First off, what’s the correct term for those kind of ribbed carrot slices? Is there a charmingly-named cutting technique? You know, something like ‘julienned’.
You often see these serrated carrots in bags of frozen vegetables. I was looking at one the other day in my chicken pot pie and wondering “what possessed someone to give this carrot a serrated edge?” It feels like a very 1950s, Good Housekeeping kind of innovation, but that’s mere speculation.
And, come to think of it, why is the carrot unique (is it?) in this treatment? I can’t think of any other vegetables which regularly get serrated.
I did some quick web searches, but drew a blank. Anyone?
UPDATE: You know you’ve hit the big-time when the curator of the World Carrot Museum drops by to comment. That’s three kinds of awesome.
DarrenBarefoot.com 
I’ve seen cauliflower cut that way.
TTFN
Travis
Do you mean a waffle blade like this one? They are usually one of the blades that comes with a mandolin.
I’ve seen pickles sliced this way as well.
Oh common on you all. Potatoes! (Rippled potato chips). They’re my favorites when eating chips. Ripples have rrriiigggesss.
Alex: That may, in fact, be the device that does it. Indeed, pickles do get cut that way.
Richgold: Hmm…while technically correct, I’d say that rippled potato chips exist in a different culinary zone than sliced carrots.
How strange that I had this same conversation yesterday and all I could think of was cauliflower.
According to my co-worker friend the serrated carrot (crinkle cut_ decreases the carrot’s cooking time. Typically, carrots take a long time to cook therefore the carrot is the only vegetable with the crinkle cut.
Nicki: I like that theory. You create more surface area on the carrots (and make them thinner), so they cook faster.
I feel it was solely to make them more pleasant for kids to eat, and arrived about the same time a crinkle cut chips.
The surface area theory only saves a miniscule of time.