The Best Carrot Salad Ever!
Ready in just a few minutes, this is undoubtedly the Best Carrot Salad EVER! Try it once and I can guarantee that it will become your go-to carrot salad recipe! Just be sure not to leave the secret ingredient out…
The recipe for this salad, I came up with years ago and I’ve made it countless times since…
I thought maybe it was about time I gave this post a little bit of a fresh coat of paint, and maybe put it back on the top of the pile, too… ‘cuz really, no word of a lie, this is by far the best carrot salad I ever had.
When I initially created it, I think I’d gotten a little bit carried away… I’d been craving carrot salad all week and when I finally got to making it, I started adding all sorts of dried fruits and nuts, namely raisins, cranberries, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, pecans to my grated carrots.
And then, I had the craziest idea… I decided to throw in a couple of tablespoons of unsweetened shredded coconut to my salad. Oh yes, you read that one right! Unsweetened shredded coconut. It turned out to be THE one secret ingredient that totally MADE that salad. Don’t give me that look, try it, you’ll see! It adds SO MUCH mystery to the overall flavor of the dish, as well , especially when coupled with the fresh ginger, a very agreeable little hint of exoticism.
In your mouth, it feels like WOW-OH-MY-OH-YUM!
You have to try this. Have to! Here’s the recipe. Trust me, you will need it.
In a large mixing bowl, combine about 4 medium grated carrots, about 2 tablespoons of raisins, dried cranberries, chopped pecans, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, unsweetened coconut and parsley.
None of this is an exact science, you know. You can add a little bit more of this, a little bit less of that… you could add one more or one less carrot, they could be large ones, too! There’s just one thing that you must absolutely, imperatively do, and that is don’t forget to add the unsweetened shredded coconut!
Next, in a small container or measuring cup, combine a tablespoon of avocado oil and apple cider vinegar, a teaspoon of honey, about half a teaspoon of finely grated fresh ginger root, Dijon mustard, as well as some salt and pepper and whisk all that vigorously with a fork or flat whisk until well combined and slightly emulsified, then pour that lovely dressing right over the reserved salad.
Toss well and then transfer your finished carrot salad to a serving bowl; garnish with more pumpkin seeds, chopped parsley and grated coconut, if desired.
Serve immediately or place your salad in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to allow flavors to meld.
And then, get ready to have your mind blown! You simply won’t believe that carrot salad could actually taste this good…
Now just for fun — or for the record — I kept one of the original pictures below…
Best Carrot Salad EVER
Ingredients
For the salad
- 4 medium carrots, grated
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 2 tbsp dried cranberries
- 2 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
- 2 tbsp pecans, chopped
- 2 tbsp walnuts, chopped
- 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
- 2-3 tbsp chopped parsley
For the dressing
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp unpasteurized honey
- 1 tsp grated fresh gingerroot
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients for the salad in a large mixing bowl. Set aside
- In a small container or measuring cup, combine the avocado oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, gingerroot, mustard, salt and pepper and whisk vigorously with a fork or flat whisk until well combined and slightly emulsified. Pour over the reserved salad and toss well.
- Transfer to serving bowl and garnish with more pumpkin seeds, chopped parsley and grated coconut, if desired.
- Serve immediately or place in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to allow flavors to meld.
Nutrition
If you’ve tried this recipe, please take a minute to rate the recipe and let me know how things went for you in the comments below. It’s always such a pleasure to hear from you!
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77 Comments on “The Best Carrot Salad Ever!”
That looks so delicious and about all I can face eating in this unbearable heat, no cooking, no way! I love Ikea too, I’ve got those ramekins you bought, I use them a lot for individual crumbles, so cute!!
It’s been pretty hot here also and I have been in the mood for a lot of fresh things also. BBQ or salads is pretty much the way to go these days. I love the little ramequins and can’t wait to use them. I’m always so excited when I get new kitchen gear, it puts my mind in “creation” mode. 🙂
Congrats on the NEW car. I think the new one should be a girl, You’ve gone form a truck to a car and it will have new smells, be shiiny and will get better mileage. You go girl!
