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Tzimmes is a traditional Ashkenazi Jewish holiday side dish of carrots and sweet potatoes braised in orange juice with dried fruit and warm spices.
My version of this classic plays up the sweetness level with a hint of vanilla, a sprinkle of orange zest, and a lacing of brown sugar. It’s a decadent side dish that’s perfect with any holiday meal, especially roast chicken, brisket, or roast beef. To me, this tastes like a cross between candied yams and mincemeat; talk about a festive holiday side dish.
Shanah Tovah to everyone celebrating Rosh Hashanah! Wishing you a happy and sweet New Year 5787.
What is Tzimmes?
Tzimmes is a traditional Ashkenazi Jewish side dish typically enjoyed for holidays like Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). It has endless variations, but ultimately, it’s a sweet stew or casserole made with root vegetables (traditionally sweet potatoes, yams, and/or carrots), dried fruit (such as prunes, apricots, and/or raisins), a sweet component (along the lines of orange juice, brown sugar, honey, etc.), and warm spices (frequently cinnamon).
Some versions of this dish lean towards savory, some towards sweet, and some walk a fine line in the middle. The version I’m sharing today is decidedly sweet, similar to my favorite Thanksgiving side dish: whipped sweet potatoes with maple syrup, brown sugar, and vanilla. If you’re a fan of candied yams or sweet potato sides that could potentially double as dessert, I think you’ll enjoy tzimmes. With orange and dried fruit, tzimmes tastes a bit reminiscent of mincemeat to me – yum! If you don’t celebrate Rosh Hashanah, keep this on your radar because it would make a lovely side dish for Thanksgiving or any other holiday feast.
This sweet dish is a Jewish New Year tradition because it’s full of symbolism, which I get into more in the post below.
Sweet Potato and Carrot Tzimmes Ingredients
Breaking It Down
Ingredients Explained
In this section I explain the ingredients and give substitution ideas where applicable. For the full recipe (including the ingredient amounts), see the recipe card below.
- Sweet potatoes and carrots – These two vegetables (especially carrots) are traditional ingredients in tzimmes. This is because when they’re sliced into circles, they look like little gold coins that symbolize prosperity for the New Year.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – Or avocado oil or vegetable oil.
- Freshly-squeezed and strained orange juice – Measure it after straining out the pulp.
- Light brown sugar – Brown sugar serves two functions here: 1) it adds rich, sweet notes of caramel-y molasses, and 2) it helps thicken the sauce into a glaze-like consistency.
- Apricot jam – You can substitute with the same amount of peach jam or use about 2 1/2 tablespoons of honey instead of jam.
- Salt – Salt ensures this dish isn’t bland.
- Cinnamon, black pepper, nutmeg, and allspice – This warm, cozy cinnamon-based spice blend pairs beautifully with naturally sweet, earthy sweet potatoes. The black pepper might look like an outlier because this is a sweet version of tzimmes. However, if you’ve ever made classic gingerbread, you’re familiar with the addition of black pepper along with other warm spices in a sweet recipe. In this dish, black pepper lends a subtle piquancy for balance, and doesn’t make the dish overly peppery.
- Prunes – Aka dried plums. Make sure they’re pitted, and you can cut each in half if they’re on the large side.
- Golden raisins – You can also use regular raisins or dried apricots (halved or quartered) if raisins aren’t your thing.
- Vanilla extract – Vanilla is the flavor and aroma-enhancing secret ingredient that I use to take traditional tzimmes and make it extra-special.
- Orange zest – A little bit of orange zest goes a long way and really brightens the flavor.
How to Make Tzimmes
- Prep. Chop the sweet potatoes into 1 1/4-inch chunks. Chop the carrots into 1/2 to 3/4-inch pieces (depending whether it’s the thinner, tapered end of the carrot or not).
- Caramelize a bit to build base flavor. Add the oil to a 3.8-quart Dutch oven (or other similar heavy-bottomed large skillet) over high heat. Once hot, add the sweet potato and carrot in an even layer. Let the vegetables sit without stirring until browned in spots, and then gently stir and continue cooking until they caramelize a bit on the other side, about 5 to 7 minutes total.
- Make the sauce. Whisk together the orange juice, water, brown sugar, apricot jam (or honey), salt, cinnamon, black pepper, nutmeg, and allspice in a medium bowl.
- Simmer. Add the sauce to the sweet potatoes and carrots; stir, using a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the prunes and raisins, and then nestle them down to make sure they’re submerged in liquid. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and cook until the vegetables are tender and the sauce is thick and syrupy, about 15 to 20 minutes. (TIP: The pan shouldn’t start to dry out, but if it does before the vegetables are tender, add a splash of water.)
- Finishing touches. Sprinkle the vanilla and orange zest around the top, and remove from the heat.
Storage and Reheating
Cool to room temperature, and then store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Tzimmes reheats best in the oven. To do so, thaw if it was frozen, preheat the oven to 350F, spread it out in an even layer in an oven-safe dish, add a splash of water, cover, and bake until warm, about 20 minutes.
