Carrot Ginger Sauce is the pasta addition you didn’t know you were looking for. And more than just pasta, this sauce can be used for loads of your favorite foods.
When it comes to my kids, if they’re offered rice or pasta they pretty much could care less what its mixed with. But when I served this Carrot Ginger Sauce tossed with long strands of noodles they were dubious. What was this “orange pasta” sitting on their plates?
That initial skepticism changed almost immediately after their first bites. With sweetness from the carrots, salty flavor from the miso and nuttiness from the tahini, they were so hooked by the incredible taste, I think they’re going to start paying a lot more attention to what’s on their pasta and rice from now on!
As an added bonus, if you’re trying to get more nutrition in your family’s diet, this sauce can do the trick. Carrots have all sorts of good stuff in them, including beta-carotene, fiber, antioxidants, and potassium. Ginger is a great anti-inflammatory that is known the help with systems of a cold or the flu. And garlic is also known the combat sickness and contains tons of antioxidants.
This sauce is super simple to make. Start by prepping your veggies- peel and mince the garlic cloves and the garlic, and peel and finely chop the carrots. Next, heat the oil in a sauté pan over medium head and add the garlic. Sauté until soft (about 30 seconds) and then add the ginger and carrots. Cook and cover until carrots are soft, around 15 minutes. Transfer the food to a food processor, add the tahini, miso and puree until smooth. Toss with your kid’s favorite pasta and you are done!
This pasta sauce is so good, you might even want it all to yourself. But sharing is caring, especially when your pasta sauce has this much nourishing goodness!
Carrot Ginger Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and minced
- 4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 tablespoons miso
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Heat oil in a sauté pan over medium heat.
- Add garlic and sauté until soft, about 30 seconds.
- Add ginger and carrots.
- Cover and cook until carrots are soft, about 15 minutes.
- Transfer to a food processor and add the miso, tahini and water.
- Puree until smooth.
- Serve tossed with pasta, soba, udon noodles or rice.
- * Stays fresh in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Trader Joe’s carries miso! Miso is such a unique flavor there isn’t really a good substitute.
Tahini is a paste made from sesame seeds. If the “hummus tahini” is just that then it is fine. If it lists garbanzo beans or any other flavorings on the label then it is not the same thing. Sometimes it is labeled “tehina” in the Kosher section of the grocery.
I haven’t been able to find miso in the two supermarkets I shop in. Is there anything I could substitute for the miso? Also, is hummus tahini the same thing as tahini?
BTW, both my grandson who’s 14 months old and my daughter are addicted to the zucchini-broccoli pancakes!
We tried this today (without the miso and we replaced garlic with shallots): it’s really easy and the results was just perfect!
Oh those carrots in the background of the photo are just for a pretty decoration! I do roughly chop the carrots before cooking. No need to use the food processor since its just a quick rough chop with the Chef’s Knife! 🙂
Hi Catherine,
In the picture, the carrot doesn’t look chopped. Do you put it in the food processor?
Thanks!
I’m a fan of these recipes where it’s easy and tasty eats! I’ll have to give this a try. 🙂
My son is not allergic to tomatoes, but they are just too acidic for him so we don’t eat tomato sauce. I use pesto a lot and garlic cream, but this will be another great alternative. Thanks!
Diana, we always buy Organic Miso Master brand. If you want a softer miso flavor, you can get barley, chickpea or mellow white miso – the red kinds are a bit more deeply flavored.
I’m making this sauce right now and am adding additional carrots to cut the intensity. I plan to serve it over tofu and quinoa for lunch tomorrow! Tofu is my 17 month olds favorite food but sometimes I want to add something extra…. hope this works!
I love the carrot-ginger salad dressings served at Japanese restaurants – this reminds me of those (not sure if the ingredients are the same) !
Can anyone recommend a good brand of miso and where to buy it? Also which color? I got one at Ranch99 that was so salty and icky I have avoided miso ever since. But I love restaurant items made with miso so I must’ve bought the wrong stuff.
Laura, I think you are on to something. I followed the recipe and it was good, but something was not quite right. My daughter ate about half of what she normally eats, so she did not devour it. I was thinking that perhaps some peanut butter would make it a bit sweeter. I love the idea of crushed peanuts on top. So I might go half and half with tahini and peanut butter next time.
I was also wondering about the Miso. There were four different flavors to choose from at my coop. I don’t cook with Miso often, so perhaps the Miso I chose changed the flavor a bit.
Either way, I am adding the recipe to my arsenal and will tweak it here and there. I love alternative sauces for rice and pasta.
Does the sauce freeze well?
Made this for the kiddos today, ALL THREE LOVED IT!!! Its not easy to please two 2 yr olds and a 4 year old with the same meal…Happened to be out of tahini and miso, so I used natural peanut butter, sesame oil, and a tiny bit of soy sauce. I added chopped peanuts to the top too for an extra kick of protein. Thank you!
Any kind of nut butter would work as a replacement for the tahini!
I was wondering the same… A substitution for the tahini would be great!
Any kind of nut butter would work! The flavor will be slightly different depending on which nut butter you use, but it will still be yummy!
Awww…I really wanted to try this but its got two of my kiddo’s top allergens (soy and sesame)….any substitutions for those ingredients?