We’re going to be featuring carrots in this week’s root source. Because they’re so popular, we debated whether or not to mention baby carrots, those adorable little veggie nuggets that go so well with a large tub of dip (like, say, hummus).

But since we don’t often cook or eat baby carrots, we decided to skip them and stick with the real things. (I’m going to a wedding this weekend, though, and I bet you $10 they’ll have them there. What weddings don’t?)

Still, it’s worth mentioning here that those carrots aren’t babies at all. No, instead they’re just really big carrots — generally ones that are too gnarled to be sold whole — widdled down to baby size. Andrea at Wise Bread told the whole sordid tale well, with a heavy emphasis on the fact that those carrot nuggets are in fact far more expensive than carrots bought in their fully grown forms.

USA Today also did an article a few years ago on the rise of this miniaturized vegetable, from its humble beginnings in frozen food to its peak as a fixture in lunch boxes everywhere. (Also check out Grimmway Farms for some information on how baby carrots are “cut into two-inch pieces and lathed to uniform width.”)

The biggest problem for me with these processed carrots is that their taste tends to be as small as their size; that’s why they’re so good with things on them. They do have a noticeable snap to them, but once bitten, they’re watery and generally lack the sweetness of a real carrot (as well as much of the vitamin content). If you’ve been munching on the baby variety for a while, give a full-size carrot a try (preferably one that’s fresh and organic), and you’ll be amazed at the difference.

Posted by claire in craving, ingredients, root source | | Subscribe to this feed