Vietnamese Style Pickled Carrots from Eating Local Cookbook
We’re obsessed with Vietnamese picked carrots. Our pantry and fridge are continually stocked with pickles from our garden vegetables and when we’re low on staples such as Vietnamese pickled carrots, we’ll forage our veggie plots for new replacements. But this year, the daikon plot is taken up with fresh spinach, so all we had to pickle were the carrots. That’s fine by us because Vietnamese pickled carrots are still perfect as a single accompaniment. The carrots by themselves are equally divine and versatile!
Our favorite tool makes the perfect cut QUIICK. More info here: OXO Julienne Tool
When we first started the blog, one of the first recipes put up was our staple Vietnamese carrot and daikon pickles recipe. But last week we wanted to try a different recipe and we found it in a gorgeous new book by Janet Fletcher called Eating Local: The Cookbook Inpsired by America’s Farmers.
This lovely cookbook is a farmers markets dream because the every single recipe had a fruit or vegetable included in it and perusing through it is like walking the stalls of our local farmers markets. Each page is bursting with fabulous produce and it’s like visiting a stand from a favorite farmer. The color, freshness and appeal of every recipe is a proud reminder of why so many of us try to eat local and support our farmers
Eating Local also takes readers on to the land and into the homes of 10 of America’s best small farmers as well. Their stories instantly connect all of us all to this vast food chain of eating locally and sustainably. I’m really looking forward to cooking from this cookbook because there’s recipes in here that can allow me to create a complete meal from fresh produce. A few days of vegetable meals isn’t a bad idea and my body is craving for that lately.
-diane
Favorite tools for making Vietnamese Pickled Carrots :
It can sometimes be hard to find good Vietnamese ingredients and tools. Here’s some of the favorites for pickling and beyond:
Weck 1L Tulip Jars (set of 6) – These are one of our favorite shapes of Weck Jars. A beautiful tulip shape, they hold 1 liter each (4 cups) making them perfect for bigger batches of pickles and other tasties.
Weck 1/2 L Tulip Jars (set of 6) – These are one of our favorite shapes of Weck Jars. A beautiful tulip shape, they hold 1/2 liter each (about 2 cups) making them perfect for smaller batches of pickles and other tasties.
OXO Julienne Tool – This little tool makes julienning the carrots and other ingredients a breeze. 
Flying Lion Fish Sauce – This has been our house fish sauce for decades. Great stuff! We’ll use it to make our dipping sauces as well as marinades.
Red Boat Fish Sauce – 100% all natural first press extra virgin Vietnamese fish sauce. A solid craft fish sauce producer.
Koon Chun Hoisin Sauce – Our house favorite hoisin sauce. Great flavor. We use it to make a dipping sauce for spring rolls.Here’s my personal family Vietnamese Pickles recipe.
Watch Our Vietnamese Pickled Carrots Video:
Here’s my personal recipe for Vietnamese Fish Sauce Dip and click here for all our popular Vietnamese Recipes that are sometimes traditional and definitely sometimes not.
Here’s our tutorial on How To Roll Spring rolls and All Our Great Spring Rolls Recipes
Vietnamese-Style Carrot and Daikon Pickles
Since I only had carrots growing in my garden and no daikon, I simply replaced the daikon half with carrots. Use any ratio you wish for the pound of veggies. Next time, I'll have to try just pickling daikon!Makes about 1 lb. of pickles.
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound daikon , peeled
- 1/2 pound large carrots , peeled
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt or sea salt
- 1 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
- 3 Tablespoons sugar , or to taste
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Wash daikon and carrots and cut into matchstick sizes, or round sizes (about thickness of a 25¢ quarter). Pat dry.
- In bowl, mix vinegar, salt, sugar and water until the sugar dissolves. Add the carrots and daikon to the mixture and let marinate for at least 1 hour before serving.
- For best pickled flavor, store vegetables in an airtight mason jar for about 5 days in the refrigerator.
Can the pickling liquid be reuse? It was delicious. Thanks!
Hi! We haven’t tried reusing the liquid but it probably could for another batch. If it works for you please let us know!
I so love this recipe. Super easy, gets so much credit. I pickle small trimmed carrots and halved radishes for my charcuterie board with this recipe. So awesome. Thank you for sharing
Thank you Leah! We love adding these to a charcuterie board too!
I’ve never tried this. Looks like something I would like. Adding to must try list.
How long do they keep in the fridge?
Hi Penny,
At least several weeks. We’ve kept them for a month or two and they were still delicious. After time it will become less crunchy. And as always with any food, if it smells or looks funky, toss it out.
I’ve incorporated carrots into my diet as snacks and have been looking for some different recipes to mix up the plain carrots that I’ve been eating, this will do nicely, thank you!
Do you think I could add garlic and fresh dill to the pickling liquid? Maybe also include some sweet peppers, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, celery, broccoli, etc.?? Thank you. LOVE you newsletters!
Good afternoon and hello from Nova Scotia,
I have recently become addicted to the vietnamese restaurant near my office, in general there is the pickled carrot and onion strips that appear very similar to this recipe… but with working full time and running a farm it is so much easier for me to do pickle for long term storage… if bottled correctly do you think they would be OK longer term?
Your website is absolutely lovely BTW and is now stored for future reference.
Made a version of this and blogged about it. Great flavors!
I recently traveled to Vietnam and loved the food there, but when I returned home had pretty much no idea of how to recreate the flavors. I had imagined that something like this would be much more complicated. I am really looking forward to trying this out – thank you! Also , what a great idea of how to keep carrots from being wasted when you have too many.
Looks interesting! I’m definitely going to give it a try!
I also like to make spicy pepper similar way. But I use much more vinegar…
If you interested I can share mine recipe. Just contact me.
Cheers!
I recently found another pickling recipe on the website, appetiteforchina.com, which includes cucumbers, and of course carrots, and also some cilantro and garlic, with a little sambal oelek added for a nice kick at the end! My fridge, and of course me! haven’t been without them since I discovered pickling! It’s so easy and so refreshing.
I have all of these ingredients (for once!) I’m definitely doing this. It looks awesome!
I thought I would get back to you and let you know that I did make this recipe and it was delish! very clean and crisp and I just finished doubling the recipe and added some thin sliced turnips. Your recipe may just have turned me into a pickling freak!
Thank You!
I learned to pickle/preserve veggies from my dorm room buddy in college. He was Korean and I learned how to make all kinds of Kim Chee. Now, I have never thought of pickling carrots, but after seeing this recipe I am going shopping for carrots when I get off work tonight. Your photo is excellent to by the way! Great blog to! I will be back!