (PS This is how I line cake pans too!). It doesn’t need to be a perfect circle, it just needs to cover the surface of the liquid and carrots.
Slice carrots – Peel then slice the carrots into 6mm / 0.2″ rounds. (Use the carrot peel for vegetable stock!)
Bring carrots to simmer – Place a large, 30cm / 12″ deep pan over medium high heat. Add water, butter, sugar, salt and bring it to a boil. Add the sliced carrots, stir well and turn the heat down to a simmer on medium heat.
Cartouche – Place the cartouche on top so it’s touching the liquid and carrots.
Simmer for 15 minutes or until all the water has evaporated and you’re left with a shiny glaze coating on the carrots. The carrots should be very soft (handle gently!) and they should not be browned.
Parsley – Remove the cartouche, add the parsley and gently stir until the carrots are coated in the butter glaze.
Serve – Gently pour into a serving bowl and serve!
How to serve French Glazed Carrots (Carottes Vichy)
Without a word of a lie, I had a giant bowl of these glazed carrots for lunch. They are so good. Not so sweet that you feel like you’re eating candy, but just sweet enough to feel special, and so delicately tender they almost melt in your mouth.
But if you’re a normal person looking for ideas on what to serve them with, they’re a natural side for roast chicken (try JB’s French Roast Chicken!), steak, pork chops or fish. They’re also a handy stovetop side dish when the main is hogging the oven – think Crackling Pork Roast, Prime Rib or Beef Tenderloin.
Really, anywhere you’d ordinarily serve carrots, these will do the job – just with a little more French flair. I’m thoroughly besotted with them! Thanks for another great recipe, JB. – Nagi x
Watch How To Make It
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French Glazed Carrots (Carottes Vichy)
Ingredients
- 800g / 1.75 lb carrots , peeled and sliced into 6mm / 0.2" rounds
- 3/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp / 30g unsalted butter
- 4 tsp white sugar
- 3/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt , (half for table salt, +50% for flakes)
- 2 tsp finely chopped parsley
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE
- Bring water, butter, sugar and salt to a boil. Add carrots, cover with cartouche, simmer 15 min or until water has evaporated. Stir through parsley and serve.
FULL RECIPE
- Cut a cartouche – Cut a round piece of baking paper (parchment paper) big enough to cover the surface of a large 30cm / 12″ pan. See Note 1 for a 30 second way to do this.
- Bring the liquid to a simmer – Place a large, 30cm / 12″ deep pan over medium high heat. Add water, butter, sugar, salt and bring it to a simmer. Simmer until the sugar is dissolved – about 30 seconds.
- Carrots – Add the sliced carrots, stir well and turn the heat down to a simmer on medium heat. They should sit semi-submerged in the liquid rather than fully covered..
- Cover and cook – Place the cartouche on top so it touches the carrots. Cook for 15 minutes without stirring or removing the cartouche, or until all the water has evaporated. By the end, the carrots should be very soft all the way through and with a bright orange colour and no browning, and the liquid should reduced down to a syrupy glaze, just enough for a thin shiny coating. If the carrots are a little firm, add a little more water, cover with cartouche again and keep cooking.
- Finish – Remove from the stove, remove the cartouche, add the parsley and stir very gently until the carrots are coated in the butter glaze. Go easy on the stirring, the carrots can break apart if handled roughly.
- Serve – Transfer into a bowl and serve warm!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life Of Jaffle
Jaffle is still in training for the coveted role of Chief Taste Tester, his inexperience apparent when he demolished entire raw kale leaves while Dozer looked down in horror from the Big Sky Kitchen.
Today was a test to see how far he’s come – raw carrots (left) vs French Glazed Carrots (right).
He devoured the glazed carrots, then look down at the raw carrots with disdain…… *Dozer gives a nod of approval from above*
……then promptly proceeded to devour the raw carrots too.
Showing promise, but not quite there. 🥰
Thanks for the delicious recipe – the side dish became the star! I will have to make twice as much next time 😂
I think you do Anita! They tend to be very popular!
I only now looked up who JB was. Wow! He does have a fabulous background. Thank you JB for leading the kitchen and all of your hard work. I’m a better than average cook, but we’d all be better cooks if we knew even some of the secrets of professional chefs. Working in the food business is very very hard work and often doesn’t get paid or recognized for what a person deserves.
