This kosher recipe for the Best Purple Cabbage Slaw is flavorful, versatile, and oh so healthy. You can eat it as a side dish or take an extra large helping and make it a full meal. Just like our Quick and Easy Creamy Coleslaw, this is one of our favorite healthy summertime cabbage recipes!
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This slaw is sweet and tart and has a satisfying crunch with each bite. It only uses 7 ingredients, and is ready in under 10 minutes!
Why This Recipe Works
- Quick to prepare. Cabbage salad recipes like this are ready to eat in less than 10 minutes.
- Yummy Blend of complementary flavors. The purple cabbage provides a neutral base that combines well with the sweet oranges, fragrant onions, and tart dried cranberries. I don't usually like cabbage salads, but I can't get enough of this one.
- It's healthy. This slaw gets its flavor primarily from the fresh cabbage and the fruit. There is a little bit of sugar from the mandarin oranges and a small amount of fat from the olive oil, but that's it. This is a light and nutritious salad.
- Easy to make. This recipe only uses 7 ingredients and requires almost no preparation time. No fuss, no mess.
- Something for everyone. This recipe is kosher, non-dairy, pareve, and gluten free.
This recipe only uses 7 ingredients
This is all you need to make the Best Purple Cabbage Slaw:
- Purple cabbage - crunchy, attractive, and just like green cabbage, chock full of vitamin C, K and fiber. You can't lose!
- Dried cranberries - sweet and tart.
- Slivered almonds - provides a softer crunch than the red cabbage.
- Mandarin oranges - for sweetness.
- Red wine vinegar - classic dressing ingredient for salads like this. Not as biting and more flavorful than white vinegar. You can also use apple cider vinegar.
- Green onions - rounds out the flavor profile for the salad.
- Olive oil - for the dressing, makes it stick to the cabbage.
How to make this recipe step by step
Step 1 - Mix the fruit and veggies together.
Mix the red cabbage, slivered almonds, dried cranberries, mandarin oranges, and chopped green onions in a large salad bowl together. We used a pre shredded purple cabbage for this post but you can also use whole cabbage and slice with a sharp knife.
Step 2 - Prepare the dressing
In a separate bowl, mix the ¼ cup juice from the can of mandarin oranges with ⅛ cup of red wine vinegar and ¼ cup of olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste.
We love using this little whisk for dressings like this. Mixing the dressing here is just like mixing it for our recipe for Salata Orientala (Romanian Potato Salad). You are mix oil and non-oil together so remember to be a little bit aggressive with your mixing here.
Step 3 - Dress the Purple Cabbage Cole Slaw
Pour the dressing over the salad. You can eat it right after it is made but, just like our Broccoli Salad, it gets better if you leave it covered in the refrigerator for an hour first.
Recipe FAQ
This salad uses raw red (or purple) cabbage, it is not cooked. It is delicious to eat raw and is great in this salad and others like it that call for raw red cabbage.
Place the dressed salad into an airtight container and put it into the refrigerator. The salad will keep for up to one week in the refrigerator. Chances are that it will not last that long as everybody usually asks for seconds!
Tips and Suggestions
- Chill overnight for the best results
- Add toasted sesame seeds right before serving
- Mix sliced deli meats into the red cabbage slaw recipe and make this salad a complete meal
- Substitute dried cherries for dried cranberries
- Serve it as a topping on a taco made with our Best Homemade Taco Meat
📖 Recipe
The Best Purple Cabbage Slaw
Equipment
- Large bowl
- small bowl
Ingredients
Salad ingredients
- 10 oz purple cabbage shredded
- ⅓ cup almonds slivered
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- 10 oz mandarin oranges save the juice
- ¼ cup green onions chopped
Dressing ingredients
- ¼ cup mandarin orange juice
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ⅛ cup red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Toss the shredded cabbage, almonds, dried cranberries, mandarin oranges, and green onions together in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, mix the mandarin orange juice, olive oil, red wine vinegar, and salt and pepper together with a whisk or small fork to make the dressing.
- Dress the salad with the dressing and toss. Eat immediately or chill for at least one hour for best results.
Notes
- Chill overnight for the best results
- Add toasted sesame seeds right before serving
- Mix in sliced deli meats and make this salad a complete meal
- Substitute dried cherries for dried cranberries
Sandra Berube says
refreshing combination of ingredients and so easy to put together!
Ben says
Thanks for commenting.
Jeanette Bray says
Very interesting goin to try the red cabbage today
Ben says
Thanks, let us know how you like it.
Hilary Margelovich says
Been making this for years! Delicious without the heaviness of mayonnaise. Also I’ve substituted balsamic vinegar instead of wine vinegar - also for those watching their sugar intake, I’ve omitted the mandarin ( only put it in for company!) and the dried cranberries - still delicious and refreshing!