25 of the Best Coleslaw Recipes Ever
Updated: Jul. 18, 2023Any one of these coleslaw recipes will add extra crunch and color to your next cookout, barbecue or weeknight dinner.
Coleslaw, slaw, shredded salad—whatever you call it, we love this crunchy, creamy, tangy, easy side dish. It’s a go-to picnic food idea and a staple potluck recipe. It’s hard to imagine many holiday tables and food-filled gatherings without coleslaw.
Shredded cabbage combined with other ingredients can be traced back to Roman times, but what we know as coleslaw today comes from the 18th century Dutch word koolsla, which loosely defined means cabbage (kool) salad (sla). Coleslaw is so much more than just cabbage salad, though.
Whether creamy or vinegar-based, coleslaw serves as the perfect foil to richer foods—like a classic fish fry, crispy fried chicken or grilled, smoky meats and other barbecue recipes. Some of our favorite coleslaw recipes aren’t cabbage at all, but instead use other crunchy vegetables like jicama, broccoli or kale. You can add fruit, nuts, herbs and even cheese. However you slice, dice and shred it, the possibilities are endless! Get inspired by some of our best coleslaw recipes below.
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Creamy Coleslaw
The best place to start is with a classic creamy coleslaw. Make the dressing with both mayo and sour cream, plus dried mustard, sugar and salt. It’s super easy, whether you use bagged coleslaw mix or shred cabbage yourself.
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Nutty Broccoli Slaw
The beauty of a slaw is its versatility and ability to take on any number of ingredients. This one starts out as a broccoli slaw, but gets added flavor and crunch from onions, almonds, sunflower kernels and crushed ramen noodles. The dressing is a simple olive oil and cider vinegar blend.
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Ruby Raspberry Slaw
Sometimes all it takes is one extra ingredient to give ordinary coleslaw some pizzazz. In this case, it’s a tangy raspberry vinaigrette and fresh berries.
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Farmhouse Apple Coleslaw
Crisp apple offers a nice contrast to shredded cabbage in this coleslaw. Raisins add sweetness, but you can also leave them out.
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Copycat KFC Coleslaw
Thanks to its buttermilk and mayo dressing, this sweet and tangy coleslaw is a perfect side dish for fried chicken and biscuits. Grate the cabbage by hand for best and freshest consistency, but you can certainly use bagged coleslaw mix in a pinch.
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Red Cabbage Slaw
Red cabbage can sometimes turn creamy coleslaws pink, but when used on its own with a vinegar-based dressing, it stays crips and vibrant. Pile this sweet slaw high on slow-cooker pulled pork sandwiches.
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Spectacular Overnight Slaw
Like a lot of great salads, the flavors in this coleslaw get even better when you let them meld overnight. There’s a lot of savoriness in this one: shredded cabbage, thinly sliced onion, sweet bell peppers, pimento-stuffed olives and a mustardy dressing.
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Mom’s Chopped Coleslaw
Buttermilk is a classic addition to coleslaw dressing, favored for its tanginess and zest. Serve this chopped slaw with a good old-fashioned Friday fish fry, at your summer potluck parties or any time.
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Island Mango Slaw
Savoy cabbage is a type of cabbage with softer, frilly leaves that lends well to a coleslaw like this one. There’s fresh mango in both the slaw and the dressing, which gets a kick of heat from jalapeno. Before you get started, learn how to peel a mango with out any special equipment.
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Campers’ Coleslaw
A good basic crunchy coleslaw should be in everyone’s repertoire. You can shred the cabbage or run it over a box grater for a choppier consistency. Because it isn’t creamy, this is a great recipe for picnics and outdoor potlucks.
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Coleslaw with Poppy Seed Dressing
If you prepare poppy seed coleslaw ahead of time, make sure to leave the sunflower seeds off until you’re ready to serve. Add those just before it hits the table so they stay crunchy and add texture.
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Macaroni Coleslaw
A coleslaw that doubles as a macaroni salad is a great accompaniment to any barbecued rib recipes. Use traditional macaroni or other small shapes like ditalini for easier eating.
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Pennsylvania Dutch Coleslaw
This coleslaw may turn a bit pink since it uses both green and red cabbage, but it doesn’t change the flavor. Made with a traditional mayo-cider vinegar-sugar dressing, this one works great as a sandwich topper or as a side dish.
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Pineapple Coleslaw
Pineapple chunks add just enough sweetness to this creamy coleslaw, especially with its tangy dressing. You can easily add more cabbage or less pineapple to fit your own taste.
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Broccoli Slaw
Broccoli florets, red cabbage and onion taste great together in this slaw. Try swapping in a bag of broccoli slaw mix for half the florets for a more slaw-like salad.
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Fiesta Coleslaw
When you add crisp vegetables like jicama and radishes to cabbage, you get a cool and crunchy slaw that pairs with everything from smoked pork to barbecued chicken. Thanks to jalapeno and cilantro, it’s also a perfect topper for fried fish tacos.
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Christmas Coleslaw
With apple, cherries, almonds and mandarin oranges, it’s like a holiday in a bowl. Reserve the oranges for folding in right before serving so they don’t get too mushy.
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Kale Slaw Spring Salad
Move over kale salads! This slaw-salad hybrid using bagged cabbage along with the leafy greens is a welcome change of pace from everyday slaws. Toss in salty feta cheese and crunchy sunflower seeds at the table.
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Blue Cheese Slaw
Combine carrots and green and red cabbage in a bowl, then add a tangy mustard-vinegar dressing and lots of blue cheese chunks. Let it all sit in the fridge for at least two hours before serving so the flavors meld.
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Jicama Slaw
Instead of cabbage, let jicama add a sweet, nutty flavor to coleslaw. When buying jicama, choose one that is firm with a dry skin. It shouldn’t look too wrinkled or shriveled, and should be free of large blemishes.
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Summertime Slaw
A refreshing change from creamier slaws, this one uses garden vegetables like tomatoes and onions along with shredded cabbage. Sweet pickle relish is the secret ingredient to the dressing!
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Basil Dill Coleslaw
When cooking with fresh herbs, make sure they’re at peak freshness. Take the stems off of basil leaves, roll them up like a cigar and slice into thin ribbons. For fresh dill, pluck the fronds off the stems and chop. Add both right before tossing the slaw together.
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Honey Mustard Coleslaw
Spicy brown mustard is the preferred choice for this tangy, creamy dressing, but any variety will do the trick. Bagged coleslaw mix takes a lot of the prep work out of this slaw, but you can shred your own if you have the time.
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Caraway Coleslaw with Citrus Mayonnaise
Caraway seeds and a citrusy, orange dressing make this coleslaw super unique. Make it a day in advance to let the flavors come together. This would taste great with grilled bratwursts or other sausages.
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Zesty Coleslaw
Bell peppers add some extra zing to this creamy coleslaw. Everyone has their favorite way of cutting a bell pepper, but we like to slice off the top, pull out the seeds, cut it in half and commence slicing.
Originally Published: January 16, 2019
