Set it and forget it with these sweet and savory Slow Cooker Glazed Carrots with Brown Sugar! In less than five minutes you can have this quick, easy, and healthy side dish prepped and ready to cook in your Crock-Pot. Baby carrots are cooked in a brown sugar, honey, and butter sauce for the best carrot recipe that can be served for a weeknight dinner, Easter lunch, or holiday meal.
Slow Cooker Honey Glazed Carrots Recipe
Growing up there were two side dishes my Mom and Dad served regularly in our house…
Steamed broccoli with Cheez Whiz, (yes, guilty as charged!)
And brown sugar honey glazed carrots.
The carrots were always saved for last, like a sweet treat at the end of dinner.
As I got older I wanted to recreate those delicious glazed carrot my parents would always make – but a bit healthier and easier to make.
A bit healthier because instead of using 100% refined sugar to sweeten these baby carrots, we’ll use half honey and half brown sugar.
And yes, I said even easier than canned carrots because all you are going to do is plop your ingredients into your Crock-Pot and let it do the work for you!
(Don’t have a Crock-Pot? You can also make a slightly different version of this recipe with these Instant Pot Glazed Carrots!)
Easy Easter Side Dish
While these glazed carrots can definitely make an easy side dish for weeknight dinners, they’re also such a wonderful recipe to make for your Easter festivities.
Because after all, carrots are an iconic part of Easter – even the Easter bunny eats them!
They’re so easy to meal prep ahead of time and you can also double this batch if you’re feeding a crowd.
And not to mention, even the little kiddos absolutely LOVE them!
Ingredients
One of the best things about this recipe is how few ingredients you actually need. Let’s take a look at the six ingredients you’ll want to have on hand:
- Carrots – This recipe was originally created with a 2-pound bag of mini baby carrots. Baby carrots have already been washed and peeled, helping you skip a step in the preparation process.
- You can always choose to use the carrot chips, or cut and peel whole carrots. Do know that the cook time may vary depending on how thick you cut your carrots.
- Honey – A little bit of natural sweetness helps to balance the rather sweet brown sugar.
- Feel free to substitute this with pure maple syrup if you’re vegan.
- Brown Sugar – Half of the sugar used in this recipe comes from brown sugar. It does a better job of caramelizing the carrots and creating that delightful glaze than unrefined sugars do. However, if you would like to make this recipe Paleo and refined sugar free you can always use coconut sugar instead.
- Water – A bit of water is needed to help steam the carrots and create enough moisture buildup in the slow cooker.
- If you forget to add this, you will end up burning the carrots in the Crock-Pot!
- Butter – This fat helps to balance out the sweetness from the sugars. If you are vegan you can substitute with coconut oil or a dairy-free butter substitute.
- Salt – Just a touch of salt will bring out the naturally sweet flavors of the carrots.
How to Make
The process of making these honey glazed carrots is a quick and simple 3-step recipe.
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Place carrots, water, brown sugar, honey, butter and salt in a 6-quart slow cooker.
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Set Crock-Pot to High for 5-6 hours or Low for 6-8 hours.
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Stir carrots after 4-5 hours and continue cooking until carrots are fork tender.
Best Crock-Pot
As you will see in the recipe below, a 6-quart slow cooker is used for this particular recipe.
It’s large enough to fit all of the carrots, while being compact enough that they do not burn.
If you are cooking it in an 8-quart slow cooker you will want to add a few more tablespoons of water or double the recipe.
You can also make stovetop Glazed Carrots, too!
Slow Cooker Tips and Tricks
Slow cookers can be VERY finicky. I use a 5-year-old 6 qt. Crock Pot slow cooker.
The time and temperatures recommended in this recipe are according to my slow cooker, and work for most modern appiances.
Below are a few pointers for making these Crock-Pot glazed carrots:
- Start paying attention to the carrots after about 4 hours. If you notice that a lot of the liquid has evaporated, add a little more water.
- Try not to remove the lid more than once or twice since this will slow down the cooking of the carrots.
- If you would like to cook these on Low, you can cook them for 6-8 hours and stir carrots after 6 hours of cooking.
Serving and Storing
Serve these honey glazed carrots with additional brown sugar, honey or a sprinkle of your favorite herb!
We served ours up with a sprinkle of fresh parsley from our herb garden.
Finely chopped rosemary, thyme, or dill would also taste great.
Glazed carrots can be stored in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days in the refrigerator or up to 3-6 months in the freezer.
Meal Prep
These carrots can easily be prepared ahead of time and reheated on the day of serving.
Additionally, you can also measure out all of the ingredients you will need, store them in a gallon-sized ziplock container, and add them to your slow cooker on the day of serving.
FAQs
Do I have to use baby carrots?
You can use the packaged carrot chips, or cut and peel whole carrots. The cook time may vary depending on how thick you cut your carrots.
Can I double this recipe?
There should be enough room in a 6-quart slow cooker to double this recipe. However, you may need to increase the cook time by an hour so all of the carrots are fully cooked.
Can I make these vegan?
To make this recipe vegan simply replace the honey with pure maple syrup and the butter with coconut oil or a vegan butter substitute.
How can I make this side dish Paleo?
Since brown sugar is a refined sugar, you’ll want to replace it with coconut sugar to make this recipe Paleo.
Other Easy Side Dish Recipes
Honey Oven Roasted Broccoli with Garlic
Garlic & Herb Whole Roasted Cauliflower
Oven-Roasted Beets with Honey Ricotta
Slow Cooker Glazed Carrots Recipe
Slow Cooker Honey Glazed Carrots are so quick and easy to make with only a few simple ingredients and 5 minutes of prep time.
Ingredients
- 2 lb. baby carrots
- ¼ cup water
- 3 Tbsp. brown sugar packed
- 3 Tbsp. honey*
- 3 Tbsp. butter* cut into 8 cubes
- ¼ tsp. salt
- Chopped fresh herbs optional
Instructions
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Place carrots, water, brown sugar, honey, butter and salt in a 6-quart slow cooker.
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Set Crock-Pot to High for 5-6 hours or Low for 6-8 hours.
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Stir carrots after 4-5 hours and continue cooking until carrots are fork tender.
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Serve glazed carrots with chopped thyme, rosemary or dill and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- You can also use maple syrup and vegan butter or coconut oil for a vegan alternative.
- Substitute the brown sugar for coconut sugar if you'd like to make this recipe Paleo friendly.
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Sarah says
These look great. I have made brown sugar carrots before but that recipe didn’t have honey in it. I will have to give this a try as my family loves carrots and we try to make them in as many different ways that we can so we never get tired of them.
London says
That’s so awesome! I bet your carrots are just as tasty, Sarah!
Kim says
I’m wondering if I can cut this recipe in half? What would my cooking time be?
London says
Great question, Kim! I bet if you reduced the cook time to about 4 hours on Low the carrots should be done! Would love to know how it turns out for you!