This simple cabbage salad is my go to for busy weeknights when I have just 5 minutes and want salad. I make this for potlucks when I want a no mayo vegan coleslaw, and for when I’m craving crunch and my body needs fiber. When would you serve this easy cabbage salad that literally takes minutes to make?
With just over three weeks to go until Passover, I’ve been thinking a lot about menus. Not just holiday menus, but daily menus too. For us, the holiday isn’t a huge departure from the way we eat all the time. We eat a simple cabbage salad several times a week. It’s an easy way to bring more veggies onto our plates at various times of day, regardless of what the calendar says.
I’ve been noticing that the struggle to incorporate more veggies into daily routines is real for many. I hear about it from health coaching clients and students in my cooking workshops regularly. Some are afraid of buying too much produce because it goes bad quickly. Others are stuck in a rut of the same old salad day in and out. And then, there are those who can only make a complicated salad from a recipe and are often too tired to deal. If any of those stereotypes sounds like you, let me introduce you to the simple cabbage salad.
What I like about this recipe is that it’s not really even a recipe. Yet, the results are consistent, healthy and tasty. This recipe leaves you with no excuse not to include some fiber rich veggies at your next meal. I’ve laid out a recipe for simple cabbage salad, but it’s super forgiving, adaptable and let me just say, “you’ve got this!”
As I said earlier, we eat a simple cabbage salad several times a week, during Passover and all year round. Sometimes it’s with purple cabbage, sometimes green or savoy. Once in a while I add in some julienned carrots and call it slaw. Often, I’ll throw in some chopped nuts or left-over legumes, and hubby likes to throw in some left over roasted chicken in his. But mostly we eat it unadulterated. Simple. Reliable. Dependable.
Simple Cabbage Salad is good for
- A quick and healthy side dish
- Someone on a low carb diet
- Taco Bar choice
- Hot days when you don’t want to turn on the stove.
- The base for a nourish bowl.
- BBQ season
- Refreshing lighter side dish to serve with heavier main dishes.
Cabbage is a hearty vegetable that is in the cruciferous family. One thing I really like about it is that it doesn’t spoil easily. I always have cabbage of one kind or another in the crisper drawer. When all else fails and I just want to get in a bit more fiber and another serving of veggies for the day, I can count on cabbage to help me out. Another thing I like about cabbage is that it is nutrient dense. For a small amount of calories, you get a lot of nutrition!
BENEFITS of CABBAGE
- Fights inflammation
- Great source of dietary fiber
- Helps improve digestion
- Packed with vitamin C to help boost the immune system.
- Excellent source of Vitamin K, crucial to bone health.
Making cabbage into cabbage salad is simple. Sometimes I find chopping veggies therapeutic. It puts me in a meditative state that is so blissful. Other times, I just want to get the job done. Mood and/or equipment availability will determine how to get that cabbage shredded. The food processor does a wonderful and quick job, of both the cabbage and the scallions. Use the slicing disc and if your food processor has a setting, put it on 1 ⅓. If you don’t have a food processor, a sharp clean knife and a wooden board will make quick work of this job. Alternately, a mandolin will give you thinly shredded cabbage and some of the inner peace.
Regardless of the method you choose, once your cabbage is shredded, you’re just about done! If you shred the cabbage in advance, store it in a tightly sealed container in your fridge. If you don’t have scallions, no problem, make this simple cabbage salad anyway. It will be delish and go well with whatever else you’re serving.
📖 Recipe
Simple Cabbage Salad
Ingredients
- ½ head purple cabbage approximately 4 cups shredded
- 4 scallions
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
Instructions
- Cut cabbage in half. Slice out white core. Using a food processor, a mandoline or a sharp knife, thinly slice (shred) the rest.
- Wash and trim the scallions. Thinly slice white and 3 inches of the green.
- In a large bowl, toss the shredded cabbage and sliced scallions with olive oil, vinegar, S +P. Taste and add a bit more oil or salt as needed. Not all cabbage is the same size. If it’s too dry, add in double the olive oil to ACV, in small increments until the cabbage is thoroughly moistened, but not so much that there is an abundance of “juice” at the bottom of the bowl.
