Roasted Carrots With Yaji Spice Relish Recipe (2024)

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Cooking Notes

KR

Yaji naturally has a sweet, smoky earthiness to it! You can certainly try with almonds but I would recommend 21/2 tsp of paprika to compensate. I'd suggest using whole toasted almonds

Nina from Oakland

Scrumptious! Added all the Yaji spice ingredients directly into the relish with no problem (improvised with some lemongrass I had in the freezer for additional flavor.) Used dragon carrots (dark burgundy with orange and light yellow centers) mixed with standard orange for a great show. Will definitely make it again. I have been looking for an easy yet showy way to use my garden carrots. Perfect compliment for my roast chicken for Shabbat dinner.

ekb

With a peanut allergy in the house, could we substitute almonds? If I already have powdered almonds, would I use a quarter cup of it, or less?

hating spinach in davis ca

I was pretty hesitant about this one — I mean, it’s carrots, right? But, man, those are some tasty carrots.

Megan

Delicious! I used golden beets last week because that's what I had and everyone in my household loved them. Just made the original version with carrots and it was equally delicious. This is going in the regular rotation.

Chi-cook

This was quite tasty, but having to make yaji spice our first time around, plus with the carrot prep and then the dressing prep while the carrots roasted, it was a lot of work for a side dish. Still, we will likely put our stash of yaji to use in making this again. It is just that special a way to prepare carrots.(For us, the carrots needed 5 more minutes in the oven to go from crunchy to al dente.)

P Weeksie

LOVED this recipe. Even the leftovers are delicious!

Chantal

I made this as part of our Canadian Thanksgiving spread. My husband said that this was his favourite part of the meal. I enjoyed making it and wasn't familiar with Yaji. We had it heated up the next day and it was delicious. Will definitely make again.

Cheryl Morrison

Absolutely delicious! I will?make this again and again. Can't wait to try yah I spice in other dishes.

Marcy

This is soooo good. Even stu liked it. Made it in San Juan

Chaya

This recipe is wonderfully flavorful and versatile too!Made it with the original carrots, thentried it with butternut and robin’s koginut squashes with great results. It’s nice served over a thick dab of homemade labneh.

Linda

I used about 2 1/2 pounds of carrots but made all the relish. I did cut the spice mixture in half. Served this for a dinner party and the carrots disappeared! Used some of the leftover relish on roasted chicken. It was a phenomenal dish and a great way to use my carrots from winter storage.

Lance

This was very good - characterful, and it came together exactly as the recipe promised. For me, it was a welcome new way to prepare carrots! Served with rice and lemony arugula for a pleasant dinner.

Jefair

Oops. I just wrote a note about the four basic yaji ingredients. How could I have left out the fifth essential one -- ground jot pepper! Cayenne is fine. So five: peanuts, ginger, salt, Maggi cubes, and hot pepper!

Jefair

Yaji, the powder, is a garnish from Hausa parts of Northern Nigeria and southern Niger Republic. The instructions for making at the bottom of the recipe are fine. But for a variant, try the four yaji ingredients ubiquitous there: peanuts, powdered ginger, salt, and Maggi cubes. Sometimes "authentic" is processed! (Smoked paprika, onion powder, and garlic powder are unknown in Hausa villages, but Maggi cubes have been in every market for a very long time. They're in American groceries too.)

Deb Branner

Made this for our Thanksgiving fare yesterday and... Yum! I'm going to add to my pantry items so I'm ready to try with other roasted root veggies and/or winter squash. Thanks!

KJ

I could eat this relish with a spoon. My carrots are still in the oven, but I’m so excited!

Chi-cook

This was quite tasty, but having to make yaji spice our first time around, plus with the carrot prep and then the dressing prep while the carrots roasted, it was a lot of work for a side dish. Still, we will likely put our stash of yaji to use in making this again. It is just that special a way to prepare carrots.(For us, the carrots needed 5 more minutes in the oven to go from crunchy to al dente.)

Cheryl Morrison

Absolutely delicious! I will?make this again and again. Can't wait to try yah I spice in other dishes.

Don

What other vegetables would this be good with?

Laine Freeman

I would try it with parsnips, a carrot cousin. Sweeter then carrots when cooked. They are best if cooked to a soft texture rather than al dente.

Chantal

I made this as part of our Canadian Thanksgiving spread. My husband said that this was his favourite part of the meal. I enjoyed making it and wasn't familiar with Yaji. We had it heated up the next day and it was delicious. Will definitely make again.

Megan

Delicious! I used golden beets last week because that's what I had and everyone in my household loved them. Just made the original version with carrots and it was equally delicious. This is going in the regular rotation.

hating spinach in davis ca

I was pretty hesitant about this one — I mean, it’s carrots, right? But, man, those are some tasty carrots.

kathy g

Super intriguing recipe! Not sure where it went wrong but overkill on the lemon zest. Prefer amounts in spoon sizes rather than juice and zest from 1 lemon and _ inch grated ginger. Too much variance. Carrots burned a bit. Won’t make again.

