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This crunchy grated carrot salad is the perfect snack or side dish to use up any extra carrots or boost the amount of fiber you eat in a day. The carrots and healthy fats give you a nice afternoon burst of energy. The lemon and orange also brighten it up because we could all use a little extra sunshine in our lives.
The beta carotene found in carrots makes them orange and is great for eye health. They are naturally sweet yet low in natural sugar. The nutrients in carrots may help protect the body from several kinds of cancer.
Carrot Salad Tips
I created this salad for my Plant-Based Cleanse as a nourishing snack recipe. It’s not really main event material yet it works perfectly as a snack.
- If you decide to buy whole carrots, you can grate them yourself. This adds more carrot flavor to the dish (store-bought shredded carrots save time, but you’ll lose out on some of the flavor).
- Up the protein in this salad by adding chickpeas or extra sunflower seeds.
- Toast the sunflower seeds for a richer flavor
- Top with fresh fruit if you want more of a classic French carrot salad.
QUick Tip
Make multiple servings of this Carrot Salad and store in small snack-size containers to grab and go all week when you’re feeling hungry in between meals.
More Healthy 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:
Don’t forget to rate + review this recipe once you’ve made it. I can’t wait to read how yours turned out!
Crunchy Carrot Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded carrots
- ¼ cup cilantro stems removed and chopped
- ¼ cup raw sunflower seeds
- dash ground black pepper
- dash sea salt
Dressing
- 2 tbsp orange juiced
- 2 tbsp lemon juiced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Whisk together orange juice, lemon juice and olive oil. Set aside.
- Combine carrot strips, cilantro and sunflower seeds on a plate.
- Drizzle dressing over salad. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- You can use whole carrots and grate them for stronger flavor.
- 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 Plant-Based Cleanse, I used rainbow carrots because they’re fun!Â
Nutrition
Carrot Salad FAQs
Carrots contain beta carotene, fiber, potassium and antioxidants. Talk about nutrient-loaded!
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 few days and have as a quick snack.
Super easy to make. I used the food processor and added some golden raisins. I loved the crunch the sunflower seeds added. The orange juice adds some nice sweetness. I will make this again often.
Adding golden raisins sounds fun! Good idea!
I’m not a huge fan of carrots. I liked the dressing and freshness, but still it”s carrots, so I probably won’t make it again, sorry.
That’s okay! We’re just happy that you gave it a shot!
Crunchy and citrus. Enjoyed it!
I used rainbow carrots for fun..I’ve not had them before.
Here’s to another food adventure!
Rainbow carrots def make this one more fun!
I don’t eat cilantro, so I added some of my leftover mixed greens. I also felt it needed more ingredients, so I added leftover snow peas and red bell pepper. I did like the dressing. I ate this for lunch, and I am full. May try it again with the fruit mentioned in your comments.
Snow peas and bell pepper would go great with this salad! Great idea!
I enjoyed it! I used the grater attachment on my mandolin slicer to speed up the carrot grating, which makes it quicker.
Delicious side salad, and so easy to make.
This reminds me how sweet carrots are! I love the mix of cilantro and citrus dressing! Yum!
OMG so good! I usually dont like to eat raw carrots but in this salad i could eat (almost) endlessly! And thats a good thing because I wanted to be abble to get more beta caroten, but as long as it’s sensitive to heat, I had to find a way to eat more raw orange veggies! Thanks a lot!
This carrot salad is a real treat! Flavorful and refreshing!
I like how the flavors all come together! I used lime (I like it more) rather than lemon in the dressing. It will be a good side salad for salmon!
This recipe wasn’t my favorite. It was fresh and light, but I felt it needed more substance. Next time I’ll try adding raisins and apples, as suggested. Still, I would definitely try again!
I’m not fond of carrots. I will eat them, but just not a fan.
A very simple unique salad full of flavor and crunch! I love the refreshing citrus dressing that’s so simplistic.
Interesting crunchy fun salad!
Another favorite. I had it for brunch. So easy to make.
Nice way to build a salad with carrots. We enjoyed the nice citrussy flavor of the dressing, and the crunchy of the carrots with sunflower seeds. We paired this salad with an Asian flare of chicken yakitori.
Chop Stix all the way lol…
I loved this colorful, fresh, healthy, and light salad. Perfectly filling, I wasn’t so full I couldn’t go for a run!!