The famous traditional pau roxo carrot, originally from the Alentejo and the Algarve.
Its roots are purple on the outside and white inside. It is considered a real delicacy in Castro Verde, served raw in slices, boiled, dressed with vinegar, and in both sweet and savoury dishes. Every year, at the end of January, the town holds the Feira de S. Sebastião, also known as the Feira do Pau Roxo.
We now know that before carrots were orange, they were dark purple. Orange carrots quickly replaced the purple ones because they did not stain kitchen utensils. In the Alentejo, however, an old variety of carrot, purple rather than orange with a white interior, is still grown today. This small purple carrot, known as pau roxo, is the focus of a festival in Castro Verde, in the Alentejo. The celebrations in honour of Saint Sebastian take place in January, when the carrots are harvested. Traditionally in this region, the carrots were served raw alongside olives before meals, as an appetiser. This tradition has almost disappeared, but the seeds live on. We received our seeds from a woman named Fátima, who runs a small organic farm in the Algarve called Quinta das Seis Marias. Fátima's mother saved seeds from various crops to sow again. Fátima made her mother's wisdom her own and has continued to save the seeds of this wonderful carrot to this day, on her farm, which is managed according to the principles of organic agriculture.
By offering these seeds, we hope to carry Fátima's work further, all the way to you.