Variations
- Savory tzimmes – The savory version is still sweet, but also has a savory component for balance. To make savory tzimmes, add 1 chopped yellow onion along with the sweet potatoes and carrots. Omit the brown sugar, vanilla, and orange zest. Lastly, reduce the orange juice to 1/4 cup, omit the water, and add 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock (or just omit the oj and use all stock). Garnish with fresh minced thyme, chives, and/or parsley.
- Apple tzimmes (instead of orange) – Add 1 firm, sweet/tart chopped apple (such as Honeycrisp) at the same time that you add the liquid. Use apple cider instead of orange juice. Omit the orange zest and use 1/4 teaspoon fresh lemon zest.
Tips For the Best Tzimmes
- For the dried fruit, a lot of people have strong opinions one way or another about prunes (aka dried plums) and sometimes raisins too. (I’ll be honest, I’m not a huge raisin gal myself, as in, I would never grab a handful of raisins as a snack and enjoy eating them out of hand. But strangely, I love them in things like this.) If prunes and raisins aren’t your thing, feel free to swap them out for any kind of dried fruit you like. You can use dried apricots (halved or quartered), cranberries, currants, cherries, dates, etc.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tzimmes is a traditional food for Rosh Hashanah because it’s full of symbolism (simanim) in its physical taste, appearance, and even name in terms of word play. Sweet foods like honey symbolize a sweet New Year.
Carrot in particular is a popular symbolic food because carrots sliced into circles look like gold coins, symbolizing prosperity in the upcoming year. Additionally, the Yiddish word for carrot is “meren”, which means to multiple or increase and alludes to the prayer for more merits and blessings in the year ahead. You can read more about symbolic foods for Rosh Hashanah on Chabad and Judaica.
Yes, lovelies, indeed you can! To do so, omit the water. Add all ingredients (except the vanilla and orange zest) to a 3.8-quart Dutch oven (or other similar heavy-bottomed large skillet). Roast (covered) in a 375F oven until the vegetables are tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour, and then uncover and roast until the vegetables caramelize a bit and the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes more.
More Sweet Potato Side Dish Recipes
- Sweet Potato Casserole With Marshmallows
- Whipped Sweet Potatoes With Maple, Brown Sugar, and Vanilla
- Sweet and Savory Maple Melting Sweet Potatoes
- Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potatoes
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Tzimmes Recipe
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Equipment
- 3.8-quart Dutch oven (or other similar heavy-bottomed large skillet)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (peeled)
- 1 pound carrots (peeled)
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup freshly-squeezed and strained orange juice (measured after straining)
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (lightly packed)
- 1/4 cup apricot jam (or 2 1/2 tablespoons honey)
- 3/4 teaspoon salt (use less if using fine salt)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon allspice
- 1/2 cup prunes (aka dried plums; halved if they're very large)
- 3 tablespoons golden raisins
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh orange zest
Instructions
- Prep. Chop the sweet potatoes into 1 1/4-inch chunks. Chop the carrots into 1/2 to 3/4-inch pieces (depending whether it's the thinner, tapered end of the carrot or not).
- Caramelize a bit to build base flavor. Add the oil to a 3.8-quart Dutch oven (or other similar heavy-bottomed large skillet) over high heat. Once hot, add the sweet potato and carrot in an even layer. Let the vegetables sit without stirring until browned in spots, and then gently stir and continue cooking until they caramelize a bit on the other side, about 5 to 7 minutes total.
- Make the sauce. Whisk together the orange juice, water, brown sugar, apricot jam (or honey), salt, cinnamon, black pepper, nutmeg, and allspice in a medium bowl.
- Simmer. Add the sauce to the sweet potatoes and carrots; stir, using a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the prunes and raisins, and then nestle them down to make sure they're submerged in liquid. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and cook until the vegetables are tender and the sauce is thick and syrupy, about 15 to 20 minutes. (TIP: The pan shouldn't start to dry out, but if it does before the vegetables are tender, add a splash of water.)
- Finishing touches. Sprinkle the vanilla and orange zest around the top, and remove from the heat.
Notes
- Storage: Cool to room temperature, and then store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Reheating: Tzimmes reheats best in the oven. To do so, thaw if it was frozen, preheat the oven to 350F, spread it out in an even layer in an oven-safe dish, add a splash of water, cover, and bake until warm, about 20 minutes.
- Savory Variation: The savory version is still sweet, but also has a savory component for balance. To make savory tzimmes, add 1 chopped yellow onion along with the sweet potatoes and carrots. Omit the brown sugar, vanilla, and orange zest. Lastly, reduce the orange juice to 1/4 cup, omit the water, and add 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock (or just omit the oj and use all stock). Garnish with fresh minced thyme, chives, and/or parsley.
- Apple Variation (Instead of Orange): Add 1 firm, sweet/tart sliced apple (such as Honeycrisp) at the same time that you add the liquid. Use apple cider instead of orange juice. Omit the orange zest and use 1/4 teaspoon fresh lemon zest.
- Passover-Friendly: This is also a great side dish for Passover, just make sure your vanilla extract is Passover-friendly.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximate.
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I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
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