Just a great, creamy, traditional Coleslaw recipe with a terrific homemade Coleslaw dressing. Everything you want, none of the unnecessary extras. A staple for that’s even better the next day!
For a healthier version with no mayo, make this Cole slaw with a Creamy Yogurt Coleslaw Dressing (it’s so good!) OR try the RecipeTin No Mayo Coleslaw.
Coleslaw recipe in a snap
- Type of cabbage for Coleslaw – green cabbage is the classic. Red cabbage is great too (but will bleed colour slightly), savoy and Napa cabbage can also be used.
- How long does Coleslaw last? Up to 5 days in the fridge.
- What’s in Coleslaw Dressing? Mayonnaise, sour cream or yogurt, vinegar, mustard, celery salt and sugar.
- Why does my Coleslaw get watery? Because you didn’t use enough dressing. The Dressing extracts water from the cabbage which thins the dressing. You need to start with plenty of thick Coleslaw Dressing which is then thinned out when the cabbage wilts and leaches water.
- How much Coleslaw to make per person? 1/2 a head of cabbage will make enough for 10 people as a side for a meal, or 15 people at a large gathering with plenty of other food on the buffet. So for 100 people, you will need 5 heads of cabbage as a side for a meal, or 3 1/2 heads as part of a larger buffet.
A great Coleslaw doesn’t need a ton of ingredients.
All you need is cabbage, carrot and a terrific Coleslaw dressing for this summertime classic. Along with Macaroni Salad and Caprese Salad, this is the salad we take to gatherings, that we lay out on buffets – because we know it’s a sure thing!
It lasts for days in the fridge so we have a great standby side for dinners and quick additions to lunchboxes. A traditional Coleslaw recipe is a classic that will never go out of fashion!
Coleslaw dressing
I’m a firm believer that Coleslaw should be JUICY. Just like it’s served up at KFC and other popular takeout chains. And juicy means plenty of dressing!
I like BUT if you just load up your dressing with tons of mayo, it weighs it down with too much fat, making the Cole slaw excessively rich and soaking the cabbage to the point of being soggy mush.
So I like to make plenty of dressing with a combination of both mayonnaise and sour cream, plus mustard and celery salt for flavour, and vinegar to cut through the richness.
Why does my Coleslaw get watery?
Most likely because you are not using enough dressing. Coleslaw is meant to be set aside to wilt before serving, during which time water is extracted from the cabbage which thins the dressing.
So you need to ensure there’s enough Dressing otherwise your Coleslaw becomes watery!
Key Tip: Give it time
To achieve that perfect Coleslaw texture, it needs time to soften so you don’t have stiff prints of cabbage poking out all over the place. At least 20 minutes, better at 2 hours or overnight.
The salt and sugar in the dressing draws out the moisture from the cabbage, thinning out the rich dressing and making the Coleslaw ultra juicy, as well as giving time for the flavours to meld.
Serve this with BBQ Pulled Pork (make sliders!), BBQ Brisket or these terrific sticky Country-Style Chicken Thighs with a side of steamed corn for a summer cookout indoors! – Nagi x
MORE SUMMER SALADS to take to gatherings
Pearl Couscous Salad <– personal fave!
Wild Rice Salad <– reader fave!
Browse all Pasta Salads and Rice Salad
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Coleslaw
Ingredients
- 7 cups green cabbage , finely shredded (Note 1)
- 1 medium carrot , shredded (1 1/2 cups)
Dressing
- 1/2 cup Hellman’s mayonnaise (or other whole egg mayo)
- 1/2 cup sour cream or yoghurt, full fat is best
- 1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or sub with white wine vinegar)
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp white sugar
- 3/4 tsp celery salt
- 1/4 tso black pepper
Instructions
- Mix Dressing ingredients together.
