How to Roast Beets

Learn how to roast beets in the oven with this easy step-by-step recipe tutorial and video.

Prep time: PT15M

Cook time: PT120M

Total time: PT135M

Rating

4.98 stars (34 reviews)

Keywords

beets, how to roast beets, roasted beets

Ingredients

4 pounds beets, (any color - you can roast more or less as needed)
2 tablespoons olive oil, (or as needed)

Cuisine

American

Steps

Place a rack in the center of your oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. If using a covered oven-safe casserole dish or Dutch oven, brush the inner surface of the dish liberally with olive oil. If using a 9x13 baking dish, brush it liberally with olive oil.
As the oven is heating up, use kitchen shears to trim leaves and upper stems of the beets, leaving about 2 inches of the stems intact at the top of each beet. Do not trim the tails of the beets; if you do, you’ll lose precious juicy flavor that will drizzle out of the trimmed tails during roasting. 
Scrub the beets clean. You want to get the dirt off of them, but you don't want to scrub the skin off-- it will help to hold the juices in while the beets roast.
Place the beets in the a single layer in the bottom of casserole or baking dish. Cover with lid. If using a 9x13 baking dish, you will need to cover it with foil. I am transitioning out of using foil in my cooking, so I prefer the covered dish.
Place the covered dish in preheated oven. Roast the beets in the oven for 45 minutes to 2 hours (very large beets may take even longer).
Use a pair of tongs to flip the beets every 30 minutes to make sure they roast evenly on all sides. Roasting time will depend on the size of your beets; small young beets are more tender and take less time to roast, while larger beets take longer. 
Start checking your beets for doneness at 45 minutes by piercing the largest beet in the bunch with a wooden skewer. If the skewer easily and smoothly glides through the center of the beet, they’re ready. If not, roast another 10 minutes and test again. Continue to test until they are tender.
After cooking, uncover the beets and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes until you can easily handle them. Cut off the beet stems and tails.Peel the skin from the beets while they are still warm. There are many different ways to peel, all of them are messy. Beets have a lot of pigment, which tends to stain everything it comes into contact with, including your hands. You might want to wear an apron when peeling your beets, to protect your clothes from stray beet juice droplets.
Some cooks recommend scrubbing the beets gently with a kitchen towel (that they don't mind staining) to remove the skin. Others use plastic gloves to protect the hands. I prefer simply removing the skin with my bare fingers under cold running water; the skin slides off easily this way, and the red beet juice comes off of my hands with a few soap-and-water washes. For stubborn skin stains, apply lemon juice.
By the end of this process, you will have some beautifully roasted beets! And once they're roasted, there are endless ways to prepare and enjoy them. Search my blog for "beets" and you'll find many tasty recipes for this beautiful ruby-colored roasted root vegetable!

Nutitrion

Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 112 kcal
Carbohydrates: 21 g
Protein: 3 g
Fat: 2 g
Sodium: 176 mg
Sugar: 15 g

Reviews

patlilygar on 2026-01-16 (5 stars):
thank you so much Chef ,you really outdid yourself your teaching me that i understand all Im not a real cook, I had to say never stop cooking ,when i see your recipes ,am very happy Blesse ,you and be well L,G
Deborah Garber on 2020-12-03 (5 stars):
So simple! Wonderful. Thank you Tori!
RJ Rouanet on 2019-11-27 (5 stars):
Yes!!! Thank You!! Finally!! Tried several times roasting beets on baking sheet covered with foil. Never came out the way the way the recipe said it would; tender when pierced easily through to the center and the skin easy to peel off. Baked about 4 pounds (for use in more than one recipe) coated with a little olive oil and salt in a 400 degree oven in a 11" stainless steel pan with a tempered glass lid . Lost track of time how long it took. Started checking after 50 minutes (medium sized beets), then checked around every 10 minute after, adding a little more oil until done. If I were not preparing them for a dish for company, I might consider only cutting off root and stem ends and leaving the rest of the skin on (unless the skin easily peeled off).
Sandy on 2019-10-24 (5 stars):
Delicious! They are way sweeter this way than boiling them. I like baking them this way better than putting them in foil. Make sure to rinse them well after roasting because beets seem to retain a little grit.