Ubiquitous at potlucks and salad bars, most people (I think) know of carrot saladsimilar to what I’m referring to here. It normally contains shredded carrot, raisins, and is held together with mayo or Miracle Whip. Basic recipe here.
Personally, I love the stuff. If it’s on a buffet line or offered at a picnic, I’m eating it. Something about the crunch of the carrots with the soft sweetness of the raisins, with the tanginess of the salad dressing. Perfect combo.
In speaking with my lovely wife, Shocker Khan, last night - she informed me that she can’t stand the stuff and when she takes a bite she’s just thinking “What the fuck is wrong with this cole slaw?!”
I was obviously taken aback, because who wouldn’t love carrot salad? Knowing the way my tastes run, the answer to that question is very likely “mostly everybody.”
Seemed like a great idea for a poll… So here you go.
I haven’t had it since I was a kid. My grandmother made it all summer and I loved it. Sometimes she’d include pineapple bits.
She also made those salads with the apples and raisins.
I haven’t had either in over 20 years but I bet I’d still enjoy them if I could have any of those ingredients. Unfortunately they’re loaded with sugar, so I’ll have to pass.
Haven’t seen this since I was a kid. And even as a kid, I liked carrots (raw) and raisins fine, separately. Combining them was disgusting then and it’s disgusting now, and adding mayo just puts the ipecac on the cake. Actually, as a kid I hated raisins in anything–raisins were meant to be eaten straight out of the box. Today I can just tolerate raisins in carrot cake, but I’d much prefer they not be there.
I really cannot imagine it with Miracle Whip or Mayo, and don’t think I’d like it.
'Round these parts, I’ve always made it/had it made with yogurt, and that’s yummerific. Tangy, sweet and very refreshing. Mom put walnuts in hers, which is not a favorite variation of mine, but it’s still tasty.
My mom used to make it when I was a kid. Haven’t had it since then. She used Miracle Whip and raisins, and added a sprinkle of sugar. I loved it at the time, but these days would probably eat around the raisins. (I chose ‘Like it’ in the poll.)
None of the choices were strong enough for me. “Vile spew of Satan” might approximate my feelings.
First of all, I loathe Miracle Whip. I also loathe sweet fruit mixed with vegetables. So this is like a “greatest hits” of things I hate. If it somehow included cilantro, we would have Hello Again’s Most Disgusting Food of All Time.
I love good carrot raisin salad. All the local supermarkets used to carry it and then stopped a few years ago. Cold turkey. Actually, I love cold turkey sandwiches and they’re even better with carrot raisin salad.
The problem with carrot raisin salad is that people overdo the mayo. (Nobody in or out of their right minds would use Miracle Whip.) You need just the merest dollop required to hold the carrot shreds together. All the recipes I see online say you can use salad dressing instead of mayo or recommend a sour cream/mayo mix. A few substitute yogurt.
I have to say, I’m both please and surprised by the results so far. A full 50% of voters either like, or love, carrot salad. Only about 30% don’t care for it (or full-on hate it.)
Guess I know what I’m bringing to the next Doper Potluck.
