Black carrots can visually transform a dish

After a 5-hour workshop when I finally checked WhatsApp, there was a string of new messages. Among those, one stood out. My neighbour wanted to know if I would like some black carrots as she had ordered extra.

My eyes lit up. Black carrots are notoriously hard to come by in Bengaluru. I called her immediately to ask where she had found them, fully expecting the answer to involve a long drive or ordering online on a speciality site and a long wait to get them delivered. To my surprise, they were from a quick-commerce app. Tap, pay and receive in 15 minutes. I promptly advised her to cut her surplus into batons and freeze them for kanji-making later, and then went ahead and ordered two kilos for myself. Sometimes, all it takes to excite a food writer is an everyday vegetable in a different colour, and perhaps a slightly different taste.

This is the kind of vegetable you boast about finding, the way people boast about spotting a rare bird or getting a restaurant reservation without knowing the chef. So I posted about this great find on X, and predictably, an anonymous account replied that these carrots were “GMO”. This, of course, is one of the most common scare tactics in food conversations these days. Anything unfamiliar can be conveniently dismissed as genetically modified.

Two clarifications are in order. First, in India, apart from cotton, no food crop is legally permitted to be cultivated as GMO. Second, black and purple carrots are not modern inventions at all. They are heirloom varieties that predate the familiar orange carrot by centuries. Orange carrots were developed much later, in the 17th century, by Dutch farmers—most likely through selective breeding of mutant white and yellow strains.

The deep black-purple colour of these carrots comes from anthocyanins—naturally occurring, water-soluble pigments that also function as powerful antioxidants. Wash and peel a black carrot and you will immediately see this for yourself: the chopping board quickly fills with an inky purple juice. It feels dramatic, almost theatrical, for something so ordinary. Even my fingers got dyed purple, making me wonder if I could use these for my tie-dye hobby.

These carrots have long been part of regional Indian food traditions, particularly in the north. Kanji, our OG fermented drink, is one of the most popular things made with black carrots in north India. There is another such seasonal recipe with black carrots. A friend sent me a picture of an Awadhi-style black gajar ka halwa, a winter staple in Lucknow and the surrounding regions that she has made. I had already made the slow-cooked red carrot halwa three times this season, so I lacked the enthusiasm to attempt yet another batch with black carrots. When I asked her whether it tasted different, she said it was simply more intense—deeper, more carroty—with the colour subtly altering how you experience the dish.

This is perhaps the most interesting thing about cooking with black carrots. The flavour profile is familiar, but the visual transformation changes your perception. The same recipe feels novel, even dramatic, simply because the colour cues your senses differently. It is a reminder that eating is as much about sight and expectation as it is about taste.

In practical terms, black carrots can be used much like their orange counterparts. A classic carrot cake takes on moody purple hues. A carrot and ginger juice turns almost jewel-toned. Even everyday dishes—a simple carrot poriyal or a carrot sambar—feel refreshed when dressed in newer shades.

Not everything unfamiliar is engineered, altered or suspect, like social media has programmed us to believe. Sometimes, it is just an heirloom ingredient finding its way back into modern kitchens, within 15 minutes of ordering.

LACTO-FERMENTED BLACK CARROT PICKLES

Makes 1 jar

Ingredients

3 black carrots

1 large clove garlic

2 cups filtered water

14g salt

Method

Wash and peel the carrots. Cut the carrots into batons. Place the peels at the bottom of a clean wide-mouthed glass jar. Tightly pack the carrot batons into the jar along with the garlic clove. Mix the salt and water in a jug and pour it into the jar until the carrots are completely immersed in water.

Close the lid tightly and keep aside for three days. Keep a plate below the jar to catch any liquids escaping the jar as fermentation speeds up. When you open the jar after three days and see a layer of bubbles on the surface and the carrots taste slightly tangy, the pickles are ready. You can refrigerate them and eat within a week or so. Serve a few sticks along with a meal for a probiotic boost or chop them and add to salads. Or eat them as is as a snack.

You can also add other spices like black peppercorns, mustard seeds or fennel seeds to the jar to give added flavour to the pickled carrots.

THREE-CARROT SALAD

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

2 medium black carrots

1 medium red carrot

1 small orange carrot

1 tsp white sesame seeds

1 tbsp finely chopped parsley or carrot greens

For the dressing

1 tbsp olive oil

Half tsp finely grated ginger

1 tsp honey

Half tsp salt

2 tsp apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar

Pinch of red chilli flakes

Method

Peel and shave the carrots into noodles with a julienne peeler or spiralizer.

In a small bowl, whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together until thick and creamy.

Pour the dressing over the carrot noodles and toss well to combine. Top with a sprinkle of white sesame seeds and parsley or carrot greens.

Serve immediately.

Double Tested is a column on vegetarian cooking, highlighting a single ingredient prepared two ways. Nandita Iyer (@saffrontrail) is a doctor, wellness advocate and author.