Try these scrumptious, easy, and elegant Bourbon Maple Glazed Carrots for dinner guests or holiday entertaining. A few simple ingredients make for a special occasion side dish!

This Glazed Carrots Recipe is easy and elegant; you’ll want seconds and thirds!

Bourbon Maple Glazed Carrots in a white ceramic dish.

Why You Must Make

Years ago, I was given a bottle of bourbon-spiked maple syrup. Besides being a decadent pancake topper, I whipped up these elegant and easy glazed carrots for an upscale holiday side dish.

  • Glazing carrots is an easy way to turn a normal vegetable side dish into something company-worthy!
  • And this recipe doesn’t require any gourmet maple syrup to make it.
  • It’s perfect for your Easter dinner!

Ingredient Notes

  • Kitchen Staples – Butter, Salt, Freshly Ground Black Pepper
  • Fresh Carrots – Peeled and cut into thick diagonal slices
  • Chicken Stock – I like the Pacific brand. It’s not overly salty.
  • Maple Syrup – Make sure to use real maple syrup, not something like Log Cabin.
  • Bourbon – If you’re not a bourbon drinker, you can often find small bottles of liquor (airplane size) in liquor stores or some grocery stores.
  • Cider Vinegar – This variety is less harsh than white vinegar.
Bourbon Maple Glazed Carrots in a small white bowl with a bamboo fork.

Recipe Tips

The addition of maple syrup and bourbon gives some zest to ordinary carrots. If you don’t like cooking with alcohol, feel free to leave it out. If you’re serving children, the long reducing time should boil out almost all the alcohol but use your best judgment.

  • If you can find carrots with their stems and leaves on, I find their flavor is better than the prepackaged carrots.
  • Make certain the carrots are covered in the chicken broth, syrup, bourbon, and butter so they all cook at the same rate.
  • Pro-Tip: Alcohol, like salt, is a flavor enhancer so don’t skip the bourbon. Another reason this recipe is a winner!
  • Simmering the glaze will help a good percentage of the alcohol to evaporate.
  • PRO-Tip: For a vegetarian version, use vegetable stock or salted water instead of chicken broth.
  • Reduce the glaze to about 1 cup. The time will vary depending on how vigorously the liquid is boiling, but it took me about 30 minutes.
  • If your chicken stock is salty, you may not need to add any extra salt to the carrots. Taste before seasoning. A little black pepper is recommended.
Bourbon Maple Glazed Carrots in a round ceramic dish with herbs.

How to Make Glazed Carrots

My usual method of making glazed carrots is to cook carrot slices or coins in water until tender, drain, add butter and brown sugar to the carrots, and heat until the sugar is melted.

This recipe adds another step by using a more flavorful cooking liquid, including chicken broth, maple syrup, and bourbon. Once the carrots are tender, they’re removed and the liquid is reduced to a glaze.

  1. Cook the carrot coins in a tasty mixture including maple syrup, bourbon, chicken stock, and more.
  2. Simmer until carrots are tender.
  3. Remove the carrots to a bowl, leaving the liquid in the pan.
  4. Reduce the liquid to about a cup, concentrating the flavors.
  5. Return the carrots to the pan and add vinegar, salt, and pepper to taste.
  6. Serve while hot.

This fancy cooked carrots recipe can be reserved for dinner guests or family holiday dinners, but they’re so easy to make, I wouldn’t recommend it. These carrots are a simple side dish that takes a little extra time to cook.

Reducing the glaze takes about 30 minutes after already cooking the carrots. But besides the extra step, there’s nothing complicated about these glazed carrots. And if you ask my hubby,  he’d tell you they were worth the wait!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Make this Glazed Carrots Recipe the Day Before You Serve Them?

Yes, you can make these ahead of time. Store them in a sealed container in the refrigerator and gently reheat them on the stovetop or microwave before serving.

What Flavors Enhance Carrots?

There are so many flavors that pair well with carrots. Besides maple and bourbon, try apples, butter, caraway, and cheeses like cheddar, feta, and goat. Spices such as cinnamon, cloves, cumin, dill, garlic and ginger also enhance carrots. Honey, lemon, mustard, oranges, potatoes, and onions are also delicious with carrots.

Bourbon Maple Glazed Carrots prep.
Our dogs love carrots and come running when they hear the vegetable peeler. Here’s Lambeau, circa 2010.

More Holiday Side Dishes:

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Bourbon Maple Glazed Carrots | An easy way to transform carrots into a restaurant worthy side dish!

Bourbon Maple Glazed Carrots Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Yield 8

A simple maple syrup, bourbon glaze to take your carrots to the next level!

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into thick diagonal slices
  • 4-5 cups chicken stock
  • ½ cup maple syrup
  • 1-2 tablespoons bourbon
  • ¼ cup (½ stick) butter
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • Salt, to taste (taste before seasoning)

Instructions

  1. In a large saucepan, combine carrots, chicken stock, maple syrup, bourbon, and butter.  
  2. Bring to a boil, then decrease to a simmer till carrots are tender, 30-40 minutes.
  3. Remove carrots to a bowl, leaving the liquid in the pan.  
  4. Bring the liquid to a gentle boil, and reduce the mixture to 1-1 ¼ cups, about 30 minutes.  
  5. Return carrots to the pan and add vinegar, salt, and pepper to taste.  Serve.

Notes

Using baby carrots is not recommended unless you like the softer texture of them after cooking.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 336Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 18mgSodium: 1032mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 5gSugar: 28gProtein: 16g

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