How to Roast Vegetables [Oil-Free!]
One of the key elements of Rick McKeon making significant and lasting improvements to his health was finding simple ways he could enjoy whole plant foods.
As a 75 year old bachelor with a laundry list of health issues including stage 3 kidney failure, dangerously high blood pressure, bone marrow cancer and aches and pains that made walking difficult he had to find easy replacements for his frozen TV dinners.
He found he could enjoy a lot of foods he wouldn’t normally eat in smoothies and juices, and learned how to cook in a way that was both nutritious and easy.
One of his favorites is roasted vegetables, and I know why! My family had this for dinner last night, and it was a huge hit! I love how simple it is to chop and throw everything in the oven. The flavors deepen and blend to a magical combination. Just like last week’s recipe, this is a recipe that traditionally might be considered a side dish, but plant-based eaters know it can make a delicious main dish.
As long as I include some potatoes and/or sweet potatoes this makes for a delicious stand alone meal. I literally served my big bowl of roasted vegetables alongside my weeknight salad, which last night was just spring mix and blueberries. Everyone was happy!
Making roasted veggies reminds me that there are two kinds of chefs out there–those who are comfortable just throwing things together and those who like things spelled out with specifics in a recipe.
Lucky for you, roasted veggies can easily accommodate everyone.
I’ve never met a roasted veggie I didn’t like! Generally the cook time is pretty flexible–longer cooking time means they will be more browned and caramelized, but you can take them out after 30 minutes or 45+ and still have a delicious meal.
For those of you who like specifics on making the best roasted veggies, I have some tips:
How do you roast vegetables with little or no oil?
It was not until several years into our plant-based journey that I began to get serious about roasting all or mostly oil-free. I felt that some oil and salt were a great way for my kids to eat lots of veggies. Now though I enjoy roasted vegetables so much more without the greasy feel!
The first step is to prevent them from sticking to your pan. Silicone baking mats are awesome, and parchment paper also works well. They will stick to aluminum foil until you add some oil, but it does make for easier clean up.
Sometimes I am out of parchment and don’t have as many baking mats as I need, so I drizzle some avocado oil on the pan and use a spatula to ensure there is a thin coat across the bottom.
I also recently invested in some spray bottles which make it much easier to add a small amount of oil to the pan or as a finishing touch. Avocado oil is the best oil for roasting as it is stable at high heats (other oils can break down and become toxic). The structure of olive oil makes it healthiest for consuming in dishes that aren’t cooked, so you could spray a little olive oil on at the end if you thought it needed it.
If you have a convection setting on your oven, definitely use it! Circulating air will help the vegetables to crisp up and brown. When my 23 year old oven finally gave up, I replaced it with one that also has convection roast which has been really nice. It adds heat from the top and helps vegetables brown more quickly. Just keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t get them too brown!
Many people will roast vegetables in their air fryers, but so far my feeling has been that I need to make more food than would justify the space and cost of the air fryer. From what I understand you can get similar results in a convection oven.
How do you season roasted vegetables?
Truthfully I have roasted many vegetables without a drop of seasoning. I love the pure flavor of the vegetables and might sprinkle a little salt and pepper.
Rick likes to make his spicy with garlic powder, turmeric, paprika and cayenne in addition to salt and pepper. We tried this and everyone enjoyed it!
We also really like the combo of garlic powder, chili powder and smoked paprika, which makes roasted sweet potatoes taste like spicy fries.
Other Tips for Roasting Vegetables:
A few other things I have found helpful for making the best possible roasted veggies are to pre cook the potatoes and keep the vegetables separate on the pan.
You don’t have to, but I find I prefer the result and cook time when I partially precook the white potatoes. I cooked them for 5 minutes on high pressure in my Instant Pot, but you could also boil them for 5 minutes or so. This doesn’t fully cook them, but it does make it easier to get a crisp outside and tender, moist inside of each potato chunk. I started cooking them while I chopped the other veggies, then peeled and chopped them and cooked them last.
Also, it can be a little tricky to know if your vegetables will cook at the same rate. I solve for this by initially grouping the vegetables by type. This makes it easy to remove vegetables and allow other vegetables to continue cooking. Part way through cooking time you can stir them together if they seem to be cooking at about the same rate.
Rick’s story of discovering outstanding health is inspiring and instructive–he found ways to stay focused and motivated on his goal, even though his progress at times was a bit bumpy. He began feeling huge improvements in his health almost immediately though, and today his blood work is almost totally normal and he can hike pain-free. I love stories like these to motivate me on my health journey! Listen in here!
| Prep Time | 10 minutes |
| Cook Time | 45 minutes |
| Servings |
servings
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- 1 onion chopped
- 1 bell pepper chopped
- 2 large potatoes peeled and chopped
- 2 cups other vegetables: squash, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, celery, etc. chopped
- spices: garlic powder, paprika, turmeric, cayenne I used 1/2 tsp garlic powder, paprika, 1/4 tsp turmeric and 1/4 tsp cayenne per baking sheet
- salt and pepper to taste
Ingredients
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|
- Preheat oven to 450.
- Line baking sheet with parchment, baking mat or a small amount of oil.
- Place chopped veggies on pan, and top with spices.
- Roast for 45 minutes or until vegetables are well-cooked and browning on the edges.
Optional:
- Mix spices before sprinkling on vegetables for even coverage
- Cook potatoes for 5 minutes in Instant Pot or boiling water for more moist interiors and shorter roasting time
- Another great spice combination is 1/2 TBSP each garlic powder, chili powder, smoked paprika with 3/4 tsp salt per baking sheet of vegetables