Moroccan carrot salad

There's this couscous restaurant in Courbevoie, le Timgad, that our colleague wanted to take us all to. The place was a 20 minutes car ride away from work, the distance in itself meaning a lot considering our usual lazy walking tendencies. 

The car ride was worth it. It is, to day, the best couscous I've ever tried outside my house- my mom's being of course the natural first. If you ever go, try the Couscous Méchoui and thank me later. 

This restaurant served some lovely carrot salads as complimentary appetizers. You grab them with toothpicks ; I loved it, and had trouble not finishing by myself the small plate to share. 

I came home and wondered about this carrot salad. Was it a no-cook salad ? Or maybe cooked carrots, but a no-cook vinaigrette ? 

I researched by subject dutifully. I quickly learnt that the most authentic and widespread Moroccan version of carrot salad is usually based on carrots cooked directly in a pan. It allows for the candied flavour of the spices brought about by the cooking process. 

The recipe process is very rewarding, involving little effort for massive flavour : 

• Slice your carrots thinly
• Add them to a pan with spices, garlic, preserved lemon, and honey
• Cook with water until tender
• Finish the seasonings with lemon juice, cilantro and olive oil.

That is all ! The lemon flavour is key here : the lemon juice perfume is enhanced by my preserved lemon addition, which is not typical in your Moroccan carrot salad ; but I guarantee it is well worth adding.

The end result is a very fragrant warm or cold dish with a tender yet firm texture. 

Moroccan carrot salad - Recipe

Ingredients - Where to find them

• You should be able to find all the ingredients at your classic grocery store.
  • The only limitation could be the Beldi (preserved) lemon ; if not available at your usual place, find a local oriental grocery store, or buy a jar online !

Recipe - Advice & key points

• This happens to be a fully vegan and quite balanced recipe, yay ! 
• If possible and in season, use carrots with tops, which are often sweeter, softer and less fibrous.
  • If not, usual carrots, which are used here, are perfectly fine !
• To make for a more delicate dish :
  • Slice your carrots quite thinly, around 1.5mm thick ; 
  • Try to use evenly-sized carrots, ideally.
• Pay attention to the cooking time for your carrots ; we aim for tender yet still firm. They should be fine after around 6 minutes after the water is added for 1.5mm thick carrots, but do a taste test to check the texture.
  • You don't want mushy carrots ; think that you should be able to grab one slice with a toothpick. 
  • If in doubt, start with ~100ml, then add more later as needed. 
• I recommend serving this recipe as an appetizer to share. Used this way, the quantities listed easily yield around 6 portions.

All set ? Let's cook some sunny carrots !