- Place cabbage and carrot in a bowl. Pour over Dressing, toss well. Set aside for at least 20 minutes before serving, preferably 2 hours – this will make the cabbage go limp as it should, and also draw moisture out of the cabbage and carrot to thin out the dressing. Overnight is even better!
- Toss well before serving.
Recipe Notes:
Add chopped or sliced onions
Add shallots/scallions finely sliced on the diagonal
Swap out some of the green cabbage for red cabbage (love the colour)
Granny smith apples cut into batons (YUM that would be fantastic!) 4. Nutrition per serving, assuming 8 servings.
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Flashback: when he was a puppy and couldn’t get down stairs….
NAGI my hero, YOU are the best, my family and I never ever last coleslaw that super great, planing to put this up next party, no more store bough ever again, easy simple great taste. Go with your slow cook brisket perfect ( I think I have cooked this meal countless).
Thank you so much.
You’re making my head swell Ai!! 😂 Glad you enjoyed it! N x
I am a little confused (very unusual because your recipes are VERY easy to understand) about the timing. I have a friend who believes that coleslaw is better after several days, but I think it just tastes old, watery and flavorless. You say: “Place cabbage and carrot in a bowl. Pour over Dressing, toss well. Set aside for at least 20 minutes before serving – this will make the cabbage go limp as it should, and also draw moisture out of the cabbage and carrot to thin out the dressing. Overnight is even better!” But then you also say: “MAKE AHEAD: For the Coleslaw, place carrot and cabbage in a ziplock bag, squeeze out excess air then refrigerate for up to 5 days. Make the dressing and store in the fridge separately. Coleslaw tends to get watery after a few hours so it’s best made fresh.” Which is it? I have to make a very large amount for a church function, and I want it to be great. I thought I’d have to mix it up the day of the event because I want it to taste fresh, but would it be better if I mixed it the day before? Thank you so much!!!
VERY poorly worded on my part! I’ve tidied it up. It’s great for 2 days, and beyond that keep the components separate 🙂 Thanks for picking that up! N cc
Thank you so much for your quick reply and clarification. I LOVE your site!! I’ve learned so much from you and you’ve made me a hero at home!!! You are the best!!💖💖
Hi Nagi
Love this receipt made it heaps of times in Adelaide but now I am living in Papua New Guinea on a remote Island and I can’t get yoghurt or sour cream is there anything else I could use instead
Jane
Hi Jane! Can you get buttermilk??
Ooooh! Another variation is to put maybe a teaspoon or less of wasabi into the dressing. Adds a little kick to it!! I put the coleslaw on my portobello mushroom burgers. Soooo yummy…..
YES! That’s an awesome tip!
Yum, turned out delicious!
I’m so glad to hear that Alexis! N x
Delicious! The ingredients are simple but just the right flavor blend, I didn’t need to add anything to the dressing like other recipes I’ve tried. Added a little green onion only because I like it, but it wasn’t necessary. Thanks, I’ll definitely use it again!
That’s so great to hear Alexis! Thank you for taking the time to let me know! N x
To reduce or eliminate cabbage for fussy folks I sometimes substitute finely sliced iceberg lettuce. But it needs to be used that meal.
Shredded Brussels sprouts are great to.
Hi Nagi, thank you so much for your wonderful recipes, and best of all you live in Sydney. When I make my coleslaw, I grate the carrot and then roll it in paper towel to take out some of the moisture, that way the dressing does not become watery. My kids also love me to add finely diced celery, red capsicum and raisins. I also use mayonaise and coleslaw dressing with a touch of lemon and salad dressing….Look forward to trying your recipe. Have a wonderful Christmas and may the New Year bring you wonderful gifts.
I love that tip, thanks Carol! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too! N xx
I made this using Greek whole milk yogurt with honey instead of sour cream and ommitted the sugar, plus used celery seed instead of celery salt and added thin sliced green onion. It was delish!!!!!