Thanks Cindy! Funny, I was thinking the same thing… that new car should be a girl. Tiny, cute, classy, elegant, feminine… Definitely all girly attributes! 😉
I think her name will be Carla. And white she will be! 😀
That carrot salad looks so good! So fresh and flavorful! I love ikea… all the little stuff they sell as well as the furniture, but yeah, I don’t like putting it together so much, haha.
Thanks Liz! You have to give them credit for making instructions booklets that can be deciphered by anyone on the planet, though. Pictogram galore! It does take a while to really figure it out, but it gets the job done.
That does sound like a great salad! In India we use coconut in many salads including carrot salad.
I sure was glad I decided to give it a try! I think I will try including it more often, from now on! 😉
Your salad looks delicious and those Ikea finds look amazing. I LOVE IKEA!
Isn’t IKEA the best? I could spend hours in that store and not get bored. I only wish I had never discovered their Almondy pie… that thing is pure evil, I tell you! 😉
Congrats on the new car! And you got some great buys from Ikea! I wish I lived closer to any stores like that. And that cabinet looks really great! Love Ikea. And great job putting it together, those things can be so confusing 😀
Your carrot salad looks great. The carrot salads I’ve seen are mostly mayo and carrots and kind of gross. This looks really good, especially the coconut in there!
Thanks Heidi! That cabinet took forever to put together, especially it was SUPER hot and humid and I was all alone… I agree that most carrot salads have loads of mayonnaise in them, or worse, that disgusting white salad dressing stuff (sorry, can’t stand it!) This version is really light and refreshing and super satisfying! I think I’m gonna have repeats on that one pretty soon! 😉
Love, love, love! Look at all the gorgeous color.
Super delicious!! This carrot salad is just the kind of thing I love to eat all the time, anything crunch and fresh with added dried fruit and nuts = perfect food!! Love that you added coconut too, yum!
I made this salad tonight for dinner, and it was amazing! So refreshing on a hot summer day, and I bet it’s going to be even better left over (if it lasts that long!!!)
I don’t know if it’s just that the carrots I used were enormous, but I needed to make the dressing twice, I couldn’t taste it at all when measured like the recipe, so I more than doubled it.
Funny you should mention that, Jessica. I was looking at the recipe just this week and thought to myself that my carrots must’ve been really small for me to use 4 of them that day. I tend to choose my carrots on the small side, I just think they taste better! I’m guessing what I need to do is bring that carrot count down to 2-3 medium size carrots.
Of course, making double the dressing will always work too! 😉
Next time I make it, I’ll actually measure the amount of grated carrots that I’m using.
Thanks a bunch for your great feedback! I truly appreciate that. And glad you liked the salad too! 🙂
This carrot salad looks like the bomb especially with the coconut i can just imagine the flavor of this mingling for awhile and the with all those nuts & fruit this would keep you going for awhile great recipe and awesome blog.
Thank you so very much, that is really kind of you to say! 🙂
Hi! I really want to make your carrot salad and just went and bought all the ingredients. But I’m not sure about the conversion to cups/spoons from grams — would you please clue me in on that ? — not used to metric! Thank you ever so much!
PS Congrats on your purchases! Love the cabinet, too
There are plenty of sites that will help you make the conversions, Ruthie. A simple internet search for “metric conversion” or “conversion calculator” will yield tons of results.
Hope this helps!
I tried that first at several internet sites, but found it confusing because the weight is determined differently each time, depending on the ingredient.
I had thought you might be able to convert your recipe to cups and tablespoons much easier than I could — but if you’re not used to the American measuring system, it is probably just as hard for you as for me.
Excellent recipe! i made it this morning and packed it for lunch. Thank you so much for sharing.
Happy to hear you liked it, Amber. Thanks much for taking the time to let me know, too. That’s immensely appreciated! 🙂
The carrot salad is incredibly interesting. I’m not necessarily drawn to carrots, but I have a bunch in my fridge and this recipe seems like just the right thing to help me get rid of them;-) thanks so much for sharing!
