⏱ Prep: 15 min 🔥Cook: 5 min 👤Serves: 4–6 🌿Vegan
Moroccan carrot and chickpea salad is the combination of two Moroccan pantry staples, raw or lightly cooked carrots and tinned chickpeas in a dressing built on cumin, harissa, lemon and honey. It is the sweet-spiced-sour balance that runs through all Moroccan cooking, in salad form. Ready in twenty minutes, better after thirty as the dressing soaks in.
The dressing is the dish. Toast the cumin seeds whole and grind them yourself if you have five extra minutes, the difference from pre-ground cumin is immediate and worth the effort. Harissa brings heat and depth. Honey balances both. Fresh lemon keeps everything bright.
Ingredients
For the salad
- 500g (about 4 medium) carrots, peeled, coarsely grated on a box grater or julienned. Grating is faster; julienning gives more texture and visual appeal. Either works. Pre-shredded bagged carrots are a legitimate shortcut but tend to be drier.
- 1 × 400g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed, or 250g cooked chickpeas. Pat dry with paper towels, wet chickpeas dilute the dressing.
- 3 tablespoons golden raisins or currants, the sweet element that is distinctly Moroccan. Soak in warm water for 10 minutes if dry, drain before using. Substitute with finely chopped dates or medjool dates.
- Small bunch flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- Small bunch fresh cilantro, roughly chopped, use one or both. Parsley only for those who dislike cilantro.
- Small handful fresh mint leaves, roughly torn
- ½ cup slivered almonds or roughly chopped pistachios, toasted, toast in a dry pan 3–4 minutes until golden. Add just before serving.
For the dressing
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted in a dry pan until fragrant, then ground. Or 1 teaspoon ground cumin if skipping the toasting. Cumin is the backbone spice, do not reduce.
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of 1 large lemon (about 3 tablespoons)
- 1 tablespoon harissa paste, rose harissa for a more floral heat, regular harissa for straight chili heat. Adjust quantity to taste, start with 1 tablespoon and add more after tasting. Available at most supermarkets in the international or condiment aisle.
- 1 tablespoon honey, or maple syrup for fully vegan
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, small amount, adds warmth without being identifiable as cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne, optional, for additional heat
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
Step by step
- Toast and grind the cumin. Place the cumin seeds in a small dry skillet over medium heat. Toast for 60–90 seconds, shaking frequently, until the seeds darken slightly and smell intensely fragrant. Transfer to a mortar and pestle or spice grinder and grind to a rough powder. The kitchen should smell like a Moroccan spice market at this point. This step takes two minutes and makes the salad taste significantly better than pre-ground cumin. The volatile oils in cumin seeds are released by heat, toasting activates them. Ground cumin from a jar has already lost most of those oils to oxidation.
- Make the dressing. Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, harissa, honey, ground toasted cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon, cayenne, salt and grated garlic in a small bowl until fully combined and the honey has dissolved. Taste, it should be tangy, warm and slightly sweet with a definite heat from the harissa. Adjust lemon or harissa as needed.
- Combine and dress. Add the grated carrots, chickpeas, raisins, parsley, cilantro and mint to a large bowl. Pour the dressing over and toss thoroughly until everything is evenly coated. Taste for seasoning. Rest for at least 15–20 minutes before serving. The carrots soften very slightly, the raisins plump in the dressing, and the spices bloom into the vegetables. The salad at 20 minutes is noticeably better than the salad immediately dressed.
- Finish and serve. Scatter the toasted almonds or pistachios over the top just before serving. Serve at room temperature or slightly cool, not cold from the fridge, which dulls the spice flavours.
Claire’s note
Two things that lift this from a good salad to a great one. First: let it rest. Twenty minutes after dressing is not the same dish as immediately after dressing, the spices bloom, the carrots relax, the sweetness from the raisins integrates. If you can make it an hour ahead, do. Second: the nuts go on at the very end, just before the bowl reaches the table. Almonds or pistachios that have been sitting in a dressed salad for an hour are not crunchy, and crunch is what they are there to provide.
Serve with
Moroccan carrot and chickpea salad works as part of a Moroccan mezze spread alongside zaalouk and warm flatbread. It also serves as a side to Moroccan chicken tagine or spooned over couscous as a light main. The full Moroccan recipes collection have the broader picture.
Add Moroccan carrot and chickpea salad to your weekly meal planner as a prep-ahead lunch, it keeps well for 3 days in the fridge and actually improves on day two. And for more recipes, follow us on Pinterest.
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Moroccan Carrot and Chickpea Salad
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
A refreshing vegan salad combining carrots and chickpeas with a flavorful dressing of cumin, harissa, and lemon.
Ingredients
- 500g carrots, peeled and grated or julienned
- 1 × 400g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 3 tablespoons golden raisins or currants
- Small bunch flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- Small bunch fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
- Small handful fresh mint leaves, roughly torn
- ½ cup slivered almonds or roughly chopped pistachios, toasted
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of 1 large lemon (about 3 tablespoons)
- 1 tablespoon harissa paste
- 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne, optional
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
Instructions
- Toast the cumin seeds in a small skillet over medium heat until fragrant.
- Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, harissa, honey, ground cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon, cayenne, salt and garlic until combined.
- Add grated carrots, chickpeas, raisins, parsley, cilantro, and mint to a bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat.
- Rest for at least 15-20 minutes before serving.
- Scatter toasted almonds or pistachios on top just before serving.
Notes
Let the salad rest for at least 20 minutes for the flavors to meld. Serve at room temperature for best flavor.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: Moroccan
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 250
- Sugar: 10g
- Sodium: 300mg
- Fat: 14g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 12g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 8g
- Protein: 8g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
