Hasselback root vegetables in the Air Fryer
Crisp fans of potato, parsnip, carrot and beetroot, brushed with melted herb butter with garlic, rosemary and thyme. Crisp at the edges, tender in the middle — and they pretty much look after themselves in the air fryer.
Equipment
- 1 Air fryer
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Knife
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Brush
Ingredients
Root vegetables
- 400 g small potatoes Scrubbed, skin left on
- 300 g parsnips Peeled
- 300 g thick carrots Peeled
- 250 g small beetroot Peeled
Herb butter
- 75 g butter Melted
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 clove garlic Finely chopped
- 2 tsp fresh rosemary Finely chopped
- 2 tsp fresh thyme Leaves picked from the stalks
1 tsp salt- 0.5 tsp black pepper Freshly ground
To serve
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley Roughly chopped
- 1 tsp flaky sea salt
Instructions
Preparation
- Scrub 400 g small potatoes clean under cold water, and leave the skin on. Peel 300 g parsnips, 300 g thick carrots and 250 g small beetroot, and pat all the root vegetables completely dry.
- Place one root vegetable at a time between the handles of two tablespoons on the cutting board, and slice it into 3-4 mm slices all the way down. The spoons stop the knife, so the root vegetable stays joined at the base and fans out. If a root vegetable is thicker than 5 cm, halve it lengthways first, so the fans bake through.
- Melt 75 g butter, and stir it together with 2 tbsp olive oil, 3 clove garlic, 2 tsp fresh rosemary, 2 tsp fresh thyme, 1 tsp salt and 0.5 tsp black pepper in a bowl.
- Brush the root vegetables with two thirds of the herb butter, and work the brush down between the slices, so the butter and garlic end up inside the cuts and not just on top.
Cooking in the air fryer
- Preheat the air fryer to 180 °C fan.
- Place the root vegetables in the basket in a single layer with the cut side facing up and air between them, and bake them at 180 °C for 20 minutes. Keep the beetroot together at one end of the basket — it stains the pale root vegetables.
- Brush with the rest of the herb butter, swap the root vegetables around so the outer ones move into the middle, and carry on baking for 10 minutes at 200 °C, until the fans are crisp at the edges and a knife slides easily into the middle.
Serving
- Let the root vegetables rest for 2 minutes, and sprinkle them with 2 tbsp fresh parsley and 1 tsp flaky sea salt just before serving.
Notes
Tips for a perfect result:
Place the root vegetable between the handles of two tablespoons when you slice it — the knife stops by itself, and you don't cut all the way through. Slices of 3-4 mm are right: thinner slices burn at the edges, thicker ones never fan out. How to make them extra crispy:
Give them an extra brushing after the first 20 minutes, and raise the temperature to 200 °C for the last third of the time. The root vegetables need to sit in a single layer with air around them — a packed basket steams them instead of baking them crisp. Variation:
Swap the beetroot for parsley root or celeriac if you want to avoid the red colour bleeding onto the other root vegetables. 2 tbsp grated Parmesan stirred into the herb butter for the last brushing gives a crisp cheese crust. Serving suggestion:
Serve as a side dish with roast chicken, roast veal or a good steak. A dollop of crème fraîche stirred with grated lemon zest goes well with the garlicky butter. Portion size:
If your air fryer is smaller, you can make the dish in two batches and heat everything through for 3 minutes at the end.
Place the root vegetable between the handles of two tablespoons when you slice it — the knife stops by itself, and you don't cut all the way through. Slices of 3-4 mm are right: thinner slices burn at the edges, thicker ones never fan out. How to make them extra crispy:
Give them an extra brushing after the first 20 minutes, and raise the temperature to 200 °C for the last third of the time. The root vegetables need to sit in a single layer with air around them — a packed basket steams them instead of baking them crisp. Variation:
Swap the beetroot for parsley root or celeriac if you want to avoid the red colour bleeding onto the other root vegetables. 2 tbsp grated Parmesan stirred into the herb butter for the last brushing gives a crisp cheese crust. Serving suggestion:
Serve as a side dish with roast chicken, roast veal or a good steak. A dollop of crème fraîche stirred with grated lemon zest goes well with the garlicky butter. Portion size:
If your air fryer is smaller, you can make the dish in two batches and heat everything through for 3 minutes at the end.
Nutrition
Calories: 400kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 5gFat: 23gSaturated fat: 11gPolyunsaturated fat: 1.3gMonounsaturated fat: 9gTrans fat: 0.6gCholesterol: 41mgSodium: 780mgPotassium: 1130mgFiber: 9.5gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 12750IUVitamin C: 40mgCalcium: 78mgIron: 2mgNet carbohydrates: 33.5g
