Did you know that carrots were originally purple?

The carrot originates from Asia, and the original color of carrots was purple. In the 17th century, the purple carrot was crossed with yellow carrots, resulting in the orange carrots we know today. Afterward, purple carrots were no longer commonly eaten. The purple color of the carrots is caused by the (natural) pigment anthocyanin, which is also found in other deeply colored plants. Anthocyanin is associated with potential preventive effects against cancer and cardiovascular diseases.

The pigment in orange carrots is beta-carotene, which is more familiar to many people and plays a role in the absorption of vitamin A. The differences between purple and orange carrots are not very significant, though the purple carrot is sweeter than the orange one. Today, purple carrots are available again and are sometimes used to make a recipe sweeter or to add color variety.

The photo accompanying this article is created by Darya Pino via Flickr.com