12 Overlooked Ingredients You Need To Start Roasting

Roasting is the gold standard cooking method for many foods. It's easy to do and produces the most delicious results. Simply place your food of choice in a roasting pan or on a baking sheet, pop it into a hot oven, and wait for the magic to happen.

Roasting is the process of cooking food by surrounding it with hot air in a closed environment. It uses dry heat with no steam or cooking liquid required. Roasting has evolved from cooking foods over an open flame campfire style to cooking them uncovered on a rack in your oven. It caramelizes the natural sugars in food, bringing out their sweetness and creating a depth of flavor that can't be matched. Roasted foods are beautifully browned and crisp on the outside and moist and tender on the inside. It is a simple, go-to method for getting a tasty meal on the table with minimal preparation. Your go-to spices and a bit of olive oil are usually the only items necessary.

Perfectly roasted chicken is likely the first thing that comes to mind when roasting comes up, along with other favorites like crispy roasted potatoes or roasted asparagus. If you're willing to think outside the culinary box and embrace some new tastes and textures, you'll find there are scores of other foods, everything from lettuce to fruit, that can also benefit from a good roast.

Here are 12 overlooked foods you should start roasting immediately.

Cherry tomatoes are a delight of spring and summer. They're tiny bites of sweetness that are fantastic additions to salads, pasta, and more. Roasting cherry tomatoes gives additional ways to enjoy them, and it's an excellent way to put overripe or imperfect cherry tomatoes to use.

Roasting concentrates the tomatoes' flavor and sweetness. The heat causes the cherry tomatoes to burst as they're cooked. They release their juices and cook down into the most amazing, jammy sauce. You can prick your tomatoes with a fork before roasting them to prevent the bursting juices from spattering inside your oven.

To roast cherry tomatoes, toss the tomatoes with olive oil, salt, pepper, and any other spices that will suit your dish. Place the tomatoes on a baking sheet and pop them into a 400 F oven for 40 minutes. The goal is tomatoes that are slightly charred and soft, almost jam-like in consistency. You can blend the roasted tomatoes into a flavorful sauce or leave them whole and pile them on top of your favorite pasta for an easy meal. Serving on crostini or spread generously on bread to take your sandwiches to another level. If you love tomato soup, you'll love it when it's made with tomatoes roasted with garlic, onion, and herbs.

Biting into a cold slice of juicy, sweet watermelon is a core summer memory for many of us. Chewing your way around the watermelon seeds was the only downside to this warm weather ritual — which also included the fictional parental warning that swallowing the seeds would cause them to sprout in your stomach. Needless to say, watermelon seeds won't turn your stomach into a garden, and they are safe to eat, but why would you want to? Pulled straight from the watermelon, the seeds are chewy and bland, but roasting morphs the seeds into crunchy bites of nutty goodness.

Watermelon seeds are excellent sources of iron, magnesium, zinc, and a host of other vitamins and minerals that increase energy levels, lower cholesterol, and boost your immune system. The seeds also contain both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, good fats that support heart health.

You can roast watermelon seeds by rinsing them thoroughly and patting them dry. Choose only the black seeds, which are mature, instead of the softer white seeds. Pat the seeds completely dry and drizzle them lightly with olive oil, just enough to coat them. Sprinkle them with salt, pepper, and any other seasonings you love, and spread them evenly on a baking sheet in one layer. Place the baking sheet in an oven preheated to 325 F for 15 minutes. Store the roasted seeds in an airtight container or bag and sprinkle them on salads, scatter them on soups, or have them as a snack.

If you're not roasting your bread, you are missing out on a simple way to add immense flavor to everything from roast chicken to French toast. Don't confuse roasting with toasting. Toasted bread is cooked at a high temperature for a short time, while roasted bread is cooked at a lower temperature for longer. Toasting gives you crisp bread all the way through. Roasted bread has a crispy exterior and moist interior.