While I had dinner simmering, I wondered what the heck I was going to do about a side dish… the only veggies I had left were my staples: onions, tomatoes & carrots. I didn’t want to make my usual sauteed carrots b/c I wanted something “fresh” & uncooked, so I did a quick search for carrot recipes and I liked the idea of a carrot salad. I picked yours from tons that popped up b/c it was the healthiest of them all, and it’s clear I picked the right one.
I made it w/sliced almonds & dried cranberries… YUM! I can’t wait to make it w/unsweetened shredded coconut & pumpkin seeds. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Barbara! I’m honored that you picked my recipe out of all those that the results that were offered to you, and real glad that it was to your liking! Thank YOU for taking the time to let me know, too. I greatly appreciate that!
OMG! You have the magic touch with salads for sure! I just made this one, and I can’t stop eating it! It satisfies my craving fro candy in the afternoon. And so super easy to make! Thank you for being you.
Awww, thank you so much Donna! So happy to hear that you liked the salad that much! I’d almost forgotten that this salad even existed. Thanks for reminding me, I think I need to whip up a batch now!
This looks so colorful and fresh tasting. Seeds, dried cranberries, and coconut…YUM!!
I am confused about all the comments on Ikea and a new car. I see nothing of that in this post. ????
Haha, good catch, Charlotte! Like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, this is a bit of a revamp of an old post. In the initial post, I’d mentioned how I’d just purchased a new car and went for a crazy shopping spree at IKEA… since it was old news and did very little for the post, I decided to ditch that part… 🙂
looks good .would omitt sun flower seeds unless organic ,as i seen where sunflowers are sprayed so birds dont eat the seeds. also thought i would soak the dried cranberries in some orange juice. off to the store. to get some [ stuff} BEAUTIFUL DAY HERE IN PA.
This recipe makes the best carrot salad that I have ever eaten. I was looking for a raisin salad recipe without mayonnaise when I found this. The directions are very clear! I couldn’t wait for the flavors to “meld”, so I had a small taste as soon as I mixed the ingredients. OH MY GOODNESS! It took a lot of willpower eat more. However, I am glad that I did wait. I just served this with dinner and it is so fresh and so delicious!
Wow! Glad to hear that you liked the salad just as much as I did! Thank you so much for your kind words and awesome review!!! You totally rock!! <3
Absolutely the best carrot salad I have ever had… I am 64 years old and have eaten my share of carrot salads! Best part is no mayo!!
Why thank you Marilyn, I take that as a HUGE compliment! You just totally made my day! 🙂
I must admit that I was skeptical about this being the best. But it truly was delicious! I’m adding this to my recipe box and I’m so happy for a quick, easy & healthy side dish!
All the best,
Lisa
Real happy to hear, Lisa! Glad to read you liked the salad as much as I did! 🙂
I tried this recipe for the first time on NewYear’s Day this year. We absolutely love this salad, and since then, I have made a bowl each week! This is so refreshing, and it holds up so well. I had some lemon infused olive oil that I used in place of the avocado oil…nice twist! Thank you so much for our new favorite dish.
You are very welcome, Doris! I’m extremely happy to hear that you love it this much! 🙂
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. I made a triple amount last week for a community lunch and it was the first dish eaten. Many people asked for the recipe so I made 20 copies. The added beauty of this recipe is that it is also a beautiful and refreshing winter salad when most salad vegetables are scarce. It will be a year round staple for me.
Haha! You are very welcome, Barbara, and so right, too! This salad is awesome, and accessible, year round!
This is my first time seeing your blog. This salad is just what I’ve been looking for as I’m allergic to eggs and therefore cannot use mayonnaise ever! I have just 1 question. How many serving does this recipe yield, and how long would left over keep in the refrigerator?
Have you ever tried Vegan Mayonnaise? This could be a total life changer for you! So easy to make too… check it out here: https://thehealthyfoodie.com/homemade-vegan-mayonnaise/
As for this carrot salad, it will keep for a few days in the fridge, and will serve about 4 people as a side.
this looks great but not low cal. its 229 calories per serving and 9 grams of sugar but what you dont list is how much is a serving? 1/2 cup , 1 cup? please let us know so we know how much to take. thank yu
The recipe yields 4 servings, Leah. So one serving would be one fourth of the entire recipe.
thank you. i knew it was 1/4 of the recipe but did anyone ever measure the whole recipe to see if 1/4 of the recipe was 1 cup . 1/2 cup?
