Carrot Tops Tabbouleh with Kamut
Carrot tops tabbouleh made with kamut is flavorful, with the delicate, herby flavor of fresh carrot tops. Chewy, soft kamut is dressed with lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, and joined with cucumbers, scallions, and cherry tomatoes. This spring salad is the total tabbouleh package, with less waste (and no parsley in sight)! This crowd pleaser will surprise everyone that the main ingredient is something we usually throw in the trash. After making this dish, you’ll never throw a carrot top away again.
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You Can Eat Carrot Tops
Waste not, want not. That’s an old timey saying that really resonates with me, although in more of a global sense. I could personally do a whole lot of food wasting before I ever found myself in a place of scarcity. But in a global sense, the more you can extract out of your food, the fewer resources you as a person need to use. Plus, I love buying carrots with the top leaves still on them- they’re beautiful and they remind you of how a carrot grows. And they’re edible! There is a myth out there that carrot tops are poisonous- which is totally false! Although they have a somewhat similar looking distant cousin, poison hemlock, which as the name suggests is poisonous. But carrot tops are totally edible, although a little tough. They have a taste similar to parsley, and are best when chopped finely or blended into something like a pesto.
About this Vegan Salad
This carrot top tabbouleh is my way of celebrating the beauty of tabbouleh- and also completely ignoring all the rules of tabbouleh. The main elements of this middle eastern dish are bulgur and parsley. I’ve gone ahead and used neither- for me, tabbouleh is a larger flavor profile than just bulgur and parsley. Instead of bulgur, I used kamut. I find its chewy, full grains delicious, so I decided to utilize it in my salad. And instead of parsley, I of course used the tops of carrots, a totally unappreciated part of the vegetable.
Try these other salads!
- Greek Goddess Vegan Quinoa Salad
- Summer Tomato Vegan Caprese Salad
- Massaged Chard Salad with Flax, Pumpkin Seeds and Golden Raisins
- Vegan Seaside Beet Salad
- Rhubarb Mint Salad
Making this Carrot Tops Recipe
As warm weather approaches, I’m trying to add more recipes that involve less cooking, and more fresh vegetables. Spring and summer recipes! This one is great- you do have to boil the kamut, but once you put it on you can step away from the stove and wash and chop some veggies. After that its just mixing, and seasoning to taste. Nothing difficult at all. You can eat a lot of this salad as a full meal, or snack on a little as a side. Although I warn you, it is pretty hard to just snack on a little.
Carrot Tops Tabbouleh with Kamut
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry kamut
- Leaves from one bunch of carrots (about ½ cup when chopped)
- 1 small cucumber
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 3 scallions
- Pint of cherry tomatoes
- Juice of one lemon
- 2 TBSP. olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Bring 3 cups of water to a boil, and add the kamut and reduce the heat to low. Simmer the grains for 45-60 minutes, until tender and chewy. Drain the remaining water, and place in a large bowl.
- Wash the carrot tops, and remove the stems. Finely dice the leaves, and add the bowl with the kamut. Wash and chop the cucumber into small cubes. Dice the garlic. Chop the scallions. Wash the cherry tomatoes and quarter. Add all the vegetables to the kamut.
- Add the lemon juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper to the bowl. Toss well to combine, and taste, adjusting the acidity or salt as needed. Serve room temperature or chilled.
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Let’s hear from you…
- Have you ever had carrot tops before? How did you like them?
- Is this carrot top tabbouleh really still a tabbouleh, or just a grain salad?
- What other under-appreciated vegetables or vegetable parts are there?
Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
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