Roasted bread is typically used in recipes where a liquid is in use, so it's essential to roast bread that is sturdy, like ciabatta, a baguette, or sourdough. As bread ages, it loses moisture and becomes brittle, making it easy for fragile breads, like sandwich bread, to fall apart when the liquid is introduced. The heat from roasting softens the bread, and thinner versions are more likely to crumble when roasted. Roasted bread also makes the best French toast. Place the sliced bread in a 300 F oven for eight minutes per side to create the perfect crunchy bread to dip or soak in your custard.

Cooking leafy greens may sound like an unconventional idea, but it isn't new. Kale chips are made by roasting kale leaves. Sauteed spinach is a quick and easy side dish, and stir-fries are better when bok choy is part of your vegetable mix. Grilled Caesar salads, made with romaine lettuce that's been grilled to a light char, are all the rage on restaurant menus. Roasting your romaine lettuce will make your salads epic.

Roasting romaine lettuce alters both the texture and the taste of the lettuce. It still maintains its telltale crunch, but the charred edges are tender, and its crisp, light taste benefits from the smokiness roasting imparts.

To roast romaine lettuce, cut the heads in half lengthwise and rinse them thoroughly, especially between the leaves where dirt can easily hide. Place the lettuce cut side down on paper towels and pat them completely dry. Wet leaves will become soggy and lose their crispness. Place dry lettuce cut side down on a baking sheet lightly coated with nonstick spray or lined with parchment or foil. Drizzle it lightly with olive oil and season it with salt and pepper. Roast the lettuce in a 400 F oven until the lettuce begins to brown and is slightly wilted on the edges.

Use your roasted romaine to make an elevated Caesar salad or any other recipe that calls for romaine lettuce. Your tastebuds will thank you.

Okra has a bad reputation. Technically a fruit, the small green pods get vegetable treatment in the kitchen and notoriety for a slimy texture when cooked. The culprit is a gelatinous liquid called mucilage that is naturally present in okra. Mucilage is why okra is a popular choice to add to soups and stews, like gumbo, which benefits from its capacity as a thickening agent.

When okra is cooked, the heat encourages it to release the mucilage, which gives the okra a slimy texture. The high temperatures used to roast okra dries up the mucilage, so only a dry, crisp texture remains. Air frying is a great way to roast okra. The hot, dry heat crisps the okra, turning it into crunchy, tasty bites.

For best results, choose smaller okra pods for roasting. Larger pods are tough and sinewy, while the smaller pieces will end up crispy but tender. Wash the okra and make sure it's dry before trimming them. To trim okra, cut off the ends and slice each pod in half lengthwise. You can leave smaller pods intact. Toss the okra with olive oil and seasonings, then spread it in one even layer on a baking sheet. Roast the okra at 425 F until it's fork-tender, crispy, and brown on the edges, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Pears often play second fiddle to apples as far as fall fruits go, but they are excellent choices for roasting. Like apples, pears can take center stage in pies and tarts and even add a delightful crunch to sandwiches. Unlike apples, when cooking pears, you can skip peeling them. Their skin becomes even more tender when roasted.

Roasting pears is simple. Rinse the pears and pat them dry. You can cut them in half lengthwise, into wedges, or slice them thickly. Remove the core no matter how you slice them. It will remain tough even after being cooked. Thin slices will fall apart when roasted. Place the pears on a baking sheet lined with parchment and drizzle them lightly with olive oil. Also, consider seasoning your pears with other flavors like honey, balsamic vinegar, herbs, and spices. Roast pear slices at 400 F for 20 minutes or until the pears are golden brown. Cook pears cut into larger pieces like halves or wedges longer and at a lower temperature. Roast them at 350 F for 30 minutes.

It's essential to choose pears that are ripe but not too soft. Soft pears won't survive the high temperatures of roasting. Roasted pears are fantastic on their own but make a fabulous addition to salads and vegetable side dishes. Serve them with a scoop of your favorite ice cream, add them to your cakes and pies, or roast them along with vegetables for a sweet and savory side dish.