Seriously Good Homemade Coleslaw Recipe

How to make seriously good homemade coleslaw. With a generous amount of acidity from apple cider vinegar and Dijon mustard, our favorite coleslaw is anything but dull. Jump to the Easy Coleslaw Recipe or watch our quick recipe video showing you how we make it.

How to Make the Best Coleslaw

This coleslaw recipe is packed with fresh, lively flavors that wake up anything you serve with it. Try this as a topping to sandwiches, served next to ultra-savory meats, like braised beef or pork. Or, mound some on top of your next hot dog or hamburger.

What’s the Best Cabbage for Homemade Coleslaw?

There’s no right or wrong answer, here. Use green cabbage, red cabbage, savoy cabbage or Napa cabbage.

For a multi-colored or multi-textured coleslaw, use a combination of two varieties. Most often, we use a combination of green and red cabbage. (If you have leftover cabbage, try our easy ham and cabbage soup.)

If you are looking for a mayo-free coleslaw, we’ve got you covered! Take a look at our Cilantro Lime Coleslaw salad Recipe.

How to Cut the Cabbage

Whatever kind of cabbage you choose, the way to prepare them are generally the same.

Remove any tattered or bruised outer leaves, remove the hardy core and then slice into very thin shreds.

Recipe Shortcut: Use Bagged Mixes

As an alternative, you can buy bags of pre-shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix. They usually range between 10 and 16 ounces — so you may need a couple of bags for our recipe.

Replace the cabbage and carrot called for in our recipe with your favorite store-bought bag. We have even seen bagged coleslaw mixes that include shredded broccoli stems (delicious) and other vegetables if you’re in the mood to try something a little bit different.

The Dressing

Our favortie coleslaw dressing is quick to make and calls for simple ingredients:

• Mayonnaise is the base and makes the dressing creamy. When we have a batch in our fridge, we love to use this homemade mayonnaise.
• Apple cider vinegar adds a zesty note to the dressing. You can substitute other kinds of vinegar like red wine vinegar or champagne vinegar.
• Dijon mustard adds extra flavor and a bit of spice.
• Celery seeds really make the dressing and taste like celery. The flavor is mild, so if you aren’t a celery fan, I’d still recommend using at least some of the celery seeds called for in the recipe.
• Salt and pepper are a must and bring the dressing together.

Side note: Unlike some of the more traditional or popular recipes for coleslaw, we skip the addition of sugar to our coleslaw dressing. For our tastes, the cabbage and carrots are sweet enough. If you disagree, add a teaspoon or two of sugar to the dressing before mixing with the cabbage and carrot.

Recipe Tip: Only Add Two-Thirds of the Dressing at First

When you’re ready to mix up your coleslaw, don’t just dump in the whole bowl of dressing. Instead, start with about two-thirds, give everything a stir and then see just how much more dressing you feel your coleslaw needs.

If you decide it’s perfect the way it is, don’t throw away that leftover coleslaw dressing! Keep it in the fridge (it will last for days, if not weeks). Use it as a spread for sandwiches, a dip for vegetables or sauce for meats and roasted or grilled vegetables.

You may also like: This fresh and Easy Cucumber Salad with a sweet and tangy dressing made with vinegar, a little sugar, and Dijon mustard.

How to Make Coleslaw Ahead of Time

Coleslaw is easy to make in advance. The vegetables can be shredded a day or two in advance and kept in a resealable bag in the refrigerator.

As for the dressing, mix it up and store covered in the refrigerator for weeks. Combine the cabbage, carrots and dressing the night before or day of serving — we like the crunch of the vegetables to still be present. The longer the cabbage sits in the coleslaw dressing, the softer and less crunchy it will become.

Are you looking for more side dishes?

Check out our Potato Salad Recipe with lots of tips for making it best. Or, for a wintery version of coleslaw take a look at our Warm Cabbage and Apple Salad Recipe. Speaking of apples, our Fresh Apple and Fennel Salad is also a great side.

Recipe updated, originally posted January 2015. Since posting this in 2015, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear. – Adam and Joanne