Simple Herb Roasted Beets

These simple herb roasted beets are sweet, herby, and delicious! Beets get sweeter when roasted, making them a delicious and healthy root vegetable to toss into salads or enjoy as a simple veggie side dish for any summer, fall or winter meal.

this recipe

A friend of mine says beets are her spirit vegetable, while another says that beets taste like Lake Mendota (a local Wisconsin lake). I don't know about you, but I lean much more towards the spirit vegetable end of the spectrum. I LOVE beets, whether they're thinly sliced raw beets in a salad, pickled, or seasoned and roasted like the ones in this post. Beets are a hearty root vegetables that can be harvested during spring, summer, fall, and winter, making them easy to eat seasonally. They make an awesome salad ingredient or simple side dish to round out any meal!

Yes, maybe they're a little "earthy", but today we're going to peel and roast them in plenty of olive oil, salt, and herbs for a sweet, savory, delicious result.

Ingredients

• Beets - Our star of the show. We'll peel and dice these babies up before roasting. Highly recommend not wearing a white shirt for this part 🙂
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Herbes de Provence (dried) OR fresh thyme, basil, & rosemary - We'll season the beets with this prior to roasting for a delicious herby flavor.
• Salt
• Pepper

Substitutions & Variations

Since roasted beets are a template for many delicious flavors, try these herbs, seasonings, and flavors to go with your beets!

• Seasonings - I used dried herbes de Provence, but feel free to use another combination of dried or fresh herbs. If you don't have herbes de Provence on hand, you can make your own or use a blend of dried basil, thyme, and rosemary.
• Balsamic - Drizzle balsamic glaze over the roasted beets while still warm from roasting.
• Citrus - Add a squeeze of lemon or your favorite citrus vinaigrette after roasting. I recommend this easy lemon vinaigrette recipe!
• Hummus - Blend roasted beets into hummus for beet hummus!
• Feta & Walnuts - For a simple and delicious side dish, toss the roasted beets with feta and toasted (or candied) walnuts... and maybe even some balsamic glaze. The feta will definitely turn pink, but we're totally good with that 😉
• Golden beets - We love trying new produce! If you have access to golden beets, those would be just as delicious in this recipe.
• Tahini Maple Drizzle - Inspired by my harissa roasted sweet potato recipe, tahini + maple is an incredible combo to add to ALL things!

How to Roast Beets in an Oven

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and prepare the beets. Either scrub or peel beets, then dice into medium sized (½-inch or ~1.5 centimeters) cubes.

Step 2: Toss beets with olive oil, herbes de Provence, salt, and pepper, making sure they are well-coated. Transfer to a sheet pan and spread in an even layer.

Step 3: Roast the beets at 400 degrees for 35 minutes, or until they are easily pierced with a fork and edges are slightly darker in color. Boom, roasted... beets!

Air Fryer Beets Method

We frequently roast our veggies in a Ninja Foodi air fryer/pressure cooker (affiliate link), and I cannot recommend it enough. It keeps our kitchens cool during hot summer days, plus it's faster than roasting in an oven (especially for root veggies, which tend to take a little longer). Needless to say, it's earned a permanent spot on our kitchen counter!

To make these simple herb roasted beets in your own air fryer, you can follow these simple steps:

1. Prep air fryer. If using a Ninja Foodi or similar multiple-in-one air fryer, place the cooking grate (or "Cook & Crisp plate" for Ninja Foodi users) in the base. The beets will rest on this and it will allow the convection air to flow all around them.
2. Beets. Toss beets in olive oil and seasonings Transfer to the air fryer and spread in an even layer across the bottom.
3. Air fry or roast. For the Ninja Foodi, use the Bake/Roast setting at 375 degrees for 18 minutes, giving them a gentle toss halfway through for even cooking. For an air fryer, simply air fry at 375 degrees for 18 minutes. Note that air fryers may vary! If you're using a different kind of air fryer, I recommend checking halfway through to see how quickly the beets are cooking.

Hint: The Ninja Foodi roasts so well because because of the airflow inside, so if you have too many roasted veggies piled in, some of the air might not get to the center. To mitigate this, reduce the amount of beets in the recipe, OR be sure to stir halfway through so that all the beet pieces get airflow and heat exposure. You might also need to increase cook time.

Green Tips

Here are some sustainability and waste reduction tips to consider for this recipe!

• Beet greens. If you bought whole beets with the tops attached, you'll need to remove the tops for this recipe. BUT no need to throw them away! Make sautéed beet greens or simmer beet greens with other veggies and scraps for a delicious veggie broth.
• Eat seasonally. Beets are special because they're winter-hardy, meaning they can be harvested year-round. In the middle of a Wisconsin winter, I can still find and purchase local, seasonal beets at farmers markets and co-ops. See if you can find a seasonal, local beet near you!
• Sheet pan liner. We all love lining our sheet pans for easy clean-up (especially after pigmented beets...), but parchment paper and aluminum foil do into the garbage. Try lining your sheet pans with reusable silicone baking mats (affiliate link)!

Once you're done making these beets, you'll definitely want to make this delicious and simple oven-roasted radishes, which can also be served with their tops!

FAQs

Did you make these roasted beets? Don't forget to leave a star rating 🌟 and comment below, and tag me on Instagram and Pinterest so I can see what you made!