WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
This delicious and dead-easy one-pan side dish will definitely linger in your mind. It’s simple enough to serve any night of the week but sophisticated enough for company. Cooking the parsnips was a short project: Cutting them into uniform sticks, a smoking-hot pan, and minimal stirring charred, caramelized, and cooked through those parsnips in just minutes. Since parsnips have warm spice and licorice-like notes, we chose glaze ingredients, including fennel seeds and ginger, that would bring out those unique qualities. The glaze achieved the perfect sweet, salty, and tart balance using maple syrup, soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar. You can substitute anise seeds for fennel. Look for parsnips with tops no larger than 1 inch in diameter for this recipe. If yours are larger, remove their fibrous cores before cooking.
SERVES: 4
TOTAL TIME: 20 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1½ teaspoons fennel seeds
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
- 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 1½ pounds parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch-long by ½-inch-wide matchsticks
INSTRUCTIONS:
- In a bowl, stir together soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, and fennel seeds. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine minced fresh ginger and 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil. Set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until it’s smoking.
- Add parsnips to the skillet and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they’re well charred and crisp-tender.
- Push parsnips to the sides of the skillet and add the ginger mixture to the center. Cook and mash the mixture into the pan for about 30 seconds or until fragrant.
- Stir ginger mixture into parsnips. Add soy mixture and toss to coat the parsnips. Cook until liquid is reduced to a syrupy glaze, about 15 seconds.
- Serve the dish immediately.
