Name: Sautéed Parsnips with Ginger, Maple, and Fennel Seeds
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons soy sauce; 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar; 1 tablespoon maple syrup; 1½ teaspoons fennel seeds; 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger; 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger; 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil; 1½ pounds parsnips , peeled and cut into 2-inch-long by ½-inch-wide matchsticks

Why This Recipe Works

This delicious and dead-easy one-pan side dish will definitely linger in your mind. It's simple enough to serve any night of the week but sophisticated enough for company. Cooking the parsnips was a short project: Cutting them into uniform sticks, a smoking-hot pan, and minimal stirring charred, caramelized, and cooked through those parsnips in just minutes. Since parsnips have warm spice and licorice-like notes, we chose glaze ingredients, including fennel seeds and ginger, that would bring out those unique qualities. The glaze achieved the perfect sweet, salty, and tart balance using maple syrup, soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar.

Before You Begin

You can substitute anise seeds for fennel. Look for parsnips with tops no larger than 1 inch in diameter for this recipe. If yours are larger, remove their fibrous cores before cooking.

Instructions

Stir soy sauce, vinegar, maple syrup, and fennel seeds together in bowl; set aside. Combine ginger and 1 teaspoon oil in separate bowl; set aside.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add parsnips and cook, stirring occasionally, until well charred and crisp-tender, 5 to 7 minutes.

Push parsnips to sides of skillet. Add ginger mixture to center and cook, mashing mixture into pan, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir ginger into parsnips. Add soy mixture and toss to coat parsnips; cook until liquid is reduced to syrupy glaze, about 15 seconds. Serve immediately.