Crunchy Carrot Salad – A Refreshing Take on a Classic Side Dish
The salad recipe I’m sharing today is small but mighty. It’s not loaded with leafy greens. In fact, it’s quite a simple salad. My crunchy grated carrot salad is the perfect snack or side dish.
I created this salad for my Autumn Cleanse as a snack recipe since the healthy fats give you an afternoon refresh. The lemon and orange also brighten it up because we could all use a little extra sunshine in our lives.
Simple Carrot Salad Tips
The hardest part of this recipe is deciding whether to peel the carrots or grate them thinly. You do you!
I turn to this salad for an afternoon pick-me-up instead of veggies and dip because, well, it’s healthier. But the dressing does elevate this dish to more than just peeled carrots and some greens.
Extra Topping Options
Feel free to up the protein in this salad with chickpeas or black beans. Use toasted sunflower seeds for a different flavor and feel free to add in some spices of your choice. The classic French carrot salad also includes fruit, so add that as a topping.
Carrot Nutrition
Everyone knows that carrots are healthy. The beta carotene that makes them orange is great for eye health. They are naturally sweet yet low in natural sugar. The nutrients in carrots have been shown to protect the body from several kinds of cancer.
Carrot Salad FAQs
The carrot salad you knew as a child is probably a French Carrot salad. It often includes fruit and is used as a side dish. Feel free to add fresh apples or raisins to my version!
While this salad is at its best eaten right away, you can refrigerate it for a day or two without the dressing on it.
More Carrot Recipes
If you love this grated carrot salad, use the rest of the bag in your fridge or pull some more from the garden to use in these recipes:
Crunchy Carrot Salad
This is my plant-powered take on a classic recipe. It is lighter, brighter, and not weighed down by mayo. Serve as-is for a wonderful side dish or double and enjoy as the main event.
Ingredients
- 2 carrots (peeled into strips)
- ¼ cup cilantro (chopped)
- ¼ cup sunflower seeds
- dash ground black pepper
- dash sea salt
Dressing
- 2 tablespoon orange (juiced)
- 2 tablespoon lemon (juiced)
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
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Whisk together orange juice, lemon juice and olive oil. Set aside.
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Combine carrot strips, cilantro and sunflower seeds on a plate.
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Drizzle dressing over salad. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- You can grate the carrots for this salad instead of peeling them into strips.
- Swap out the sunflower seeds with hemp hearts (still nut-free) or sliced almonds.
- Does cilantro taste like soap to you? If so, use parsley instead.
- Feel free to use the carrots of your choice. When I created this salad for my Autumn Cleanse, I used rainbow carrots because they’re fun!
Nutrition (estimated)
Calories: 257kcal (13%) Carbohydrates: 12g (4%) Protein: 4g (8%) Fat: 23g (35%) Saturated Fat: 3g (19%) Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g Monounsaturated Fat: 13g Sodium: 45mg (2%) Potassium: 356mg (10%) Fiber: 4g (17%) Sugar: 5g (6%) Vitamin A: 10368IU (207%) Vitamin C: 18mg (22%) Calcium: 41mg (4%) Iron: 1mg (6%)
