Raw Carrot Zucchini Salad

A refreshingly raw salad perfect as a light, refreshing side dish. This carrot zucchini salad uses spiralized zucchini noodles for its fun, crunchy texture and is tossed in a maple, balsamic dressing.

Are you sick and tired of forcing yourself to eat the same old leafy green salad?

You want to eat healthily but you're just so sick of all the bland food.

I get that.

As a Certified Nutrition Coach, my goal is to get a lot of color onto my plate. But I also like to enjoy my food too. And that means having some variety!

This simple raw salad is a blend of zucchini noodles, crunchy carrots, fresh strawberries, and delicious pecans.

It's the perfect, in-a-pinch side dish to something like a grilled chicken sandwhich or, topped with protein to create a complete entree. Plus, it's easily whipped up the night before.

Watch a full demo video on how to make it. 

Ingredients For The Salad

Raw zucchini: use up the extra zucchini from the garden.

Carrot: the larger the carrot the easier it is to spiralize. If you have extra, rock this carrot ginger soup!

Cherry tomatoes: any tomatoes will work but cherry tomatoes give a pop of color.

Strawberries: get the ripest ones you can for a juicy burst. Know that any summer fruit works well.

Avocado: gives the salad a boost of plant-based proteins and healthy fats.

Pecans: regular or even toasted pecans work well but candied pecans are especially delicious.

Chickpeas: totally optional but a great addition if you're making this carrot zucchini salad a full meal. If you want something a bit lighter, leave them out.

Dressing: three simple ingredients make up the maple balsamic dressing (also used in this maple balsamic chicken).

How To Make It

1. Use a spiralizer to create the carrot and zucchini noodles.
2. Whisk together the dressing ingredients.
3. Toss the zucchini and carrots with the strawberries, cherry tomatoes, and chickpeas if using.
4. Mix in the salad dressing and let it all sit for 5 minutes.
5. Portion the carrot zucchini salad into a salad bowl and top each bowl with pecans.

What Is A Spiralizer?

if you don't own a spiralizer- get on that! Definitely a staple appliance in the kitchen and one I use pretty often (for recipes like this zoodle bowls!).

Spiralizers help:

• keep your meals interesting
• replace noodles in a dish with a healthier option
• are great for low-carb recipes
• make simple dishes like coleslaw or stir fry more visually appealing

A spiralizer has been a staple in my kitchen for almost eight years now (I went through a raw stage).

Not only is it fun (the kids love it!) but you can load up your meal with veggies and skip the starch.

Protein Options

This carrot salad is delicious as is and makes a great side dish.

However, if you want to meal prep this salad for lunch, any of the following protein options are delicious.

• Spicy chicken bites
• Grilled chicken
• Hardboiled egg.

For vegan options, maple-glazed tempeh or fried tofu cubes would make wonderful additions on top of zucchini salad too.

Expert Tips

Overall this carrots and zucchini salad is pretty straight-forward. However, there are a few things to note:

• If you're making the carrot salad for the next day, don't add the dressing. The noodles will seem a bit soggy if it sits too long.
• Maple balsamic dressing is a great compliment but the lemon dressing from this soba noodle bowl is great also along with any fresh herbs you have on hand.
• After you spiralize the zucchini, let them sit in a strainer while you do the carrot. This way any water from them can drip off.
• Make it whole30 approved: omit the maple syrup in the dressing and use a whole30 approved salad dressing. Likewise, eliminate the chickpeas.

Other Easy Side Dishes

• Cauliflower rice
• Dairy-free macaroni salad
• Dairy-free cobb salad
• Easy side dishes