- Cabbage and scallions can be cut ahead and stored in air tight container in the fridge. Dress before serving, allowing a few minutes for the cabbage to soften a bit.
- You can also slice up cabbage and scallions and leave in air tight container in the fridge. It will stay good all week and you can take out individual servings as needed and drizzle on the oil/vinegar/S+P to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
Gloria | Homemade & Yummy
With grilling season just around the corner, and all the BBQ parties…this is perfect. Great to feed a crowd. Perfect to take along to a party too.
Debra Klein
YES!!! And your guests or your host will be so happy to have a healthy option.
Julie Menghini
I love raw cabbage just as a snack and I can’t wait to try this simple salad. I love recipes that aren’t really recipes. I’d definitely be able to get this one on the table and my family is going to love it.
Debra Klein
Awesome. Getting it on the table is essential for success in increasing your families veggie consumption!!
Daniela
I’m one of those people who is usually too tired to make a complicated salad, so this cabbage salad is definitely for me. I love that it’s so versatile: I can see myself serving it along some stir fried chicken and veggies or using it as the base for a bowl. Thank you for the great recipe!
Debra Klein
Yay! An awesome, simple and quick way to get in the veggies. All great ways to use cabbage salad!
Dana
This looks and sounds so so crisp and refreshing right now! I love apple cider vinegar and can just imagine how awesome it is tossed with fresh cabbage. I’ve been looking for more side dish ideas for the warmer weather. I feel like I’m always making the same ones. Time to step away from my go-tos for a while—and I think this is just the thing!
Debra Klein
Always a crowd pleaser….the color, the crunch, the simplicity. EVERYONE will eat this, even those who “don’t do” salad.
Dana
This looks and sounds so so crisp and refreshing right now! I love apple cider vinegar and can just imagine how awesome it is tossed with fresh cabbage. I’ve been looking for more side dish ideas for the warmer weather. I feel like I’m always making the same ones. Time to step away from my go-tos for a while—and I think this is just the thing!
Sean@Diversivore
I think coleslaw (and cabbage, for that matter) gets maligned unfairly all too often. Creamy coleslaws and cabbage salads are nice sometimes, but they’re all-too-often just bland, heavy messes. The vinegar is the key to a good salad, and apple cider vinegar is absolutely perfect! I could totally see adding some crushed pecans or walnuts to the mix too. Then again, I’m a nut for nuts in salad, so maybe I’m biased. Regardless, this is a delightful, simple salad that’s absolutely perfect – especially when you’ve got a big head of cabbage to use up!
Trish Bozeman
I am definitely saving this for the summer! Last year we got 2 heads of cabbage a week in our CSA bin and were struggling to use it all up. I’m sad to say that by the end of summer, some of it got tossed because we just couldn’t come up with any more recipes. Why didn’t I ever think to just make a simple cabbage salad? Sometimes, simple is best. Thanks for the inspiration, we’ll be needing it soon!
Amanda
Love simple and delicious cabbage salads like these! I would devour this all summer, alongside all of our grilled dinners. Such a quick and easy accompaniment and it goes with so many things! I didn’t know that cabbage fights inflammation–I’m always looking to incorporate natural anti-inflammatories into my meals!
Debra Klein
YES!! We eat this all summer and all winter….really good any time of year because cabbages are so hearty and always available.
Debra Klein
This is a must for that cabbage…and roasting it is another great choice. Oven at 400, cut into thick wedges. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with S+P. Roast for about 20 minutes. Delish.
Debra Klein
Yes. Nuts would be great….more crunch, more protein. YAY.
Julie Cummings
Counting on this simple and delicious recipe once again! We’re going to a Mexican Food themed dinner party tonight, and this dish will be the perfect delicious and nutritious addition.
Debra Klein
Thank you! I think a good slaw is a great addition to a Mexican themed dinner.
Lemore
Hi Debra,
This sounds great.
I’d like to make it for Passover dinner and seeing as I may be busy, I may use pre shredded cabbage. How many cups do you think this recipe calls for?
Thanks so much in advance.
Debra Klein
Thanks for asking…I’ll update the recipe to indicate approximately 4 cups in 1/2 medium head of cabbage. Chag Sameach and have fun in the kitchen prepping!