Roasted Watermelon Radishes

Roasted watermelon radishes with lemon and parsley are a bright addition to your winter table. This vegan side dish recipe screams sunshine on winter's short dark days.

A simple roasting of the radishes brings out their sweetness and makes for a nice change from the standard pickled radish or thinly sliced salad. This watermelon radish recipe is easy to make with just a handful of ingredients.

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We are in the shortest days of the year right now. And all things local and tasty are lovely dark fall colors. But every now and then I need something bright and cheery. I need hope that spring will in fact return someday. This is where watermelon radishes come to my rescue.

🍴 Why We Love This Recipe

A few great things about this watermelon radish recipe, it is:

• Vegan/ Vegetarian
• Gluten Free
• Dairy Free
• Paleo

They look a little plain on the outside but the slightest bit of pink tells us something fabulous is going on the inside. It is like wearing a practical wool coat and then ripping it off to reveal a Diana Ross style glitter bomb dress. The bright pink flesh gives me giggles of happiness.

We are dedicated to the best watermelon radish recipes. We have rounded up the best watermelon radish recipes for you so be sure to check them all out.

But roasting watermelon radishes is much easier for non-radish lovers to handle than pickling or raw which makes them the perfect gateway radish. Plus, they are so pretty no picky eater is going to look at them say… 'oh, no I don't do radishes'.

I try to pair watermelon radishes with main courses that are tasty, but maybe not as bright as I would like. For example, our gluten-free chicken nuggets or grilled bavette steak. Tasty, but brown.

🔪 How to Make Roasted Watermelon Radishes

Unlike most roasted vegetables, radishes are rather forgiving on temperature and cook time. Both can be adjusted to whatever else you may have going in the oven. Which essentially makes this one the easiest side dishes ever.

Ok maybe not as easy as our 10 Minute Sauteed Greens, but close. Very close.

Prep the Raw Watermelon Radishes: Watermelon radish prep is easy to manage. No excessive peeling or scrubbing. A quick rinse, trim the ends and quarter or cut in ¾ inch wedges if you have some extra-large specimens. Do not peel the radishes.

Roast the Radishes- Watermelon radishes are best roasted at 375 F degrees for 30 minutes. Be sure to toss halfway through and rotate the pan for even cooking. In this recipe we use melted coconut oil, however, you can use ghee, olive oil, avocado oil. We salt and pepper the radishes before roasting.

Finishing the Radishes- A toss with fresh parsley and lemon zest at the end adds some additional color to the dish. While this step is optional it is an easy way to elevate your radishes. If you don't have a fresh lemon toss the radishes with 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice. We used parsley to keep the herbs simple but you can chives, basil, or any combination of the three.

Now dig in and enjoy! But first, let us know in the comments... what is your favorite way to eat watermelon radishes? Raw, pickled, or roasted?

If you vote pickled... definitely check out our quick pickled watermelon radishes.

Want to know more about watermelon radishes?  Check out our watermelon radish recipe guide featuring a recipe round-up and tips on how to cook our favorite vegetable! 

🥗More Winter Side Dish Recipes

Winter doesn't have to mean boring veggies. Check out some of our other favorite winter recipes!

Honey and Thyme Roasted Rutabaga

Our favorite rutabaga recipe! Roasted rutabagas with honey and thyme is a tasty side dish perfect for chilly days.

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Dairy-Free Colcannon

Every Irish family has their special colcannon recipe. I converted my husband's tried and true traditional Irish recipe to a dairy-free version.

Check out this recipe

Baked Mushrooms with Balsamic

Easy and flavorful oven roasted mushrooms with a thyme and balsamic sauce. Perfect side dish. Gluten Free.

Check out this recipe

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Roasted Watermelon Radishes with Lemon and Herb

Recipe Created By: Jen Wooster

Lemon and parsley top off a simple no-fail roasted radish recipe. The best recipe for cooking watermelon radishes any time of year.

5 from 32 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 30 mins

Total Time 35 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, French

Servings 4 servings

Calories 77 kcal

Equipment

• Sheet pan

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 pound watermelon radishes, trimmed and quartered
• ▢ 2 tablespoon coconut oil
• ▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ 2 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
• ▢ 1 lemon, zested

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 375F.
• Toss cut radishes with melted oil and salt on a sheet pan.
  
• Roast 30 minutes, tossing halfway through, until slightly browned.
  
• Toss radishes with pepper, parsley and lemon zest.
  

Notes

1. To quickly melt the oil, scoop onto sheet pan and place in oven 1 minute.
2. AIP Compliant: Omit black pepper.

Nutrition

Calories: 77kcal | Carbs: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 7g | Fiber: 2g

Keyword AIP, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, lemon, parsley, radishes, roasted, Vegan, Watermelon Radish

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Check out our Roasted Watermelon Radishes web story!