Moroccan carrot salad is my spin on salatat al jazar, a vibrant raw carrot dish that balances savory and sweet flavors. Pair it with couscous, marinated olives, and grilled meat like al faham chicken or hearty loubia stew for a complete and satisfying meal.
Key Ingredients
Moroccan carrot salad transforms carrots into a delicious side dish– perfect for any occasion, including celebrations like Eid, Rosh Hashanah, or Thanksgiving. Plus, it only takes 10 minutes to prepare! Here’s what you need to get started.
- Cumin Seeds and Pistachios: Dry toast cumin seeds and hulled pistachios to pronounce their flavor.
- Dressing: Prepare an easy, homemade dressing for the raw carrot salad with fresh lemon juice, honey, turmeric powder, kosher salt, coarse black pepper, and high quality extra-virgin olive oil.
- Carrots: You will need one pound of raw carrots. I like to slice them into ribbons with a vegetable peeler to create a tender salad base, perfect for soaking up all the sweet flavor of the dressing. Feel free to chop, shred, or slice the carrots—whatever’s easiest for you. Whether you have orange, purple, or rainbow carrots, they all work beautifully!
Additions and Substitutions
- Add fresh herbs. Garnish the Moroccan carrot salad with fresh mint leaves or parsley.
- Go nutty. Replace the toasted cumin seeds and pistachios with hulled sunflower seeds, sliced almonds, sesame seeds, pine nuts, or pumpkin seeds.
- Mix it up. Add fresh pomegranate seeds, dates, raisins, dried apricots, or a drizzle of pomegranate molasses for a hint of sweetness. Pitted green olives and grated lemon or orange zest is another way to brighten the flavor of the carrots.
Tools You’ll Need
All you need to make a simple Moroccan carrot salad is a skillet and a large bowl. Use a vegetable peeler to cut the carrots into ribbons or a mandolin for a more uniform cut.
How to Make Moroccan Carrot Salad
The full recipe with measurements is in the recipe card below.
Step 1: Dry toast the cumin seeds and pistachios in a small skillet over low heat for 5 minutes and set them aside.
Step 2: In a serving bowl, combine lemon juice, honey, warm water, turmeric powder, salt, and black pepper. Then, whisk in the olive oil.
Step 3: Add the shredded carrot to the dressing and toss to combine. Garnish with the toasted cumin seeds and pistachios, and enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Prepare the carrots. Slicing the carrots into ribbons or shredding them reduces the fibrousness of the carrots and enhances their natural sweetness to flavor the salad.
If you enjoy the vibrant carrot salad, try more Moroccan recipes from Jamil Ghar!
Serving Suggestions
Serve the Moroccan carrot salad with grilled salmon, boneless leg of lamb, grilled chicken drumsticks, beef brisket, and Instant Pot beef stew.
The savory salad also pairs well with kabobs like kofta, koobideh kabobs, beef Seekh kabobs, joojeh kabobs, and adana kebab.
More Serving Ideas:
What To Do With Leftovers
- Can this salad be made in advance? Prepare the salad up to three days in advance. Although, I recommend waiting until you are ready to serve the salad to add the pistachios, cumin seeds, and lemon juice.
- Refrigerate: Store the leftover salad in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
More Salad Recipes:
Moroccan Carrot Salad
- 1½ teaspoons cumin seeds
- ½ cup pistachios, roughly chopped
- lemon juice, one lemon
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 tablespoons warm water
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon coarse black pepper
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 pound carrots, peeled and shredded
- Dry toast the cumin seeds and pistachios in a small skillet over low heat for 5 minutes and set them aside.
- In a serving bowl, combine lemon juice, honey, warm water, turmeric powder, salt, and black pepper. Then, whisk in the olive oil.
- Add the shredded carrot to the dressing and toss to combine. Garnish with the toasted cumin seeds and pistachios, and enjoy!
- Prepare the carrots. Slicing the carrots into ribbons or shredding them reduces the fibrousness of the carrots and enhances their natural sweetness to flavor the salad.