That’s so great to hear Gail! I’m so pleased you enjoyed this, thanks for taking the time to let me know! N x
This coleslaw was a fabulous addition to accompany smoked & BBQ pulled pork, brisket and ribs. Only change to the recipe was using celery seed in place of celery salt – which was not in my pantry.
I have not made coleslaw before and was unsure of which online recipe to use. Finally decided on Recipe Tin Eats because none of Nagi’s recipes have been a disappointment. Our dinner guests and I were so glad I made this choice.
Thanks for another great recipe! (I’m looking forward to trying out the wing recipes in the ebook!)
I’m so pleased to hear you enjoyed this Darlene!! Thanks for letting me know – N x
My husband has an egg allergy so can’t eat mayonnaise- can you suggest a substitute?
Yoghurt and plenty of olive oil. Absolutely divine!!! 🙂 N xx PS Maybe increase the seasonings a teeny bit too – an extra pinch here and there. Because Mayo has flavour in it 🙂 N x
Love your recipes! I always add grated garlic and sliced onion to my coleslaw otherwise pretty much the same. Adds that extra sparkle?
YES to that! Definitely extra sparkle! N xx
I love adding about half a red capsicum cut I to fine strips and about 3 or 4 green shallots finely diced.
Oooh that’s a great tip, thank you Sue! I will add it!
Lovely dressing, Nagi! We made it with homemade Mayonnaise and it was beautiful! Thanks 🙂
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it Nikki! Thanks so much for letting me know. Happy weekend! – N xx
I love coleslaw and this one looks classic and perfect. I top fish and shrimp tacos with spicy slaw, just classic coleslaw with a healthy dose of sriracha for kick.
OOOH YES to THAT!!!! N xx PS Hope you are keeping warm, I imagine it is kinda cold over there? 🙂
I would sub Greek yogurt for the sour cream, because the flavor is similar (especially if you use whole milk yogurt) and that’s what I keep in the house – and like better. I haven’t bought sour cream in several years, because the last time I did, I was disappointed in the flavor. If you have fat free Greek yogurt, adding about 1 teaspoon of sugar to a cup of it gives the flavor of sour cream. At some point I’ll have to try this recipe. When I make coleslaw, I usually make a vinegar and oil dressing for it.
Oh that’s a great tip Susan! Thanks I will add that to the list!! N xx
Hi Nagi,
I have to tell you I made your coleslaw last night and it was absolutely the BEST I’ve ever had!!! It was so easy and fantastic! I cheated and used a 1lb bag of coleslaw mix that I got from the grocery store and it worked out perfectly. My whole family enjoyed it!! Thank you so much for another fantastic recipe!
Wow what a compliment! And there I was thinking that this is so boring, and who would want my coleslaw recipe? 🙂 Thanks for letting me know Alana! N xx
Hi,
Just a quick question. How many cabbages is 7 cups roughly?
HI Penny! Thanks for the question, i’ll add it in the notes 🙂 It’s less than half a medium sized cabbage, 1/4 of a large one (i.e. just smaller than the size of a basketball). Hope that helps!
hi nagi – what mandolin slicer do you use to make those carrot matchstick??? i have been looking forever 🙂
Hi Amber! This is the one I have, I didn’t get it from this store -> http://www.kitchengadgets.com.au/productDetails.php?productid=SSL15 There are mandolins out there that do both fine slicing and julienning but I like this one because it cuts it into the perfect size strips, finer than the multi-purpose mandolins that I’ve tried. And no fiddling around with adjustments and knobs, it just does one thing and I use it ALL THE TIME!
ooh … thank you!!!
I can’t wait to try this one. I have my whole family turning to you for recipes, each one is so full of flavor.
I have 3 young children and they love Granny Smith apples chopped like matchsticks added to their coleslaw. They can easily eat an entire head of cabbage this way.
Awww what a compliment! Thank you Karen! PS I LOVE the tip about adding apple! I’m going to add a section to it now for variations using reader tips. ❤️