Simple Slow Cooker Orange Apricot Glazed Carrots

Simple Slow Cooker Orange Apricot Glazed Carrots are the easiest way to throw together a side dish that everyone will love. Butter, brown sugar, orange juice and zest and apricot preserve come together to make the perfect glaze to cover your carrots in. These are the most flavorful glazed carrots that take just a few minutes to prep.

This recipe does not get any easier. You literally just peel whole carrots and cut them into sticks. Mix the ingredients for the glaze in a bowl and microwave them. And lastly, combine everything into the slow cooker, season with salt and dried parsley and you are done. Recipes like this are lifesavers when you’re busy. This is great when you need to toss together your side dish for dinner in the crockpot before you go to work. And it’s even more perfect when you’re looking for a very low effort and simple to toss together side dish for the holiday season. To make things even easier, skip peeling the carrots all together.

This carrot side dish has the perfect balance of sweet and salty. I’m not a fan of carrot side dishes with too much sugary sweetness. The brown sugar in this recipe caramelizes perfectly and creates a wonderful kind of syrup for the carrots. Glazed carrots feel fancy enough for any holiday dinner spread but are easy enough to prepare with dinner any night of the week.

I have a lot of staple side dishes that find their ways onto every Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday table. There are the classics like Potatoes Au Gratin With Bacon, Green Bean Casserole With Spinach and Sausage and Wild Rice and Sausage Stuffing. But I like to mix it up a little and these Glazed Carrots were the perfect addition to our traditional holiday sides. My whole family is absolutely obsessed with Jeff Mauro’s Mashed Potato Recipe so this is the one that I cook every year now.

My favorite thing about this recipe is the ease and convenience of making it. If you cook on the holidays, you know just how valuable real estate on the stovetop and in the oven are. The slow cooker is perfect during busy holiday prep. It doesn’t heat up the house. It doesn’t take up a heat source from the stove. And you’ll barely take up any space on the counter. Best of all, if you’re also short on counter space, you could plug in the slow cooker somewhere else.

The prep time for these Simple Slow Cooker Orange Apricot Glazed Carrots is only about 10 short minutes. Once everything is said and done and tossed into the slow cooker, you can literally forget about these carrots until dinnertime. That makes them the perfect low-maintenance addition to your holiday menu or if you’re just looking for a delicious veggie side dish.

I love all of the holiday classic side dishes. But every year, I try to experiment with having one new side dish. The same old sides at every single major holiday can get a little boring. I try to keep myself and my guests excited with mixing things up a little bit. I’d definitely recommend not experimenting with a new dish for the first time ever on the actual holiday. I did this one year with a bread stuffing soft pretzel idea I had and let’s just say, the idea did not land.

The first holiday I served these carrots for was during a Thanksgiving a few years back. I just figured they would be sort of a nothing too special bonus side dish. Shockingly enough, everybody that ate that night absolutely went crazy over these carrots. I mean, I know they’re delicious but with so many other excellent side dishes, I was just a little surprised that they got so much attention.

Story time… My first experience with Orange Glazed Carrots was at the most beautiful restaurant I’ve ever been to. When I was 14, I went with my beloved Papa on a once in a lifetime trip to Jamaica. He worked for American Airlines and we were all assigned a Christmas character to play because we were handing out presents to children there.

We went to dinner at The Houseboat Grill in Montego Bay. You took a boat to the restaurant that is situated in the middle of the water. The views of Christmas lights from the homes in Jamaica were unforgettable. The food was very beautiful and delicious. I loved everything I had there but I especially remember Orange Glazed Carrots on the side of my plate that were literally my favorite thing. I had never had carrots that felt so luxurious and fancy and packed full of flavor like these ones.

As an adult, it was an important mission for me to make my own amazing glazed carrot recipe. I wanted to recreate the magic I experienced that night. This one checks all of the boxes. These carrots are tender and seasoned to perfection. What makes them extra special is the addition of sticky sweet apricot preserve. It gives the carrots that special something extra.

Cutting Carrots

To save time, you can absolutely buy carrots that are already cut into sticks. You could also use baby carrots instead. However, I love carrots the most when you cut whole carrots. They just have the most flavor and taste incredibly fresh.

