Asian Slaw
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This fan-favorite Asian Slaw is a delicious, healthy, real food version of the old Ramen noodles slaw. Amazing color, texture, and flavor! We make this one again and again.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Remember that old-school slaw salad made with pre-packaged Soy Sauce Ramen Noodles? Well, unfortunately, that original recipe is full of processed ingredients and MSG. This is what is listed on that package:
Yuck! I’m not even sure how to pronounce or what most of those ingredients are?!
The good news is, our friend Carla helped us develop this homemade version of Asian Slaw with all real food ingredients. It’s healthy, visually appealing, has great textural variance, and tastes amazing. We’ve tested it dozens of times and it works!
Ingredients Needed
The ingredients in Asian Slaw are quite simple and require very little prep. Here’s what you’ll need:
For the Salad
- Cabbage slaw mix – You can use broccoli slaw if you’d like, but we prefer the cabbage slaw ourselves.
- Chopped green onion or chives
- Almond slivers or slices
- Dried cranberries – Have extra? Use them in our Cranberry Balsamic Chicken.
- Sunflower seeds
- 1 crispy apple (sub: crispy pear)
For the Dressing
- Avocado or olive oil
- Rice vinegar
- Fresh lemon juice
- Low sodium soy sauce or coconut aminos (gluten-free option)
- Sugar
- Dried minced onion
- Garlic powder
- Salt & pepper
Find the full, printable recipe at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Asian Slaw
- Combine the dressing ingredients in a jar, seal, and shake until combined. Chill in the fridge while making the rest of the salad.
- Toast the almonds on a sheet pan at 350°F for about 5-10 minutes until lightly browned, shaking occasionally. Watch closely so they don’t burn. (If you are using raw sunflower seeds, you can toast them too.)
- Approximately 30 minutes before serving, combine the slaw ingredients and then toss with HALF of the dressing. Taste and then add more dressing or salt and pepper, as needed. Serve any extra dressing on the side.
- Cover and store leftovers in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.
Tips for Success
- Toasting the almonds adds more depth of flavor.
- My favorite crispy apple to use is Honey Crisp variety.
- I always start by adding only half of the dressing and add more as needed. You can always serve extra on the side. This helps avoid a soggy salad.
- To change things up, try adding frozen (and thawed) shelled edamame, sliced snow peas, or finely chopped peanuts.
- I think leftovers the next day are even better!
What to Serve with Asian Slaw
While this recipe can be used any time of the year, I seem to gravitate towards it in the summer time. Here are some ideas that it would pair well with:
FAQs
After adding the dressing, cover and store this slaw for 2-3 days in the fridge. It will get soggier the longer it sits. I find that leftovers are best in the first day or two after.
Yes. If you want to prep this slaw ahead, make the dressing and store in the fridge for up to a week. You can add all the slaw ingredients (minus the apple and dressing) to a large serving bowl, cover, and store in the fridge for up to two days in advance. When ready to serve, add the diced apple and toss with the dressing as directed.
To change things up, try adding frozen (and thawed) shelled edamame, sliced snow peas, or finely chopped peanuts. If you want a little heat in the background of this salad, try adding some Sriracha sauce to the dressing or directly on top of the salad.
How to Video
Asian Slaw
Ingredients
Dressing Ingredients:
- 1/3 cup avocado oil (sub: olive oil)
- 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar (unseasoned)
- Juice of 1 lemon (about 2-3 tablespoons)
- 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce (sub: coconut aminos for gluten-free)
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon minced onion
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (plus more to taste)
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (plus more to taste)
Slaw Ingredients:
- 1 (16-ounce) bag cabbage slaw mix
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion (sub: minced chives)
- 1/2 cup almond slivers or slices
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds
- 1 crispy apple, diced in small chunks (sub: crispy pear)
- Optional: 1 1/2 lbs pulled rotisserie chicken, diced
Instructions
- Combine the dressing ingredients in a jar, seal, and shake until combined. Chill in the fridge while making the rest of the salad.
- Toast the almonds on a sheet pan at 350°F for about 5-10 minutes until lightly browned, shaking occasionally. Watch closely so they don’t burn. (If you are using raw sunflower seeds, you can toast them too.)
- Approximately 30 minutes before serving, combine the slaw ingredients and then toss with HALF of the dressing. Taste and then add more dressing or salt and pepper, as needed. Serve any extra dressing on the side.
- Cover and store leftovers in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.
Notes/Tips
- You can use broccoli slaw if you’d like, but we prefer the cabbage slaw ourselves.
- I always start with less dressing and add more as needed or serve it on the side. This helps avoid soggy salad.
- I think leftovers the next day are even better!
- To change things up, try adding frozen (and thawed) shelled edamame, sliced snow peas, or finely chopped peanuts.
- This goes well with our Grilled Asian Chicken or Asian Turkey Meatballs.
- If you want a little heat in the background of this salad, try adding some Sriracha sauce to the dressing or directly on top of the salad.
Nutrition
We make this weekly in the summer with grilled chicken. So good!
Easy and delicious
Thanks Amber. Those are two words we love to hear about our recipes!
Balsamic vinegar? It’s an ingredient in the video, but not listed in the recipe itself. Was that a tweak and you decided eventually to take it out or is it meant to be there? And if so, how much?
Yes, we removed that ingredient when we updated and improved the recipe (after making the video). Good catch, though!
Love this! I’ve tried many Asian slaw recipes and this is my favorite.
So glad to hear this Stacy! Thanks for leaving a review.
My husband and I loved this. We used the left overs to add to fish tacos the next day.
Great idea to use in fish tacos. Yum!
I have use this recipe for years as a good potluck for the beach. Try using Mango
Ooh, mango is a fun idea for a different twist. Thanks!
My whole family loves this recipe!
Thank you for this recipe. I made it this week and I wasn’t sure how it would go over as my husband does not typically like sweeter foods at dinner. But it was a big hit with my whole family. I served it with pulled pork and there were no leftovers! This is a definite make-again dish!
Awesome! Love hearing that. Thanks for taking the time to leave feedback and a review, Cheryl.
Made the slaw as a side with smoked brisket. Was light and crispy with the almonds and apples! Dressing was delicious! A major hit with the family. This one’s now added to my regular summer salad rotation!
Awesome! Thanks for sharing your feedback, Kelly. 🙂
Will the dressing keep the apple from turning brown? I was thinking of making this ahead of time and just add the dressing the next day.
The acid from the dressing will help keep it from turning, but it may still turn a little brown within that time period. I would suggest adding the apple and the sauce about 30-60 minutes before serving and then toss it all together.
My whole family (hubs, 3 1/2 year old, and 2 year old) all ate this! This is quite the feat at our house. We loved the dressing! I made some changes (anybody else always have to skip a few things on their grocery list due to verge of toddler meltdown? ?)
I used broccoli slaw instead of cabbage slaw (a misgrab) only used 1 tsp sugar and 1 tsp stevia, used ground almonds/walnuts leftover from another recipe and pine nuts instead of sunflower seeds, and omitted the green onions (forgot to slice) and crasins (sweet enough already for us!). It was delicious.
Yeah! I love it when there is a meal that the entire family likes. WIN!
Rachel, this is a fun recipe. I’m adapting it for allergy and other dietary issues by substituting grape seed oil for olive oil, Tamari soy as a gluten-free soy sauce option, and using a small amount of stevia, agave, or honey for sweetness. Thanks for sharing it. Cam
Thanks for the allergy-free suggestions! I will have to try some stevia or honey in for the sugar, too. Love that suggestion.