This is a terrific fresh, crunchy Asian salad that I call an Asian Slaw because it has shredded cabbage and carrot likeย traditional Coleslaw. The fresh herbs and Asian Dressing infusedย with Thai flavours makes this oriental salad extra special. Delicious AND healthy!
Itโs a terrific all-rounder side salad for any Asian food, including Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese. Make aย big batch because it keeps for days!
Asian Slaw
Named as such because itโs made with shredded cabbage like traditional Coleslaw โ but other than that, it couldnโt be more different! No oily mayo laden dressing, this Asian salad is fresh, bright and crunchy, but certainly not lacking in flavour. (I also have similarly slaw-like Vietnamese Chicken Salad, that uses Chinese Cabbage which you should give a go!)
The three things that makes this Asian Slaw anything but your usual boring salad are:
The fabulous Asian dressing โ I like to give this one a Thai touch with a hit of lime and fish sauce (optional!);
Fresh mint and coriander/cilantro โ the herbs makes all the difference in this, that element of freshness and extra flavour;
Sprinkle of crispy fried shallots โ little salty pops of crispiness, this is an Asian garnish that goes on โeverythingโ. A little bit goes a long way to add extra texture, flavour and interest to anything that itโs sprinkled on. I use it a lot โ so itโs a familiar ingredient to regular readers!ย Foundย in the Asian section of large supermarkets but way cheaper in Asian stores! Hereโs my essential Asian Marketย Shopping list.
TIP: Make a big batch โ use some as a side dish, then turn itย intoย an Asian Chicken Salad for lunch! It keeps well for days.
This Asian Slaw is not an authentic recipe of any cuisine, but the flavours areย reminiscent of Thai and Vietnamese salads because of the bright fresh dressing and the South East Asian herbs (mint and coriander/cilantro) in the salad.
Asian Slaw ingredients
Hereโs what goes in my Asian Slaw:
Asian Dressing
The Asian dressing is made with soy, fish sauce, rice vinegar, lime, sugar, garlic, oil and optional chili.
I know it looks like thereโs a lot of ingredients but donโt worry, a few of them are optional โย little additions that make the dressing extra special but itโs really terrific even without:
Fish sauce โ just a bit adds extra depth of flavour into the dressing. Just skip it if you want;
Lime juice โ optional! Just sub with more rice vinegar;
Chilli โ purely optional!
Turn it into an Asian CHICKEN Slaw!
I like to make a big batch โ and the recipe as written makes quite a lot โ and use it as a side as well as turning it into a meal by adding shredded chicken.
Try cooking chicken using this Foolproof Poached Chicken method โ it will be theย juiciest poached chicken you will ever have!!
What to serve with Asian Salad
I specifically call this anย Asian Slaw as opposed to Chinese or Thai because the flavours really are a natural oriental flavour which means it will go beautifully with any Asian food, including Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese.
Here are some suggestions:
Thai Red Curry or Green Curryย โ or any Asian curry
Chinese marinated chickenย or sticky Chinese Wings
Vietnamese Caramelised Pork Bowls โย super quick!
Asian Beef Bowls โ also super quick!
This is the sort of salad that makes peopleย want to eat their greens. Itโs strange to describe a salad asย moreish โ but thatโs what this is.
Andย I love the colours โ itโs so bright and cheerful, it makes me want to dive right into it.ย Who can resist this kaleidoscope ofย colours?? โ Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Asian Slaw โ crunchy Oriental Cabbage Salad with Asian Dressing
Ingredients
Asian Slaw
- 3 cups green cabbage or Chinese cabbage , shredded
- 3 cups red cabbage , shredded
- 2 large carrots , julienned
- 3 cups bean sprouts
- 3 green onions , finely sliced on the diagonal
- 1/2 cup coriander / cilantro leaves
- 1/2 cup mint leaves
- 1/4 cup Asian Fried Shallots (optional), to garnish (Note 1)
Asian Dressing
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar (Note 2)
- 3 tbsp soy sauce (Note 3)
- 2 tsp fish sauce , or more soy (Note 4)
- 2 tbsp lime juice , or more rice vinegar (Note 5)
- 3 tbsp peanut oil (Note 6)
- 1 1/2 tbsp sugar , any type
- 1/2 tsp birds eye or other red chilli , finely minced (optional)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
Chicken option (for meal)
- 3 cups shredded cooked chicken
Instructions
- Combine the dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well.
- Combine the salad ingredients, except the Asian Fried Shallots.
- Pour over dressing and toss to combine.
- Garnish with Asian Fried Shallots. Serve!
Recipe Notes:
- Crunchy Fried Shallots โ crispy fried shallot pieces, great garnish for Asian salads. Found in the Asian section of supermarket but cheaper at Asian stores!
- Rice vinegar โ can sub with cider vinegar or white wine vinegar.
- Soy sauce โ ordinary all purpose or light soy. Not dark soy.
- Fish sauce โ sub with more soy.
- Lime juice โ Sub with more rice vinegar.
