Everyone seems to associated carrots with the color orange. The orange carrot is the most common colored carrot. However it's not the only colored carrot. You can find carrots that are white, yellow, red, gold, and purple. Sometimes you find them in specality grocery stores or the farmer's market, but they aren't always easy to find. Why would you bother? First, I think it's fun to grow different colors of vegetables. If you have kids, even the more fun. Second, the flavor varies in each colored variety. It may not be so much on their own, but when you cook up a mix of a variety of colors, the flavor differences shine and just make for a more complex side dish (I looked cooked carrots!). Also the color is so visually appealing!
Last season, I grew some different colored carrots in my garden and I am planning the same this year. I have looked at different seed catalogs and I find that Johnny's Selected Seeds seem to have the best selection, I plan on buying my carrot seeds from them. Here is a list of what they have to offer.
White Satin
These carrots are pure white in color.
Yellow Sun
These carrots are a bright yellow color. They grow a little bit shorter (6-7 in) than the other varieties listed here. They also have a rather blunt end, meaning the carrot is mostly the same thickness throughout, which is a plus for even cooking.
YellowPak
Another yellow that is more of a solid yellow, not quite as bright, but still beautiful. Said to have a good flavor.
Rainbow
This is a variety that produces different colored carrots, ranging from almost white to a darker yellow. I grew these last year and they were alright, but I want to do a little more variety in color this year. But they are a good choice if you only plan to grow one variety. You can still get different colors.
Atomic Red
This is variety is at the top of my list to grow this season. They are a beautiful red color. They are said to have a strong flavor. Typically the more orange a carrot the stronger the flavor and when you reach red, then it's really strong. They recommend cooking these carrots to deepen color and improve the flavor.
Purple Haze
These carrots are purple on the outside but orange on the inside. The purple color will fade when cooked. For raw eating they get an "A" for presentation.
Deep Purple
These carrots are as purple as purple can get. Their color will fade some when cooked, but not completely.
Have fun this year. Give a try at growing some different colored carrots. Great for the eyes and for the tongue.
Home grown carrots are soooo much better tasting than store-bought. I had not idea there was purple carrots - going to try that in this year's garden!
I so agree! Give those purple ones I try and I hope you like them.