The Best Coleslaw Recipe (So Easy!) (2024)

Home Recipes Courses Side Dish Coleslaw

by Lisa Bryan

61 Comments

Updated Mar 18, 2023

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Aneasy coleslaw recipe that’s a perfect side dish for summer parties, potlucks and barbecues. My recipe is light, flavorful and has far less sugar than you’ll find in store-bought versions or from KFC.

This homemade coleslaw is amazing when paired with mySlow Cooker Pulled Pork, Honey Mustard Chicken orBBQ Ribs

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Coleslaw is one of the quintessential summer salads and side dish recipes, along with Potato Salad, Cucumber Salad and Broccoli Salad. As a kid I ate the KFC version more often than not, but as an adult I realized how easy it was to make from home and I’ve never looked back.

The other bonus of making coleslaw at home? You can control the quality of ingredients, keep it healthy and make it as creamy (or less creamy) as you’d like. Personally, I prefer coleslaw that’s a little less creamy and more crunchy. But you can always tweak it to your liking!

Homemade Coleslaw Ingredients

Coleslaw is very easy to make at home and this version is “light” compared to most recipes. Traditional coleslaw has quite a bit of white sugar and many versions contain dairy, in the form of buttercream. My version is dairy-free and the only sugar is a smidge of honey.

As for the other coleslaw ingredients, everything else is fairly standard:

  • Green cabbage
  • Red cabbage
  • Carrots
  • My homemade mayonnaise (you can use store bought too)
  • Honey
  • Apple cider vinegar
  • Celery seeds
  • Salt and pepper

Watch my Coleslaw Recipe Video

In this quick video I’ll show you how to make both this classic coleslaw recipe and my vinegar based coleslaw. Give it a watch!

How to Make the Best Coleslaw Recipe

I recommend you use fresh cabbage and carrots, rather than a bag of pre-chopped coleslaw mix for the best flavor. Sure, it’s a little bit more work to slice everything, but it’s very fast. Promise.

To shred the cabbage by hand:

  1. Remove the outer leaves of the cabbage.Wash the cabbage (there can sometimes be a little dirt), then remove the outer leaves.
  2. Chop off the stem at the end. There’s more of the stem on the inside but we’ll get to removing that.
  3. Chop the cabbage in half, then into quarters. Then diagonally cut out the area where you see the stem or core on the inside.
  4. Thinly shred the cabbage with a knife. You can make the cabbage as thin or thick as you desire. I personally like my cabbage to be thin. If you feel the cabbage is a little too long, then cut the shredded cabbage in half.

Alternatively, you could use a spiralizer to shred the cabbage. You can view my post and video on how to spiralize cabbage (carrots too). A mandoline would also be a great tool for shredding cabbage and carrots.

If you don’t have a spiralizer or mandoline to shred the carrots, use the large hole side of a box grater. It works perfect for this coleslaw recipe.

Once the cabbage and carrots are shredded, just mix it with the Coleslaw Dressing and enjoy!

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Can Coleslaw Be Made the Day Before?

Yes, you can make coleslaw the day before! This is especially helpful when planning for an event. I personally love when my cabbage and carrots marinate in the dressing overnight. They seem to be so much more flavorful than the first day I tossed. However, you can also keep the veggies and coleslaw dressing separate and mix them the day of. Once mixed together,coleslaw lasts about 3 – 5 days in the fridge.

Is Coleslaw Bad For You?

While coleslaw is veggie-packed, many recipes are drowning in dressing that contain more sugar and fat than necessary. The base of my dressing is my Homemade Mayonnaise (linked in the recipe), which is made from higher quality oils and contains no sugar. It’s much healthier than store-bought. So if you’ve never made mayo at home, you must give it a try. I also don’t add any dairy or extra sugar.

You can see that my cabbage is coated in the coleslaw dressing but it’s not swimming in dressing. This also keeps it healthier and with a little more crunch. That’s why you should make my version (wink).Cabbage is extremely healthy for you, so let’s keep this version of coleslaw that way too!

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More Recipes Perfect for a Party

  • Potato Salad
  • Pico De Gallo
  • Guacamole
  • Egg Salad

More Coleslaw Recipes to Enjoy

  • Vinegar Coleslaw (No Mayo)
  • Cilantro Lime Bacon Coleslaw
  • Grilled Fish Tacos with Citrus Carrot Slaw

One last tip: this coleslaw recipes makes quite a bit of coleslaw (about 12 servings) which is perfect for a party. If you’d like less coleslaw, just halve the recipe.And use any leftover cabbage in my sautéedcabbage recipe.

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The Best Coleslaw Recipe

5 from 30 votes

Prep: 20 minutes mins

Total: 20 minutes mins

Servings: 12 servings

Author: Lisa Bryan

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Description

Coleslaw is so easy to make at home. It's just a mix of cabbage, carrots and creamy coleslaw dressing. Watch the video above to see how quickly it comes together!

Video

Ingredients

  • 3/4 green cabbage, finely shredded
  • 1/4 red cabbage, finely shredded
  • 3 medium carrots, grated
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp honey, (or more for desired sweetness)
  • 1 tsp celery seeds
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

  • Add the shredded green cabbage, red cabbage, and carrots to a large bowl.

  • Combine the mayonnaise, honey, apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper, and celery seeds in a small bowl and whisk together. (If you want the dressing to be sweeter, add more honey.)

  • Pour about half of the dressing onto the cabbage and carrots and toss. Slowly add more dressing until you’ve reached your desired slaw to dressing ratio.

  • Serve and enjoy!

Lisa's Tips

  • This recipe makes approximately 12 cups of coleslaw (based on the size of the cabbage you see in my video). If your cabbage is larger or smaller, this may vary.

Nutrition

Calories: 159kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 193mg | Potassium: 191mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 2810IU | Vitamin C: 31.6mg | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 0.6mg

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Coleslaw, Coleslaw Recipe, Homemade Coleslaw

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About the author

Lisa Bryan

Lisa is a bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, and YouTuber (with over 2.5 million subscribers) living in sunny Southern California. She started Downshiftology in 2014, and is passionate about making healthy food with fresh, simple and seasonal ingredients.

Read More About Me

The Best Coleslaw Recipe (So Easy!) (2024)

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