Don't toss those tops! Carrot greens are just as edible as carrots themselves, and they're delicious in this tangy chimichurri sauce, pesto, and more.
Today, we’re making chimichurri out of carrot greens! I don’t know who ever spread the idea that vibrant carrot tops should be tossed. They’re edible and delicious, so let’s start using them!
This carrot tops recipe comes with a cute little backstory. A few years ago, Jack and I spent some time in Argentina, where I fell in love with chimichurri sauce. Upon returning home, I couldn’t find a recipe that tasted just like the bright, smoky chimichurri we had there. But recently, we learned that one of our friends in Austin is Argentinian! He kindly called his mother for her chimichurri recipe, and it was, of course, just right.
This recipe is a slight spin on hers. I used carrot greens instead of the traditional parsley, and I added less water and oil to make a thicker, dip-able sauce. It’s not at all authentic, but it’s delicious nonetheless.
How to Use Carrot Greens
Before we get to the sauce, let’s talk carrot tops! They have a lightly sweet, earthy flavor that’s like a cross between carrots and parsley, and they’re delicious raw or cooked. This recipe uses most of the tops from one small bunch of carrots, or half the tops from a large bunch. That means you’ll have leftovers! Aside from this chimichurri sauce, here are a few of my favorite ways to use carrot greens:
- Pulse them into carrot top pesto in a food processor. Make a nut-free pesto by swapping sunflower seeds or pepitas for pine nuts!
- Dice them and toss them into a salad.
- Sprinkle them over roasted veggies like carrots, butternut squash, or cauliflower. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and a little Parmesan cheese to take this over the top!
- Use them to garnish soups like my Many-Veggie Soup, Carrot Ginger Soup, or Butternut Squash Soup.
- Mince them and sprinkle them over a grain bowl, like the Carrot Ginger Grain Bowl on page 93 of The Love and Lemons Cookbook.
- Stir them into the Stem and Scrap Tzatziki on page 302 of Love and Lemons Every Day.
- Simmer any extras into vegetable stock! Find my Scrap Stock Recipe on page 106 of Love and Lemons Every Day.
Carrot Greens Tips
Ready to cook? Here are my best tips for working with carrot greens in the kitchen:
- Clip them off right away. In order to keep the carrot leaves (and the carrots!) fresh, you need to store them separately. As soon as you get a bunch of carrots with bright green tops, clip off the greens. Wrap them up and store them in the crisper drawer in your fridge until you’re ready to use them, or freeze them to make vegetable stock.
- Wash and dry them well. It’s no secret that carrots grow in dirt, so wash the leaves well! You’ll also want to dry them with a kitchen towel or salad spinner before chopping them – if they’re too wet, they’ll clump together and be soggy.
- Get rid of the tough stems, unless you’re making stock. Carrot greens’ thick stems can add delicious flavor to vegetable stock, but they’re too tough to use in salads, bowls, or sauces like this chimichurri. I like to use the tender leaves in carrot top recipes right away and freeze the stems to simmer into stock later on.
Chimichurri with Carrot Tops Recipe
This chimichurri sauce is so simple to make! First, wash your greens well, and chop them as finely as you can. Then, mix them with spices, olive oil, and white wine vinegar. That’s it! I love to serve this sauce with roasted carrots as a starter or side dish, but it’s also fantastic with grilled veggies, crusty bread, or any cooked protein.
If this chimichurri is too oily or vinegary for you, dilute it with 1/4-1/2 cup of lukewarm water. Mix well, and spoon it over whatever you’re eating, rather than serving it as a dip.
Stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, the sauce will keep for up to 4 days. It will thicken in the fridge, so allow it to come to room temperature before serving!
More Favorite “Scrap” Recipes
If you love this carrot tops recipe, try experimenting with other common veggie scraps! Here are a few recipes to get you started:
- Broccoli Rice
- Cauliflower Rice
- Beet Salad with Pistachio Beet Green Gremolata, page 127 of Love and Lemons Every Day
- Leek and Radish Green Tart, page 181 of Love and Lemons Every Day
Carrot Greens Chimichurri
Ingredients
- 1 cup finely chopped carrot greens
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the carrot greens, oregano, cumin, paprika, red pepper flakes, garlic, salt, and pepper. Stir in the vinegar and olive oil. Taste and adjust seasonings.
As a born and raised pure bred Argentinian living in Los Angeles, I will try this chimichurri and post my opinion.