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Roasted Carrots With Yaji Spice Relish Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is Yaji spice used for? ›

Yaji Spice is a dry peanut-based spice rub used to season beef before grilling. Suya (pronounced "sue-ya"), a beef kabob, is one of the most popular Nigerian street foods, and the famous blend that goes on it can be called either yaji or suya.

Should carrots be parboiled before roasting? ›

I only boil these for a couple of minutes; you don't want them fully cooked when you par-boil. You want them partially cooked so that you can finish them off by roasting them. If you don't par cook the carrots, they will cook faster on the outside than the inside when they are in the oven.

Why are my roasted carrots tough? ›

Undercook them, and the texture is tough and dense. Overcook them, and they're dry and wrinkled. The secret is to soften the carrots slightly by boiling them briefly before roasting. The texture will be firm-tender with just the right amount of caramelization on the outside.

How to make roasted carrot in island? ›

Cooking a carrot in a campfire, small furnace, desert furnace, or industrial oven will create a roasted carrot.

What are the side effects of Yaji? ›

A wide range of studies have reported deleterious effects of Yaji in major organs such as the pancreas, liver, kidneys, and brain, with effects ranging from cellular distortion, necrosis, to degeneration in the mentioned organs (Nwaopara et al., 2004; 2007; 2008; 2009; 2010).

What is the difference between Yaji and Suya Spice? ›

Suya spice, also called yaji, is a fiery blend of ground chiles, ginger, garlic and onion powders. It also usually contains fermented locust beans or bouillon cubes, and has one other ingredient that really sets it apart: ground peanuts.

What happens if you don't peel carrots before roasting? ›

As with many vegetables, roasting carrots brings out their sweet inner nature. Peel the carrots or don't peel the carrots—it's up to you. Peeling takes a bit more time, obviously, but also leads to a more consistent final texture to the dish.

Should you peel whole carrots before roasting? ›

When to Skip Peeling Carrots. “Juicing and roasting carrots are good times to avoid peeling,” says Hilowitz. “If you are making a rustic dish, then leaving the peel on could potentially enhance the look and experience of the dish.

What enhances the flavor of carrots? ›

The flavor of cooked carrots is enhanced by herbs. Use spearmint, marjoram, a small bay leaf, thyme, grated ginger root, chopped chives, dill or parsley. To sweeten carrots, use honey, maple syrup or a sprinkle of sugar.

Do you roast vegetables on top or middle rack? ›

If you have to roast veggies on two different racks, make sure you put the top rack in the upper third of the oven and the lower rack in the bottom third of the oven. This will allow the heat and air to circulate better to help get the vegetables tender and caramelized.

How to stop roasted veg from going soggy? ›

Using the wrong pan

Yes, you can roast vegetables in a casserole dish or even a cake pan. But the high sides make it harder for the water inside of the vegetables to evaporate during baking, setting you up for sogginess. Instead? Use a simple rimmed baking sheet.

How does Gordon Ramsay cook carrots? ›

Cooking instructions

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan, then add the carrots and parsnips and toss to coat in the oil. Add the thyme, cinnamon, star anise and some seasoning. Cook over a medium heat for 15-20 minutes, turning the vegetables frequently, until golden brown and almost cooked through.

How to spice up raw carrots? ›

Here's some of our favorites to sprinkle on carrots:
  1. Garlic (minced, powder or granules)
  2. Onion powder or granules.
  3. Black malabar pepper.
  4. Cinnamon (Cassia for sweeter, Ceylon for sweetness with some more complex savory and vanilla flavors)
  5. Nutmeg powder.
  6. Cayenne pepper powder.
  7. Ginger powder.
  8. Aleppo chili.
Mar 28, 2021

What is the famous Ethiopian spice? ›

Berbere. If there is only one spice to have for Ethiopian stews and stir-fries, it should be Berbere.

What is paprika called in Nigeria? ›

Paprika, known to us here in Nigeria as tatashe or.

What is the content of Yaji? ›

Among the various spices available in Nigeria, Yaji occurs as a compound spice, consisting of 7 ingredients including table salt (sodium chloride), Maggi (monosodium glutamate, MSG), groundnut cake powder (Apios Americana), clove (Syzygium aromaticum), black pepper (Piper nigrium), red pepper (Capsicum annuum) and ...

How is Berbere spice used? ›

Berbere is the flavor backbone of Ethiopian cooking, a cuisine built around heavily seasoned meats and stews served with a spongy flatbread called injera. Berbere ties all of that together, doing duty as a dry rub for meats, a seasoning for stews, lentils and grains — even as a tableside condiment.

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