• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Healthyish Appetite

Healthyish Appetite

Approachable plant-forward recipes.

Show Search
Hide Search
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Work with Me
  • Shop
  • Contact
  • facebook
  • instagram
  • pinterest

Purple Cabbage Slaw

Filed Under: no cook, quick and easy, recipe, side dishes Written By Leanne September 28, 2021

Jump to Recipe

This tangy purple cabbage slaw is a simple healthy side dish and pairs well with tacos, sandwiches or grain bowls. It adds a beautiful pop of color to any meal!

purple cabbage slaw in a large bowl with serving ware

Can we take a minute to acknowledge the awesomeness that is purple cabbage? What a freakin’ beautiful vegetable this is.

Purple cabbage adds a bright pop of color to just about anything. Fish tacos and peanut noodles practically scream for it, but it also goes well diced up in a summer salad. Use it to scale up a burrito bowl while you’re at it.

One of my favorite ways to clean out the fridge is to come up with a way to transform produce into something that we can eat for lunches during the week. Herbs go into sauces and dressings, fruit gets chopped and thrown into salads. Cabbage now turns into slaw.

Ingredients for Purple Cabbage Slaw

  • purple cabbage, sliced with a mandoline if possible
  • carrots, peeled and shredded
  • dino kale, chopped
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • vinegar (I prefer red wine or golden balsamic)
  • brown sugar
  • coarse mustard
ingredients for purple cabbage slaw

Prepping the Vegetables

How to Slice Cabbage

To make a homemade slaw, the first step you’ll need to master is thinly slicing the cabbage. I used to just kind of chop it up into small little pieces because it was easier, but then I discovered how well a mandoline works and I’ve never turned back.

Here are the steps:

  1. Use a sharp chef’s knife to slice a head of cabbage in half, then remove the core (important!)
  2. Adjust your mandoline to 1/8″ and run the long edge of the cabbage down the blade to get thin slices.
  • shredded purple cabbage with a mandoline
  • chopped kale on a cutting board
  • shredded carrots

Shredding Carrots

I have a peeler (see above) that makes shredding super simple, but you could also use a box grater or the shredding attachment on your food processor.

Chopping Kale

I love the “dino” kale for this recipe (instead of the curly kind), but either will work just fine. I love how vibrant it is, and the texture is better in salads. To chop it, remove the tough stem and then chop into bite-size pieces.

purple cabbage, carrots and kale in a bowl with dressing pour

The dressing is simple to throw together. It’s a bunch of staples that you probably already have in your pantry and fridge.

Toss the salad and dressing together and let the slaw sit for at least 30 minutes so the vegetables have a chance to break down a bit. You’ll be amazed at how beautiful the color is.

How to Use Purple Cabbage Slaw

While this certainly makes a great side dish on its own, it is so versatile and can also be incorporated into some of your favorites:

  • Load it on sandwiches or wraps
  • Use it on top tacos (I especially love it with fish or shrimp)
  • Add it to your favorite grain bowl
  • It’s great on burgers (meat or vegetarian!)
  • Top it with protein for a light lunch
purple cabbage slaw on a plate with fork

More Purple Cabbage Recipes:

  • Vegetarian Tostadas with Creamy Purple Cabbage Slaw
  • Rainbow Quinoa Salad Jars with Peanut Miso Dressing
  • Nourish Bowls
Print

Tangy Purple Cabbage Slaw

Print Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 5 reviews

This tangy purple cabbage slaw is a simple healthy side dish and pairs well with tacos, sandwiches or grain bowls. It adds a beautiful pop of color to any meal!

  • Author: Leanne Ray, MS, RDN
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: 8 servings 1x
  • Category: Side Dishes
  • Method: No-Cook
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 3 tablespoon olive oil
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1/2 medium head of purple cabbage, cored and sliced thin
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and shredded
  • 1 small bunch dino kale, chopped into small pieces 

Instructions

  1. Add vinegar through brown sugar in a jar and whisk with a fork until well combined. Slowly stream in olive oil while mixing. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  2. Add cabbage, shredded carrots, and kale to a large bowl. Pour dressing over the top and toss with tongs until totally coated. 

Equipment

mandoline

Buy Now →

chef’s knife

Buy Now →

mixing bowls

Buy Now →

Notes

  • The equipment section above includes affiliate links to things I use often in my kitchen and recommend.
  • The slaw gets better after the flavors meld overnight and the vegetables get more tender, but is best eaten within 2-3 days. 

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 cup
  • Calories: 100 calories
  • Fat: 5 grams
  • Carbohydrates: 13 grams
  • Fiber: 3 grams
  • Protein: 2 grams

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @healthyish_appetite on Instagram

This post was originally published in July 2018. Post, photos and recipe was updated in September 2021.

Want More Plant-Forward Recipes?

Join my VIP list and I'll send you five reader favorites! Healthy, flavor-packed recipes. What's not to love about that?

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

I promise I won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Powered by Kit

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Samantha says

    January 17, 2025 at 7:32 pm

    I’m excited to eat this for lunch at work next week 😊 I made a few small changes to the recipe. I added about 1/8tsp sesame oil, hot pepper infused oil and 1 tsp graded ginger. Also seasoned with garlic and onion powder as well as the salt and pepper. Always looking for more ways to get different veggies into my diet!

    Reply
    • Leanne says

      March 11, 2025 at 3:01 pm

      All of these modifications sound fabulous! Thank you for trying and for coming back to leave a review.

      Reply
  2. Fran says

    October 9, 2024 at 12:08 am

    I made this salad for our car trip from New York to California. Every time I ate it it tasted better I added nuts for crunchines and other times raises.love, love this salad

    Reply
  3. Sandy says

    August 11, 2024 at 8:58 pm

    Haven’t even been able to allow it to marinate, and I already love this recipe! I have no doubt it will be amazing as well after sitting a while.

    Reply
    • Leanne says

      August 12, 2024 at 3:08 pm

      Thank you so much Sandy! Glad it’s a hit!

      Reply
  4. Jaclyn says

    April 26, 2024 at 2:43 pm

    This slaw is delicious. Like another review said, I ate this on its own as a salad the next day and it was still delicious. It’s great with bbq chicken too!

    Reply
    • Leanne says

      May 7, 2024 at 2:02 pm

      A summer staple for sure!

      Reply
  5. Lani Morris says

    April 23, 2024 at 3:56 pm

    I loved this recipe with our pulled chicken sandwiches. But honestly, I ate the leftovers just as a salad because it was so yummy on its own. I’ll definitely try with tacos soon too.

    Reply
    • Lani Morris says

      April 23, 2024 at 3:57 pm

      Forgot to leave a star rating on my last review 🙂

      Reply
  6. Becky says

    October 25, 2021 at 11:31 pm

    Very good! Always looking for another recipe to use my kale 😃

    Reply
    • Leanne says

      October 26, 2021 at 3:04 am

      Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a rating and review Becky! I’m so glad you liked this one.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

Primary Sidebar

Welcome

Welcome!

I’m Leanne and I created this space to share beautiful, wholesome, plant-forward recipes that are equal parts approachable and delicious.

Read More

Never miss a recipe.

Get new recipes straight to your inbox, every week.

Most Popular Recipes

  • Purple Cabbage Slaw
  • 4 Ingredient Oatmeal Cookies
  • Chickpea Cookie Dough Bites

Quick & Easy

Salads & Bowls

Sweet Treats

Footer

Never miss a post

Get new recipes straight to your inbox, every week.

  • About
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

© healthyish appetite · PRIVACY POLICY · design by lr creative

Copyright © 2025 · Leanne Ray ·

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
SAVE & ACCEPT