- Oil โ sub with other neutral flavoured oil.
- Storage โ keep dressing separate from salad. Will keep for 3 to 4 days (depending on freshness of beansprouts).
Nutrition serving 8 as a side, without chicken.Nutrition Information:
Originally published July 2014. Updated with new photos, new video!ย
More great Asian salads
Life of Dozer
He didnโt need this for the salad โ just the chicken!
I love this version of โslawโ. I have made it a few times. In your recipes that call for bean sprouts, do you use soybean or mung bean sprouts? Iโve used both, but wondered if you have a preference.
Either work Christine but I usually use mung bean sprouts โ N x
This sounds absolutely delicious and Iโm looking forward to it!!
Iโm confused by the nutrition information โ it shows that the main dish with chicken is 313 calories but also said the side dish serving is 313 calories and the other info appears to be the same as well.
Can you let me know what the correct info is if I eat it with the chicken as my main dish?
Thank you
no red cabbage, no bean sprouts, no mint leaves. iโm going to sub basil paste for the mint and add julienned radishes, hoping the bean sprouts are not missed. will also add some grated ginger, as per one of the commenters.
My hubby and me love this for the weekend massive big bowl we leave the sauce and fried onions separate and every time we want a bowl just add everything together its super healthy love it
Iโm so glad you love it Michelle!!!
Delicious Salad, fresh and light. I add 1 tsp grated ginger into my mine.
Made this last week for our last day of sailing session and I pair them with Asian flavor pork ribs and itโs a hit. Everyone love it and asking for the recipe.
Thank you Nagi for sharing you wonderful salad.
Sounds delicious Mia!
Delicious recipe again Nagi. Made for a thai dinner but was also enough for my lunch for a week. I could just drink the dressing itโs so tastyโฆ actually I have to confess i did drink the last of it when I ran out of slaw! ๐
๐ I love this!!!
Fantastic recipe .
Thank you Nagi.
Greetings from Greece.
Glad you enjoyed it Anastasia! N x
Wow going to do this for dinner tonight looks so good and just love Dozer with his bib on so cute ๐ถ๐พ๐
You wouldnโt say that if you saw it soaking wetโฆ๐
Ohhh yes. We had a Thai restaurant then it became a bbq joint!! I was in love with the slaw and grilled shrimp ๐ค
So here you are ๐
Thai Grilled Shrimp! I want to do it! Thinkingโฆ garlic, chilli, lemongrass, sugar, fish sauce, lime juiceโฆ. yuuumโฆโฆ.
Hi Nagi. This slaw is just so good. And I love the crunchy onion pieces and the mint flavour. Served 3 plus heaps left over. Thank you very much.
But the beansprouts were sad by the time it got to youโฆ..
I just made this tonight for my faily and they loved it! It was delicious!
Glad to hear you enjoyed this Celine!! Thanks for letting me know ๐ N x โค๏ธ
Hi Nagi, this was a beautiful quick chicken salad โ perfect for us on a hot night. My family love your recipes and I have even stopped asking them what they want for dinner because none of them can agree on one special dish. Thanks for this one its a keeper
I made this Asian slaw today it was excellent , not a fan of salad but this was fantastic , well done Nagi .
Thatโs wonderful to hear Marlene! Thank you for letting me know you and your family enjoyed this โ N x โค๏ธ
Kindly tell me how to cook the chicken for the above given salad recipeโฆ Thank you
Any method you want! Poach, pan fry, roast, or buy pre cooked! N xx
Just made this and it was delicious!
I used pakchoi instead of white cabbage
Thanks for the great review Nick! Iโm SO pleased to hear you enjoyed it! N xx
My new favourite salad, this is going to be a go to for parties. It looks so colourful and pretty. Easy prep if you have a food processor.
I agree Liz! LOVE all the colour! N x
Hi Nagi, this looks great! do you mind if I include this recipe on a healthy Asian recipe roundup Iโm creating? Will link it directly to this page.
I would be honoured to be included!
I have sent my email
How I do get the free cookbooks
Hi Faye! You should have received an email with links to download ๐ Next time you get an email from with a new recipe, just reply and Iโll send you new links if you didnโt get them!
Just Devine. I made it last night with chicken sausage instead of schredded chicken and it was delicious! Must say Iโm not up to the 10 mins standard though especially with washing the veg three times each. Also one question, are shallots = spring onions? Thanks Nagi!
Yes they are!!! Bugger, I keep trying to remember to write all 3 names for shallots ๐ So glad you enjoyed this Jayp, thanks for letting me know!
Shallots are different from scallions or green onions. Spring onions are also different. Shallots look like a cross between garlic and a red onion. Green onions or scallions have a long green part. Spring onions look like scallions on steriods.
Hi Anita! Itโs all very confusing โ green onions / scallions are called shallots by many people here in Australia, and the small onions are called eschallots / French onions!!
Nothing but praise for this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing it. Love your website too!
Thank you Olivia! I am so glad you enjoyed it! ๐
Nagi, this is super delicious! Love all the ingrรฉdients!