Thank you for your lovely message Sandra!
Nagi and team, I’m very impressed with your recipes and your success. I made the French carrots Vichy recipe and the dish is delicious and easy to do. Thank you.
My son who is “allergic” to vegetables said this was the tastiest carrot he’s ever had!
Such a great feedback! Thank you Amy!
Omigoodness I need to make these asap!
Jaffle, you have me giggling every time!
Mr. Dozer would be so proud to see your accomplishments….but he may need to have a chat w you about the kale. 😉🥬
I hope you like them Wendy!
Easy and delicious! I love making your recipes!
Thank you so much Donna!
I appreciate the emphasis on using a cartouche instead of a lid to cook the carrots more evenly and quickly. It’s interesting how a simple parchment paper circle can trap steam while allowing just enough evaporation to form a glaze. Does the type of water used, like the mineral-rich Vichy water mentioned, significantly affect the final flavor, or is regular water just as effective for this recipe?
Hi Feng, regular water works perfectly! Vichy water is rich in minerals but the difference in flavour is very subtle. For this recipe, there’s absolutely no need to seek it out 🙂
Jaffle you’re alright. Carrots, raw and cooked, are good for you. They add fibre to your diet and help you see in the dark
I don’t want him seeing better in the dark. He causes enough trouble during the day 😆
These are AMAZING ? I love carrots in any way, shape or form. These are my new favorites. Thank you for all your wnderful recipes.
Thank you Adrienne for your lovely words ♥️
I have been making this with Parsnips for years. Delicious
Sounds delicious Marijean! Do you want to give it a go with carrots? 🙂
I’ll have to try your recipe! Mum (based on a French cookbook) never used sugar or water, but used 150g of butter for about a kilo of carrots, with high heat at first and then low and slow, covered.
150g of butter is certainly very French 😂 I hope you enjoy this version too!
This is a wonderful recipe! My adult son gave me a very similar recipe years ago with a suggestion to use 1/2 carrots and 1/2 parsnips, Sublime! Please thank Chef JB for his introduction to home-style French cooking,
Thank you so much and you are welcome! Carrots and parsnips sound like a delicious combination, I’ll have to try that myself.
What a good boy, eating hims carrots! I may just make these with that chicken schnitzel this weekend. I’m in the mood to make a nice, throw-down, Sunday style dinner!
Sounds like your are about to get pretty busy on Sunday Cynde! 🙂 Hope you enjoy it!
Jaffle thinking: ‘Of course I ate both the glazed and raw carrots – I’m a labrador retriever !!’
I make something similar but using a light vegetable broth and a little bit of ginger stirred through – it goes really well with carrots.
Jaffle is still so little! So so cute. Watching the video, I couldn’t stop myself from thinking… “Hmm, we’re making a paper airplane. I wonder what that’s for?”… 😂 Will be making these tonight!
Hi Steven, someone already mentioned the use of ginger, it really does sounds lovely!
Jaffle is gorgeous
He is!!! ♥️
OMG, I cant wait to make these. Already on my shopping list to cook at the weekend
Please let us know how you go Jennifer. ♥️
Glazed carrots are one of our Thanksgiving side dishes and always a big hit with guests and family. I cook the carrots in vegetable broth and use maple syrup instead of sugar.
As for Jaffle…he is such a good boy. Cute how he went for the cooked carrots first. A true gourmet puppy.
Hi Alexandra, maple syrup is a lovely twist, especially for Thanksgiving! And yes, Jaffle going straight for the cooked carrots definitely made us smile. 🙂
Im going to try the Glazed Carrots recipe Nagi. I usually just roast them whole (top & tailed, washed & dried with paper towel, but always unpeeled as I always buy the Baby Carrots. I add some maple syrup, and they are delicious! But, I’ll try the glazed Carrots recipe this weekend.
Thank for giving the recipe a go Emma 🙂 I love whole roasted baby carrots too!
I’ve made glazed carrots (admittedly with more sugar) without water. Just sugar and butter, simmered slowly in a cover skillet.
Hi Brian, how did it turn out? I’m curious to hear about it!
Wondering if adding a couple of weeks would work with the glazed carrots?
You could sauté them gently in the butter first before adding the water, I feel like that would be lovely! But, I’ll wait to see what Chef thinks 🙂 – N x