This is my first year growing carrots and I’ve been surprised by how verdant the greens have remained through the North Carolina heat. Sunday, I dug up a few carrots, leaving me with a mass of tops.
Not one to casually discard anything even possibly edible, I wondered what one could do with these carrot greens. After reading this Times’ piece, I was afraid to go near them. Indeed many folks say carrot tops are toxic (much like the like-named comedian’s routine).
But if the World Carrot Museum says they’re edible, that’s good enough for me. After consulting a few food sites, it seems like the main options are:
- salad filler
- juicer fodder
- cooked into soups
- parsley substitute
I’m not a juicer owner or a fan of summer soups, so I’ve only tried the latter two. And, frankly, I was not impressed. This excerpt from a Chowhound thread summed it up for me:
I used to have rabbits, and even *they* wouldn’t eat carrot greens. They had pretty good taste.
My question to you, dear reader: Any ideas?? Have you found a good use for carrot tops?
(image by Carly & Art via Creative Commons)
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