I dont have white wine vinegar but I have balsamic, apple cider, and seasoned rice vinegars. Which would be the best substitute for white vinegar? Thanks 🙂
Today I did not have red pepper flakes therefore I used one roasted marinated red pepper mashed up and it tasted better than using the flakes! I like it much better this way and so does my husband.
I’ll have to try that – it sounds delicious!
Just made up a batch of this tonight! Thanks for the share! Do you think this recipe could be made with lime juice instead of the vinegar?
I’m not really sure – in my opinion it’s all about the combinations of the vinegars. I’m thinking if you switched it around and made it into a green salsa, (w/ tomatillos perhaps & other ingredients) lime would go well.
We ate this this evening and we tought it was suprisingly good. Great way to waste nothing and a great way to eat our homegrown carrots.
This recipe was suggested by someone at the community farm -just made it and added some fennel fronds..magnificent! Will put on salmon and bake..thanks for the recipe!
We live on a CSA and usually have far more veggies than we can reasonably eat, so usually carrot greens go to the pigs/chickens. Made one batch of this today, tasted some on a tortilla chip, and then quadrupled it as a dip to feed the masses of summer volunteers at our 4th of July BBQ! Quite the hit in this veggie loving crowd, and freed up a ton of space in the fridge. My only substitution was Bragg’s apple cider vinegar, and the addition of a sprinkle of sugar to make up for the sharpness of it. Next time fresh oregano and maybe some fennel greens!
I’m so glad you liked it! I’ll have to try apple cider vinegar next time, great idea…
This was delicious! I really wanted to use those lush carrot tops, plus I threw in a bit of cilantro I had on hand. I served it over white fish and carrots and it was a dream.
Excellent!!! Love it!!!!! I served it with spaghetti using toasted baguette and it is delicious!! Loaded with K+, Ca+ and Mg a very healthy alternative to other dips/spreads. Also great on Wasa Crackers! Thank you very much for a wonderful new experience which I will revisit often!
Roasted carrots tonight and made the chimichurri to accompany and it was delicious. Thanks for sharing!
so glad you liked it!
I made it but unfortunately 1 teaspoon was way too much salt for my taste. I had to double the recipe and then eat it with yoghurt sauce, next time I’ll salt to taste again and not to measurements. I have to admit I was probably too happy trying out my first measuring set of cups and spoons, a rarity in Europe.
thanks for letting me know – I’ll reduce the salt a bit in the recipe so people can add it to taste.
Tried this today and served it over grilled chicken… really great!
Thanks for this recipe, it was great! Had it with grilled flank steak.
Golly I’ve been slinging those beautiful carrot tops into the compost all this time. Great recipe and tip.
Can you substitute the white wine vinegar with a different kind?
white balsamic vinegar, champagne vinegar, sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar (although either of those last 2 will make it a bit darker in color)
I used apple cider vinegar and really enjoyed the results!
Beautiful and resourceful! Love it.
Hey Jeanine!
I’m a silent fan of your blog. I’m not vegan nor vegetarian, but still copying and loving lots of tips you throw around! The first one that got me was the flax egg, and i couldn’t stop myself from adding your blog to my Favorites. (‘you got me at flax egg!’)
The thing is that I’m argentinean, and have a food blog. Well, I’m a musician and *that’*s my work. But still, I entertain myself and relax cooking, and sometimes, posting.
You’re so inspiring!
And now, you’re throwing a chimichurri recipe!
Oh♥ It’s a gastronomic crush ♥
So, I just wanted to say that.
Silent readers, sometimes, come out to light to say: ‘keep it up!’
Hugs from Buenos Aires!
Ca
Hooray! Love the chimmichurri at the amazing Argentinian-Aussie restaurant Porteño here in Sydney. Can’t wait to try this version, and thanks for the carrot tops idea– love using the whole vegetable.
I never thought to use carrot greens – so doing this thank you so much!!
Thank you for sharing this. I always hesitate when I discard those lush and fragrant leaves atop organic carrots. I’ve often considered adding them to soup.
Our chickens and sheep love carrot tops too.
Next time, I’ll incorporate the leaves into soup. Maybe not too much, as it might dominate the flavor.
Have you tried freezing them? Ours have huge fluffy tops — too much for one pot of soup.
So excited to know what to do with those pesky greens. This sounds like heaven!
This is fantastic! I love to use the “throw-away” bits of veggies 🙂 What a great idea!