Best Ensalada de Zanahoria Recipe [Spanish Carrot Salad]

Including fresh and nutritious ingredients in your diet is key to better health, and the hot summer days provide the perfect excuse to start incorporating more of them.

One recipe that’s filled with nutrients, it’s super delicious, and you can have it ready in 15 minutes is the ensalada de zanahoria recipe.

Keep scrolling down this article to learn more about this fantastic Spanish salad, how to make it at home, plus some extra tips.

You, dear reader, support this blog. If you purchase through a link, we earn a small commission. As an Amazon Affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Background of the Dish

Some historians believe that the simple carrot salad recipe was created in the Middle East, where they mixed raw carrots with different types of spices and oils.

Over time it reached other parts of the world, and in the south of Spain, they gave it their touch.

The Andalusian ensalada de zanahoria has onion, garlic, and parsley (in addition to the grated carrots) and it is all mixed with the fantastic Spanish olive oil.

Pin for later!

Things You’ll Need for Ensalada de Zanahoria 

To prepare the ensalada de zanahoria you need carrots, onion, one garlic clove, some olive oil, and lemon juice.

When it comes to kitchen tools, you will need a grater (a cheese grater works fine) or a mandoline to grate the carrots.

Ingredients

• 4 carrots
• 1 onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• The juice of 1/2 lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste

How to Make Ensalada de Zanahoria – Step by Step Guide

1. To start with this Spanish salad recipe, you have to wash and peel the carrots. With the help of a grater, a mandoline, or something similar that you have on hand, grate the carrots. Set them aside.

2. After that, wash and peel the onion. Finely chop it into small pieces and mix with the carrot in a salad bowl. You can chop it into julienne style if you like feeling the texture of the onion on the raw carrot salad.

3. Now you can peel and mince the garlic clove and put it in the bowl with the other ingredients of the vegan carrot salad.

4. For the next step in this raw carrot salad recipe, season it with salt, and dress the salad with olive oil and lemon. This is the classic Spanish salad dressing, but you can use another type if you like.

5. Lastly, chop some fresh parsley and mix it with the Spanish-style salad. You can serve it right away or chill in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving.

Substitution of Ingredients

Since it is an easy carrot salad we recommend following the ingredients as listed here, but you can play with them a little bit.

For example, you can use another dressing for the ensalada de zanahoria, or replace the lemon juice with one tablespoon of white vinegar.

If you don’t like using raw garlic then you can use 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, or just remove it from the recipe.

For an extra crunch on this traditional Spanish salad, you could add walnuts (similar to the ensalada de pepino), almonds, or croutons.

A similar salad you must try is the ensalada de repollo, or Spanih cabbage salad that’s also very easy to make and require just a few ingredients.

Tips on Serving Ensalada de Zanahoria 

We love the ensalada de zanahoria due to how easy it is to make, but also because it is super simple to serve.

As soon as you finish making it, you have the perfect Spanish summer salad, and you can serve it as a side dish for any type of dish: roasted suckling pig, Spanish chicken skewers, or anything.

If you have some sort of BBQ or potluck planned, then you can prepare a mix of Spanish salad recipes, like the Spanish tomato salad or the Spanish mixed green salad, and serve them as side dishes.

To turn the ensalada de zanahoria into a main dish you have to serve a bigger portion, and we recommend adding some sort of protein, like hard-boiled eggs, chicken, etc.

Give a go to our simple Spanish octopus salad with fresh vegetables that’s incredibly delicious and easy to make.

How to Store Ensalada de Zanahoria 

The ensalada de zanahoria is a pretty easy carrot salad recipe, but unfortunately, it can’t be stored for too long.

The whole purpose of this quick carrot salad is to be eaten right away, or a couple of hours after making it (at best).

If you are planning on storing the carrot orange salad for a few hours you have to do it before dressing it.

Some Spanish salad tapas that can be stored for longer are the Spanish grilled octopus salad and the ensalada de pollo.

There is also a marinated carrot salad recipe where you cook the vegetables, and thanks to that it can be stored for longer.

Recipe Card: Ensalada de Zanahoria

---

---