Mini-Carrot
Selection Information
Usage: Eating fresh, salads, cooked, stir-fry, juicing.
Selection: Also called a French carrot, good quality mini carrots will be firm, smooth-skinned, straight-shaped and well-colored with no blemishes. The deeper the orange coloring of the carrot, the higher the beta carotene content.
Avoid: Avoid carrots that are wilting, soft or are split or growing thin hair-like roots. Those with large green areas at the top or that have dark blemishes or brown coloring of any kind are also undesirable.
Seasonal Information
Carrots are available year-round from California.
Mini-Carrot Nutritional Information
Serving size 1 average (3 oz)
Calories 40
Fat 1 gram
Sodium 40 milligrams
Protein 1 gram
Carbohydrate 8 grams
Dietary Fiber 1 gram
% of U.S. RDA
Vitamin A 330
Vitamin C 8
Calcium 2
Iron (less than 2)
Low-calorie, Low-fat, Low-sodium, High in Vitamin A, Cholesterol-free.
Tips & Trivia
- Carrots belong to the parsley family. They originated in Afghanistan, cultivated originally for medicinal purposes utilizing the seeds which are produced in the second year of this biennial plant. (Marketable roots grow in a single season.)
- The use of carrots spread westward, introduced into England from Holland in the 15th Century. At that point, carrots were coveted for their tops, and no well-dressed English gentlewoman would be seen without lacy carrot leaves decorating her hair.