Very good. I didn’t have shredded coconut on hand but I did have coconut milk, so I added that to the dressing — ALSO REALLY GOOD. It added richness and sweetness.
I didn’t even use the coconut and it was the best salad ever!
Real happy to hear, Louisa! Thanks for the awesome feedback and rating! 🙂
i am obsessed with this salad
I made this with a couple of variations as I did not have all the ingredients, including not having the vaunted coconut shreds, nor any nuts, seeds or parsley. and I put onions and some garlic in it. and used olive oil instead of avocado oil. And added some more olive oil, salt and vinegar. But it was really really good, the kind of good where you can’t stop eating it! I plan to make it next time with all the ingredients as listed.
This is the first time I made carrot salad without mayonnaise. At least 45 years. I always make it to go with gumbo during Thanksgiving break. Everybody loved it! I did not change anything, other than doubling it. The kids were so impressed. Nobody can believe I did something different. It was so good.
Haha! So very happy to hear! And thanks a bunch for taking the time to let me know, too! 🙂
Absolutely delicious. Everyone loved the salad. Had a few requests for the recipe 👍
Happy to hear, Marie! Hope you gave it to them! 😉
It is very nice recipe great .
This really is the best carrot salad ever. Even my husband who is not usually a salad lover, absolutely raved about it,
Hahaha! Awesome! Thanks Suzanne 🙂
My wife and I love this recipe. Thank you!
Delicious!
Just made this salad.. I had everything I needed except walnuts. I did use half the ginger, since I was making this for elderly neighbors. I also had toasted coconut chips, and those worked out fantastic! You were right.. the salad went from good to great, after I added the coconut!
Thanks!
Made this tonite. Very, very nice. I doubled the recipe and had half tonite. So can only imagine how it will taste tomorrow after the flavours meld. Thank you!!
Absolutely LOVE this carrot salad!!!
We’ve chosen it as the new, starring side dish for our Thanksgiving 2020. Thank you for sharing this fabulous recipe!
Wow, thank you so much Patricia! I take this as a HUGE compliment! 🙂
Yum! Loved this recipe (changed a couple of things – sliced almond instead of pecans and left out the raisins)
I love this recipe! It’s always in season and a hit wherever I serve it!
This was the best salad ever with so many flavors but the ginger is what makes me want to eat it everyday. Well done and Bravo
Full of tasty surprises for your mouth! Loved it!
I had my doubts about making this salad- my grocery store doesn’t stock exotic items like pumpkin seeds and avocado oil 😂 even with my substitutions, I could not stop “ tasting “ this as I transferred it to a Tupperware container. Delicious!!
This is absolutely my favorite way of eating carrots. It’s quick to make especially if you buy shredded carrots. I make in small batches as I prefer the salad freshly made.
Just love this!! Such a lovely combination of colours and taste.
Tastes fantastic, full stop. An absolutely perfect harmony of tastes, simple to make and good with other food. Also works great with olive oil and different herbs, nuts etc.
This is my go to recipe whenever I volunteer to bring a dish. There have never been leftovers.
This really is the best carrot salad! I mostly followed the recipe, but I’m not really a measurer, and there was definitely extra fresh ginger in here. I subbed a honey ginger balsamic for the ACV and added some Greek yogurt for creaminess. Thanks for sharing this!
Amazing recipe. This went down so well at our family lunch, and I had to share the recipe with everyone.
Fantastic!! Thanks.
I am simply elated that I stumbled across this recipe, it is DELICIOUS. I love carrots, but have always hated the usual creamy dreadful old school salad…..you have elevated the lowly carrot to new heights. The nuts (I had toasted mine), were such a nice crunch and texture to this salad. Yum. Appreciate you sharing this recipe with the lot of us.