These air fryer brown sugar glazed carrots are one of my favorite side dishes to make. They come out perfectly tender with a sweet, buttery glaze that makes them hard to resist.
The recipe is super simple and takes less than 20 minutes from start to finish. Just toss the carrots with a few basic ingredients and let the air fryer do the work.
The brown sugar and cinnamon combo gives these carrots a warm, slightly sweet flavor that goes with almost anything. They pair great with chicken, steak, or really any main dish you have planned.
If you’ve been looking for an easy veggie side that actually tastes good, this one is for you. Even people who aren’t big fans of carrots tend to enjoy these.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Ready in Under 15 Minutes – These brown sugar glazed carrots cook super fast in the air fryer. From start to finish, you can have a gorgeous caramelized side dish on the table before your main course is even done.
Only 6 Ingredients – You need just baby carrots, olive oil, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt. That’s it. No long shopping list, no hunting for weird ingredients you will never use again.
Baby Carrots Mean Zero Chopping – Because this recipe uses baby carrots, you can skip the peeling and cutting entirely. Just toss them in the glaze and pop them in the air fryer. It seriously could not be easier.
The Air Fryer Gets Them Perfectly Caramelized – The high circulating heat of the air fryer caramelizes the brown sugar and butter into a sticky, golden glaze that you just can’t get as easily in a regular oven. This is one of those recipes that really shows off what your air fryer can do.
Ingredients
- 1 lb Baby Carrots
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 tbsp Brown Sugar
- 1 tbsp Melted Butter
- 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Salt
How to Make
Step 1
Toss the baby carrots with olive oil and salt in a mixing bowl.
Step 2
Place the carrots in the air fryer basket and cook at 380F for 12 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through.
Step 3
In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, melted butter, and cinnamon.
Step 4
Drizzle the butter mixture over the cooked carrots and toss to coat them evenly.
Step 5
Return to the air fryer and cook for an additional 3 minutes until the glaze is bubbly and the carrots are tender.
Tips
Dry Your Carrots First
Before you toss the baby carrots with olive oil, pat them dry with a paper towel. Baby carrots often come with a lot of moisture in the bag, and that extra water will steam the carrots instead of letting them roast properly.
Dry carrots get those slightly caramelized edges that make this recipe so good. Wet carrots just turn soft and mushy without any color on them.
Don’t Overcrowd the Basket
Spread the carrots out in a single layer so they’re not piled on top of each other. If your air fryer is on the smaller side, you might need to cook them in two batches.
When carrots are stacked up, the hot air can’t reach all of them evenly. You’ll end up with some that are perfectly cooked and others that are still hard in the middle.
A single layer means every carrot gets direct heat, which is what gives you that nice roasted texture on the outside.
Shake the Basket at the Halfway Mark
When the recipe says to shake the basket at the 6-minute mark, actually do it. It’s easy to skip this step, but it makes a real difference in how evenly the carrots cook.
Give the basket a few good shakes so the carrots roll around and expose different sides to the heat. This way you won’t end up with carrots that are browned on one side and pale on the other.
Related Recipes
- Air Fryer Honey Garlic Glazed Salmon Bites
- Air Fryer Loaded Hasselback Potatoes
- Air Fryer Maple Glazed Pork Belly Bites
- Air Fryer Parmesan Crusted Pork Chops
- Air Fryer Steak Bites with Garlic Butter
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to toss the carrots in the glaze before or after air frying?
You want to toss the carrots with the olive oil, brown sugar, melted butter, cinnamon, and salt all before they go into the air fryer. Coating them first is what gives them that beautiful caramelized finish as they cook.
The heat of the air fryer melts the brown sugar and butter together, creating a sticky glaze that clings to each carrot. If you added the glaze after cooking, it would not caramelize and you would miss out on all that flavor.
Air Fryer Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
- 1 lb Baby Carrots
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 tbsp Brown Sugar
- 1 tbsp Melted Butter
- 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- Toss the baby carrots with olive oil and salt in a mixing bowl.
- Place the carrots in the air fryer basket and cook at 380F for 12 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through.
- In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, melted butter, and cinnamon.
- Drizzle the butter mixture over the cooked carrots and toss to coat them evenly.
- Return to the air fryer and cook for an additional 3 minutes until the glaze is bubbly and the carrots are tender.