Grilled Parsnips – A Super Simple Family Favorite

These Grilled Parsnips are 20 minute & easy side dish that is packed with flavor. It will go into your favorites to make again and again. 

We love easy side dishes and frankly, this recipe is so easy, it is almost embarrassing to share it with you. But, we decided to do it anyway because it is so darned delicious! I will show you how to mix this up by combining them with sweet carrots too. You will have an impressive and delicious side dish at a moment’s notice without having to spend a lot of time preparing it.

🔥 Grilling Instructions

Start by determining if you need to peel the parsnips or not.  I usually don’t peel the smaller, younger parsnips. The skin is really soft and contains a lot of the flavor and nutrients, so I prefer to keep it on.  Heck, it saves a few minutes too!  

You may want to peel the larger parsnips as the skin can become a bit tough.  

Step One: After cleaning and peeling (or not), cut them into ½” slices.  Try to keep them evenly sized so they cook at a similar rate.

Step Two: Add two tablespoons of oil to a cast iron skillet and add the sliced parsnips.  Sprinkle with sea salt and coarse ground black pepper.

Step Three: Place the cast iron skillet on the grill set to 350 degrees.  I used indirect heat to avoid burning. For a gas grill, turn off the burners immediately under the skillet.

Step Four: After five minutes, stir them.  You should see the bottom of the parsnips starting to turn golden brown.  After another five minutes, the parsnips should be tender and ready to serve.

Note: Depending on your grill and the size of the parsnip slices, you may need a few minutes more or less.  ⚠️ Check them often to avoid burning.

🍴 Substitutions 

There are always ways to mix up a standard recipe and here are my suggestions for this one. All of these ideas are using the exact cooking time and methods. Just mix it up to make a whole new side dish. 

• Use ½ parsnips and ½ carrots and cook the same way
• Cut them into strips instead of circles to make french fry parsnips
• Add in rosemary and thyme for a flavorful herb grilled parsnip dish 
• Add in one minced garlic clove into the olive oil mixture.  I love the earthy taste of garlic with the root vegetables.
• Drizzle a little bit of honey on top when they come off the grill for a fun sweet kicker

📌 Items to Note

The best way to meal prep this recipe is to peel and slice the parsnips so you really just have to put the olive oil in the skillet and start grilling. I keep mine in a sealed container in the fridge until I am ready to use them.

💡 Recipe Tips

I go through a lot of spices and seasoning when I grill. The cost of those little spice jars at the supermarket just got to bee too much! I started looking for bulk sizes. It definitely helped me save a lot of money!

Related Vegetables to Grill 

We love to grill vegetables all year around. They are so easy to do and it just feels like when I grill them, we eat more of them. I don’t know if it is the charcoal taste or the fun of it being on the grill but I do know, I eat a ton of veggies from the grill. 

Grilled Sweet Onions – This is a great one to use a stand alone recipe. Make these and use them on steaks or hamburgers to really beef up (ha! Get it? Beef up!) the flavor or you can mix it in with other grilled veggies. Either way, simple and easy! 

30+ Vegetable Recipes for Your Next BBQ – We love veggies so much that we compiled a mega list of the best veggies to make for your next BBQ. These are great for your family or for the weekend cookouts with friends! It’s time to up your veggie game. 

Grilled Patty Pan Squash – This is a fairly new veggie for us and we loved grilling it! Once we grilled it, we were back at the farmers market to get more. So good and so easy to make! If you like zucchini and yellow squash, this one’s for you! 

Grilled Carrots with Balsamic Glaze – This is hands down one of our favorite recipes ever! We eat it right off of the grill and sheet pan when we make it indoors. It is like candy. Try this one when you need an impressive side dish with awesome flavor for friends coming over. It’s a winner! 

If you try these, make sure to drop us a note and let us know. We love hearing how people use the recipes and this helps us know what to make next!