Roasting vegetables

Once or twice a week, I spend a few hours roasting vegetables for my family to have on the side with lunch and dinner. It does take a while, between washing, cutting, and actual roasting time. But I can get other things done while I'm waiting for the oven to do its thing.

Okay, so here's how I roast my vegetables, which are a lunch staple for me. At the grocery store, I select a few vegetables for the week. My kids enjoy broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and corn, so those are always on the list. I'll rotate what else I get. In recent weeks, I've included asparagus, Brussels sprouts, onions, green beans, zucchini, and red potatoes.

Once I've procured said vegetables, I give them a rinse and dry them off somewhat. I don't go crazy with drying each individual item as they tend to air dry while waiting for their turn in the oven. Then I cut up any that need it for even and faster roasting.

Broccoli and cauliflower get cut into small-to-medium florets. Carrots and zucchini are either sliced into coins or sticks, although my kids prefer sticks, and I think I do as well. Brussels sprouts are sliced in half, and onions and potatoes are cut into 3/4-inch chunks. Corn, asparagus, and green beans-- I leave them whole.

A word on frozen vegetables. I have found that corn and asparagus do very well straight from the freezer. As with the other vegetables, I make sure to spread them in a thin layer on the baking pan. I've also tried roasting broccoli from frozen, only because Costco didn't have any fresh when I went.

They came out more like steamed but with some charred tips. Costco tends to have giant florets though, so maybe the results would have been better with another brand. Regardless, I'm not in a rush to repeat the experiment.

After the vegetables are washed and cut, as needed, I spread them in a thin layer on a baking sheet that has a silicone mat on it. Then I drizzle with some olive oil and generously salt. When I don't generously salt, I always regret it. I have low blood pressure though, so the salt helps.

I roast all vegetables at 425 degrees Fahrenheit, although I do vary the cooking time depending on the vegetable. Most vegetables spend 15 minutes in the oven on one side, get taken out and flipped with a thin metal spatula or tongs, and then get roasted for another 10 minutes. Frozen vegetables, Brussels sprouts, carrots, and potatoes require a little extra time in the oven. I usually do 25 minutes on one side and 15 minutes on the other for those.

Definitely check in on your vegetables while they're roasting if you're first starting out. I find that letting the steam escape is worth any temporary drop in oven temperature. But most importantly, it will help you make sure your vegetables are reaching the state of doneness you like without getting overly charred. Take a sample out and try it to make sure.

Let's discuss equipment for a moment. Other than baking pans, silicone baking mats, tongs, and a thin metal spatula, I also recommend an oven thermometer. I only use this to calibrate my oven. I'm sure there is a way to actually re-calibrate your oven directly by fiddling with it, but I just increase the temperature I input to compensate for my oven's deficiencies.

For example, if I set my upper oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, the oven thermometer shows 275. That means that it's low by about 75 degrees. And so I add 75 degrees to my roasting temperature, thereby setting it at 500.

Taking the trays out and flipping the vegetables around partway through roasting helps distribute the oil and salt more evenly. It also fulfills its primary purpose, which is to ensure evenly-roasted vegetables. By the way, I use the same pans over and over again to roast about 10 trays on each roasting day. So the pans and mats get really caked in grease and char. Just a word of caution.

After the vegetables come out of the oven, I scoop them into a Pyrex container and let them cool before storing them in the refrigerator. My daughter said, in surprise, the other day, roasting makes vegetables taste really good! We do all enjoy roasted vegetables now, and having an assortment to choose from the refrigerator, easily accessible, makes it a snap to meet our vegetable quota each day.