Raw Carrot Salad Recipe (Ray Peat Inspired)
A Ray Peat-inspired refreshing raw carrot salad with a tropical twist. Anyone can make this; raw carrot salad has been a staple for my clients and me.
There are 2 options and, I guess, 2 types of people or moods with the raw carrot health spin.
1 . Just eating a straight raw carrot.
2. Creating a salad recipe with barbequed or grilled meat or fish.
I have created a spin on the popular Ray Peat / pro metabolic diet - carrot salad recipe.
My raw carrot salad includes tangy sweetness with a pineapple and red chilli. That’s a local and seasonal nutrition twist for me based in Nicaragua.
But if you’re based in North America or the United Kingdom, using an apple and maybe a little horseradish would suffice and give you that extra twist to take this carrow recipe to the next level.
THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF A RAW CARROT
There is scientific research looking at the inclusion of the consumption of a raw carrot around 200 grams - in the morning on an empty stomach with a significant decrease in cholesterol, faecal fat and bile acids. This is likely the exact mechanism as a binder, such as activated charcoal or cholestyramine (more medical grade), which helps to bind and excrete circulated waste products in our gut.
Dr Ray Peat popularised the raw carrot, taking many alternative health influencers by storm. The mechanism Dr. Ray Peat described is the binding of endotoxins. These often dead fragmented DNA/protein components of gram-negative and positive bacteria, including a raw carrot salad, exist in the body in our stool down the toilet.
RAW CARROT SALAD LOWERS ESTROGEN
If you listened and believed everything someone said, you could not think for yourself or dissect the context. The raw carrot salad binds endotoxins - yes, likely, but also estrogen. Estrogen is metabolized in the liver and has unique metabolites once used - it enters our gut via our bile acids and can be further broken down and excreted in our stool. Our bacteria have a huge role in how this process works with an enzyme called glucuronidase. Certain bacteria in our gut depending on the local ecosystem, stress response activation, general metabolic health, circadian rhythm - vitamin A and D cycles, thyroid activity, acetylcholine and vagus nerve activity, oxygen tension and blood circulation relating to nitric oxide and history such as antibiotic use or breast milk consumption all play a feature in the way this epigenetic enzyme works. The bacterial enzyme can undo the hard work that your liver has done - which causes the estrogens + cholesterol + bile acids to become reuptake and recirculated via the hepatic portal vein and enter the liver again. This process happens 95% of the time and occurs around 6-7x daily.
There is no scientific research that I am aware of that looks into a direct connection between consuming a raw carrot and estrogen levels or activity. But that does not mean it does not occur or have any clinical application.
You do not need science to catch up to prove a theory - you can consume a carrot every other day and use your self-awareness or track your cycle to see if this has any improvements with estrogen activity in your process.
In my clinical opinion - this can also backfire. Many people, even health coaches and nutritionists, automatically think estrogen is terrible and should permanently be lowered. When I work with female clients, we often test blood hormones to gauge how they feel with their hormone levels. Additionaly, blood and other functional medicine testing only give us the best guestimate of actual activity.
For some women - 30% of this raw carrot salad - makes a big difference with improved energy, less acne, better bowel movements and stool size, volume and consistency (actually supported and science-backed) and improvements in deliberating tender breasts. But also another 30% where this does nothing as this is not an estrogen problem but a lack of progesterone activity, which won’t help you how much you lower estrogen - and even then, this backfires as estrogen is needed for progesterone to be signalled and activated in the corpus luteum.
For males - this salad is a good option for having alongside a decent protein serving with adding some colour and flavours.
The raw carrot salad takes little time and prep to transform - typically under 20 minutes.
You will need a steady grater, a sharp knife, a glass salad bowl and the ingredients prepared and at the ready. The context is that once the dressing has been added, the salad will not last very long and will likely go soggy. So use the sauce when you want to serve the salad.
The dressing can use Extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice or apple cider vinegar. Or if you’re in a tropical location - you can use coconut oil, which is liquid at room temperature and more geographically and epigenetically suited.
For some kick, add a green or red chilli - which has also been shown to be a supportive digestive aid for those who can tolerate lectins. But it would be wise to emit the chilli if you’re dealing with a few food sensitivities. The apple cider vinegar also makes a great digestive aid with the acidity. Adding fresh herbs, mint or coriander (cilantro) can be refreshing and improve digestive motility. Finally, what further makes this a digestive-boosting salad is the addition of fresh ginger. Ginger is one of the most supported foods to help digestive issues such as motility and bloating.
Using a local cheese similar to Feta cheese works wonderfully for some tang and saltiness. Surprisingly, the pineapple and cheese marry well together - I was a massive fan of Hiawanna pizzas, which explains why I love them so much.
Grating the carrots, ensuring all the other ingredients are uniform, and dicing the apple or pineapple to your liking. Add the dressing at the end or reserve and use on individual portions. The salad will keep fresh in the fridge without the dressing for 2-3 days.
Serve with chicken, beef, pork or some seafood.
RAW CARROT SALAD RECIPE STEP BY STEP
Serves: 6
Skill level: Easy
Prep time: 10-20 minutes
Cooking time: N/A
INGREDIENTS
150 grams Feta Cheese - into 1 cm cubes
3 medium-large carrots - top and tailed.
1 red chilli - deseeded - finely sliced
1 medium pineapple OR 2x apples - core removed and diced into 2cm cubes
1-inch knob of fresh ginger - skin removed - grated
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp coconut oil or extra virgin olive oil
1/2 bunch (15 grams) of coriander (cilantro) and mint leaves - finely sliced
1 tsp Celtic or Icelandic sea salt
HOW TO Prepare raw carrot salad
Using a grater. Grate the carrots and place them into a bowl.
Prepare the pineapple or apples into cubes. Add to the bowl with any juice.
Add the sliced chilli, grated ginger, fresh herbs and the cheese.
Add the dressing (apple cider vinegar and oil of choice) when ready to serve.
Mix well and season with salt.
Raw carrot salad Nutritional Value (per serving)
CALORIES: 179
PROTEIN: 4.6g
CARBS: 24g
FAT: 7g
FIBER: 3g
VITAMIN B1: 0.3MG
VITAMIN B2: 0.3MG
VITAMIN B3: 1.2MG
VITAMIN B5: 1.4MG
VITAMIN B6: 0.8MG
VITAMIN B9: 41UG
VITAMIN B12: 0.41UG
CHOLINE: 15MG
VITAMIN A: 290.5UG
RETINOL: 30UG
VITAMIN C: 74MG
VITAMIN D: 4IU
VITAMIN E: 0.35MG
VITAMIN K: 4UG
CALCIUM: 154MG
COPPER: 0.3MG
IRON: 0.45MG
MAGNESIUM: 42MG
MANGANESE: 1.3MG
POTASSIUM: 287MG
SELENIUM: 4UG
ZINC: 1MG
OMEGA 3: 0.5G
OMEGA 6: 0.5G