Yes, It's Totally Safe To Eat Carrot Greens + 5 Recipes To Try

Though many people throw carrot greens away, they're actually loaded with nutrients, and you can easily repurpose them in soups, sauces, salads, and more. One reason people shy away from carrot greens is because of their bitter flavor, but others have more serious concerns that they may be harmful, or even poisonous.  

"If you are allergic to celery or parsley—which are members of the same family as the greens—then refrain from having them," says author of Eat Your Vitamins and registered nutritionist Mascha Davis, MPH, RDN. Otherwise, unless you eat them in extremely high amounts, she explains carrot greens have no known side effects.  

Carrot greens may also contain vitamins A2 and K, potassium, iron, and calcium, Davis says. 

You can use carrot greens like most herbs to garnish soups, salads, pasta dishes, and stir fries. They do tend to be bitter, though. To help cut down on the bitterness, Davis recommends blanching them. 

Blending your greens into sauces or smoothies or sautéing them with sea salt, garlic, and red pepper flakes, can also help balance the bitter notes.

If you're feeling inspired, here are a few recipes to get started: 

This carrot top pesto uses olive oil, parmesan, and walnuts to replicate the salty and nutty flavor of traditional pesto, with the added nutrition of carrot greens. Use it as a sauce for pasta or spread it on toast to make bruschetta.  

Tabouli salad is beloved for its aromatic array of fresh herbs, so why not add carrot greens to the mix? Well, this carrot top tabouli does just that. Flavored with mint, parsley, lemon juice, and salt, this salad is anything but boring.  

Chimichurri is a flavorful addition to meat dishes (most traditionally, steak), but you can also use it to dress mushroom tacos or as a dip for toasted bread. This carrot greens chimichurri is no different. The combination of spices and the acid from the white wine vinegar help balance the bitterness from the carrot tops. 

This recipe uses every part of the carrot to eliminate waste. The carrots themselves are blended into a soup and then topped with a dollop of carrot greens harissa. The sauce is flavored with cilantro and mint and spiced with cumin. 

These garden veggie burgers are a great addition to your summer barbecue. They combine protein and fiber from both black-eyed peas and quinoa flakes, as well as flavor from fresh herbs, including carrot greens.