To prepare your whole carrots, you’ll want to peel them. You could opt to skip the peeling to save more time. The peel actually contains plenty of vitamins and nutrients so it’s not a bad thing to leave them unpeeled. Chop off the tops and ends of the whole carrot. Cut the carrot in half. Cut each half in half length-wise. And then cut each of those longer pieces into 2-3 sticks. I enjoy carrot sticks that have a little bit of bulk to them so don’t be afraid to have pieces that are a little larger.

Juicing and Zesting Orange

The zest of the orange peel adds so much citrusy and tangy deliciousness. Using a grater, rub the orange peel gently to zest off the orange top layer. Try to avoid the white pith below the orange peel because it’s bitter.

Once you’re done zesting the orange peel, simply cut the orange in half. Use those arm muscles and squeeze out all of the juice that you can from both halves.

Variations and Add-ins:

I went through a few different carrot recipes in the development of this recipe. They were okay but never exactly what I was looking for. This recipe is perfect as is. But you can always adjust or substitute or add-in other ingredients to make this recipe fit your needs and preferences. Give some of these excellent add-in or substitution ideas a try.

• Cinnamon
• Ginger
• Pineapple
• Rosemary
• Thyme
• Green onion
• Fresh parsley
• Honey
• Garlic
• Onion
• Crushed red peppers
• Chives
• Roasted red peppers
• Rainbow carrots
• Different flavored jam or marmalade

Microwaving the Glaze

The glaze only has a few ingredients. They come together quickly and easily in a microwavable bowl. Then, simply pop the bowl in the microwave until the butter melts and you can smoothly stir the ingredients together. The glaze will have a slightly gritty texture from the brown sugar. You could also combine the ingredients in a medium saucepan on low heat on the stovetop. This method should take about 5 minutes.

Can I make Simple Slow Cooker Orange Apricot Glazed Carrots ahead of time?

You sure can! They’ll just need to be reheated before serving. You can microwave for about 2-3 minutes. Microwave for an additional 30 seconds at a time until the carrots are heated through. You could also cover a baking dish tightly with aluminum foil and warm at 350°F for about 12-15 minutes until heated through.

I’ve made this recipe plenty of times for busy holiday get togethers. Even if you’re on a time crunch, this recipe is very painless during the hectic holiday festivities. You can certainly just toss it together the morning of your gathering.

Instructions

Wash and slice off the ends of the carrots. Peel and cut the carrots into sticks. Add to pan sprayed slow cooker.

Combine the Orange Apricot Glaze ingredients in a bowl. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir and microwave for one additional minute, stirring halfway through.

Add the glaze over the top of the carrots. Season with salt and dried parsley. Stir to combine. Cook on high for 4 hours.

Optional: You can garnish with some fresh chopped parsley when serving.

Hungry for more recipes?

• Parmesan & Olive Oil Smashed Potatoes are a phenomenal side dish and a great way to mix up your usual potato game. Olive oil, parmesan cheese, garlic powder and butter flavor these russets to perfection.
• Roasted Baby Potatoes & Rainbow Carrots are delicious and could not be any easier to toss together. The seasonings all have the same measurement so you get a perfect veggie dish every time.
• Slow Cooker Creamed Corn With Bacon is the most creamy, dreamy, velvety and savory creamed corn side dish with bacon. The secret to this special slow cooker side dish is a Southern cooking favorite… bacon grease. This is simple enough for any weeknight meal and fancy enough for any holiday spread.
• Quick Bread Pumpkin Muffins with Eggnog Glaze are what Fall in New England is all about. The warmth and comfort of pumpkin and eggnog is a hug in a muffin.
• Wicked Easy Butterscotch Heath Toffee Fudge turns only 6 ingredients into creamy, melt-in-your-mouth decadent fudge. This no bake dessert comes together in about 10 minutes. Butterscotch fudge topped with Heath English Toffee Bits comes out perfect every time.

What is your favorite side dish of all time? Let me know in the comments below! I love hearing about all of the different things that people cook at home. Did you make this recipe? Was anything added in with your Simple Slow Cooker Orange Apricot Glazed Carrots? As always, I appreciate your support and thank you for supporting the Spice and Sugar Mama food blog!