This Roasted Mexican Street Carrots recipe is just like everyone’s favorite street corn with cotija cheese, cilantro, and a creamy roasted garlic-lime dressing. Make for a quick and easy holiday side. Goes great with turkey, beef tenderloin, or ham. {Post first published November 20, 2018. Last updated January 24, 2022}
With Thanksgiving two days away, I realize most of you have already planned your menus and are not going to add these mind-blowingly good roasted Mexican Street Carrots (although you should).

If you’re a planner like me, however, they stand a chance.
My planning method goes a little something like this: I spend hours thinking about what I’d like to make but really the final decision comes down to the day before, when I go to the Farmers Market and see what looks absolutely irresistible.
My guess is there will be some beautiful baby carrots with my name on them, and if so, I’m absolutely making these roasted Mexican Street Carrots.
How To Make This Roasted Mexican Street Carrots Recipe

So you know how we love, luv, luvr, Mexican Street Corn right? Well that’s basically what’s going on here..but you know, with tender roasted baby carrots (preferably the ones in all the gorgeous colors).
- Roast the garlic and make the dressing. First step is to roast a head of garlic (see recipe for how to do that, but really very simple). This is going to be the base for the creamy dressing that gets generously drizzled on top. Of course lots of lime juice goes in the dressing too with some sour cream, chili powder, cumin and smoked paprika for that good sultry flavor.
- Cook the carrots. Next, preheat oven to 425°F. Toss the carrots with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast.
- Serve. Once the carrots are just tender, but certainly not mushy, transfer them to a serving platter and spoon the dressing over the top, then on goes the soft, crumbly queso fresco, a good handful of fresh, chopped cilantro, a sprinkle of Cotija cheese for tang, and toasted cumin seeds to finish.


More Side Dishes To Try!
- Beet and Persimmon Salad with Candied Peanuts and Smoked Paprika-Orange Dressing
- Simple Black Beans Recipe
- Grape-Roasted Beet Salad with Serrano Pepper Dressing
- Slow Cooker Borracho Beans Recipe
- Warm Cauliflower with Cumin Vinaigrette
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Ginger and Scallions
- Sweet and Sour Braised Cabbage
The Best Roasted Carrots Recipe
Don’t wait, try this Roasted Street Carrots Recipe tonight! When you make it, snap a pic and tag me on Instagram @holajalapeno and #holajalapeno so I can see or leave me a comment below (don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating) ! Also, make sure to sign up for my weekly newsletter, lots of recipe tips and other good stuff there too!

Roasted Street Carrots
These Roasted Mexican Street Carrots are just like everyone's favorite street corn with cotija cheese, cilantro, and a creamy roasted garlic-lime dressing. Make for a quick and easy holiday side. Goes great with turkey, beef tenderloin, or ham.
Ingredients
For the Dressing:
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- juice of 1 lime
- 3 cloves roasted garlic *see note below
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
For the Carrots:
- 2 bunches carrots, peeled, ends trimmed and cut in half if large
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/4 cup queso fresco
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 tablespoon cotija cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon toasted cumin seeds
Instructions
- Heat oven. Heat oven to 425°F and arrange a rack at the top of the oven.
To Make the Dressing:
- Make the dressing. Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Blend on high until smooth.
To make the Carrots:
- Roast the carrots. Toss carrots in olive oil on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast until tender, about 15 minutes. You can run them under a hot broiler for a minute or two to get some charred bits if you'd like.
- Serve. Transfer to a large serving platter or plate. Drizzle with a few tablespoons of dressing and sprinkle with the cheeses, cilantro, and cumin seeds. Serve immediately with extra dressing on the side.
Notes
To make roasted garlic, heat oven to 400°F. Slice off the top 1/4 of a head of garlic with a serrated knife to expose some of the cloves. Place in a piece of foil large enough to cover and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Wrap tightly with the foil and place in an oven-safe pan. Roast until cloves are soft, about 30 minutes. Remove, let cool, then peel off the papery skin. Roasted garlic will keep for 1 week in the fridge.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 31Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 39mgCarbohydrates: 7gFiber: 1gSugar: 5gProtein: 0g
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This recipe is to die for! Never thought of it and now I want to try them!!!
I love rainbow carrots and elotes callejeros, so this is perfcetion on a plate!
Yay! So glad you think so too.
Love, love, love rainbow carrots, they are sweet, they are crunchy and they are so festive!! I can’t wait to try them out!
Aren’t they just gorgeous? Those natural colors amaze me.