French Carrot Slaw, fresh and zippy with lemon and herbs, is a perfect accompaniment for fish and seafood.
French Carrot Slaw
By Sue Lau | Palatable Pastime
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French Carrot Slaw is my recipe of the day with the blogging group Foodie Extravaganza. We get together monthly on the first Wednesday to celebrate upcoming food holidays. And post our favorite recipes we have for those.
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I decided on this French Carrot Slaw. I first came upon it watching Virginia Willis do a Facebook video about a month ago. She had spent some time talking to Bill Smith about his cookbook Seasoned in the South: Recipes from Crook’s Corner and from Home.
Bill did a demo of a carrot salad in the book that he had gotten from the French grandmother of a friend. He was very enthusiastic and it convinced me to give it a try. It didn’t hurt that lunch was coming up and I had all the basic ingredients.
Mine has a slight twist, however, as I felt it needed a little less garlic and a bit more lemon and oil to dress it. Bill chops his lemon without doing the royale.
That technique is the same one used on all citrus to get out the fresh fruit for fruit salads. If you ever worked restaurant brunches you are probably familiar. But if not, don’t fear- it is very easy.
Cut the ends off the lemons so they sit up straight. Then take a sharp knife and go around the outsides, top to bottom, removing the white pith only. Besides doing this with lemons, it is also great for oranges, grapefruit and even watermelon.
Usually with citrus, you would then section out the fruit by cutting in on each side of the skin so the sections slip out. But here, you will just slice into rings. Reason being you want the seeds to be easily found and discarded. And after that it is a quick mince on a lipped cutting board (so you don’t lose any of the juice).
Obviously since I doubled the lemon the oil is also doubled to be a good balance. I also added a little parsley and scallion for color and flavor.
Foodie Extravaganza
National Carrot Day
- Carrot Fries From Magical Ingredients
- Carrot Salad with Feta and Pistachios From A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Duck-fat Roasted Carrots and Parsnips From Food Lust People Love
- French Carrot Slaw From Palatable Pastime
- Gajar Halwa With Khoya/Mawa From Sneha’s Recipe
- Pasta Salad with Roasted Carrots and Kale From Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Roasted Carrots with Vinaigrette From Making Miracles
French Carrot Slaw
Perfect Flavor for Fish
This has the perfect zippy flavor for fish. It is great for those who want salad but not cabbage slaw.
It reminds me of the French carrot salads of Morocco, albeit without any spice as those do.
And as you can see in the photos, I served it up with fried fish, French fries and hushpuppies. It was a fantastic lunch. Bill Smith had felt as if he had stolen it, to which Virginia replied that he had adapted it. It has been adapted again and sent on its way into the blogosphere, where it will find new purchase in your own creative endeavors. Enjoy.
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French Carrot Slaw

French Carrot Slaw
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh carrots peeled and grated
- 2 whole lemons
- 2 scallions thinly sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced Italian parsley
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Zest lemons with a micro-plane grater, then royale to remove pith (slice thinly from top to bottom along the outside, following the curve).
- Slice peeled lemons and remove any seeds, then finely chop.
- Combine lemons with remaining ingredients and mix well.
- Rest salad for 15 minutes to combine and meld flavors.
Notes
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So easy and delicious salad.
I’m always looking for new sides to go with fish. Thanks for sharing.
This sounds delicious and I love the story about how you found it!
This is delicious! I would have the entire bowl of your salad. Yummy!
I am salivating and I have carrots and lemons ready to go. Found you at Magical Ingredients. Pinned.
Love the idea of a carrot slaw for something different – the flavor profile sounds fresh and bright!