This Asian Carrot Salad is a vibrant, flavourful side dish of carrot ribbons in a sesame vinaigrette that’s made in under 10 minutes from start to finish. Serve this alongside any grilled or roasted meat or fish, or stir a can of tuna into a serving for an excellent and speedy healthy lunch.

Asian Carrot Salad
Let me tell you what. If you’re looking for a simple and speedy side dish, this is the one you need in your back pocket. Need a way to increase your vegetable intake? Look no further.
People. This is a magical little side salad. I have made this a couple of times a week for the past month or so and I’m not tired of it yet. My husband and I tucked into a batch and ate it all by ourselves for lunch a couple of weeks ago.
It’s hard to stop eating it once you’ve started. Luckily, it’s actually incredibly good for you, so you don’t really need to stop yourself!
Raw Carrot Salad
What makes this raw carrot salad so irresistible? It’s a riot of textures and bursting with flavours and freshness.
Naturally sweet raw carrots are shaved into ribbons with a peeler then tossed with sliced scallions in a vinaigrette of fragrant toasted sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame seeds, and a hint of honey and ginger. Everything about this salad invites you to take just another bite or two.
That the vivid orange ribbons are visually appealing is just a bonus. And hey! You can whip up a big batch at the beginning of the week and it holds up well in the refrigerator for 5 days! It is just so good in every way possible.
Obviously, this is a superstar of a side dish, but don’t stop there! You can even tuck these into wraps and sandwiches or serve on top of rice with a fried egg.
Just imagine your carrot ribbon salad between two slices of excellent sourdough bread with a generous smear of hummus and some cucumber slices. Talk about a veggie sandwich made in heaven.
Carrot Ribbon Salad
There are two real keys to making this salad so good. First is the simple vinaigrette which is made by adding all of the dressing ingredients to your carrots in the mixing bowl.
Second is using a good vegetable peeler to slice long, thin ribbons of carrot. Slicing the carrots into ribbons increases the surface area of the pieces of carrot so they can carry more of that delightful dressing.
But it also makes eating a giant pile of carrots much more achievable texturally. Somehow they’re tender and crisp at the same time with zero cooking. And -not to belabour the point- all of this is done in under 10 minutes.
This is -of course- much faster if you’ve got an excellent vegetable peeler. I’m fond of this Y peeler and this old-school peeler both. Making your carrot ribbons is easiest if you jab a fork deep into the fat end of a carrot to hold it while you run the peeler from one end to the other.
Need some ideas of what to serve this with? Try this with our Salmon Sushi Bake. Baked salmon sushi satisfies your cravings for salmon sushi rolls and is a healthier option for a crowd-pleasing dish while being kind to your budget at the same time!
Or try it with smoked whole chicken. You will never believe how easy and spectacular this smoked whole chicken recipe is until you try it yourself. You could also serve it with the juiciest, crispy-skinned smoked turkey wings for a stunning way to serve turkey year round. If you break out these unbelievably simple gigantic wings at your picnic or tailgate, you’ll be a superhero!
Asian Carrot Salad
Rate RecipeEquipment
- 1 vegetable peeler
- 1 fork
- 1 set of measuring cups and spoons
- 1 silicone spatula or wooden spoon
- 1 chef's knife
- 1 cutting board
- 1 mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 6 carrots
- 3 scallions trimmed and thinly sliced, 1 teaspoon reserved
- 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds 1/4 teaspoon reserved
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh shredded ginger or ginger paste or 1/8 teaspoon dried ground ginger, see notes
Instructions
- Stick a fork firmly into the fat end of a carrot and use that to hold the carrot securely against a cutting board. Use a vegetable peeler to shave long ribbons from the fat end to the narrow end of the carrot, shaving the entire carrot or as much as you can. Repeat the process with the remaining carrots.
- Add the carrot ribbons, all but 1 teaspoon of the green onion slices, rice vinegar, sesame oil, soy sauce, honey, all but 1/4 of a teaspoon of the sesame seeds, and the ginger (see notes) to the bowl. Toss well to coat.
- Garnish with the remaining scallions and sesame seeds and serve.
- Store leftovers in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Toss or shake again before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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