My favorite Easy Coleslaw Recipe I make at least once a week. Budget friendly, oil based, and ready in 5 minutes. You can serve it with any meal!
Another salad we make every week is my favorite spinach salad!
Table of Contents
I know December is not a coleslaw season but I’m sharing my super favorite easy coleslaw recipe because it’s that good! It is my go-to salad recipe on busy weeknights and I think you will love it too!
This is the recipe I make after work, on Saturday after a day at the rink and hockey travel, when entertaining guests, take along to potlucks, or added to any meal when I feel we need an extra serving of veggies.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy recipe: I use a bag of pre-shredded cabbage mix for a fuss-free, dump and stir recipe.
- Unique flavor: My dressing is made with a secret ingredient that adds a slightly nutty taste and makes this coleslaw special.
- Quick: Just mix and serve, no chilling for best flavor is necessary.
- Makes you eat more vegetables easily: With shortcut coleslaw mix and roughly chopped cucumber and tomato, you will be making this salad again and again!
- Healthy: This vegan coleslaw recipe is not creamy like classic slaw, there’s no mayo and no added sugar. Plus, cabbage is super good for you!
Ingredients for the Coleslaw
You’ll only need 7 simple ingredients, including salt and pepper, to make this delicious coleslaw recipe.
- Coleslaw mix: Grab a store-bought coleslaw mix with red and green cabbage and carrots.
- Unrefined sunflower oil: No substitutions, its flavor is very unique. It is inexpensive and you can buy it on Amazon. It’s the same oil we use to make vinegret salad.
- Extra veggies: You really don’t have to add any, but I really like to add simple tomatoes and cucumbers because they up the vegetable content, are available year-round, and are budget friendly.
- White vinegar: It is my preferred vinegar for my vinegar based coleslaw and for this coleslaw recipe but white wine vinegar and red wine vinegar will work just as well.
- Seasoning: A sprinkle of salt and pepper.
How to Make Easy Coleslaw Recipe
Here’s a quick overview of how to make coleslaw. The only prep time is chopping the extra veggies, then it’s just dump, mix, and enjoy in 5 minutes!
There is a full recipe card below.
- Combine vegetables: Add coleslaw mix, diced tomatoes and chopped cucumber to a large bowl.
- Add dressing ingredients: Drizzle with oil and vinegar, then season with salt and pepper.
- Mix coleslaw: Gently toss with tongs until evenly coated then adjust seasonings to taste.
- Serve: No chilling is needed, serve homemade coleslaw fresh and enjoy!
Tips for Best Results
Here are my top tips for my favorite coleslaw.
- Don’t substitute the oil: It makes this coleslaw absolutely the best! It’s the secret ingredient to this salad!
- Be sure to buy unrefined oil: Unrefined sunflower oil has more flavor and aroma, and preserves most of its natural nutrients making it a healthier, tastier choice.
- Don’t skip the vinegar: You want a bit of an acid flavor to balance the dish.
- Add arugula: My husband likes to do this when we have it on hand, it adds nice peppery zesty punch.
- Don’t cut recipe in half: It stores extremely well for a day or two.
What to Serve This Coleslaw with?
It literally goes with anything that’s why I call this my favorite coleslaw recipe ever!
You can really get creative with it, here are just a few ideas:
- Grilling season: Serve alongside the classics like grilled salmon, spinach feta turkey burgers, grilled BBQ chicken, or on top a hot dog.
- Sandwiches and tacos: Pile onto Instant Pot pulled pork sandwiches, Reuben sandwiches, or your favorite tacos such as shrimp tacos, fish tacos, or ground beef tacos.
- Savory: A delicious, easy side dish next to sirloin tip roast, Instant Pot Mississippi pot roast, steak, pan fried lamb chops, healthy fried chicken, or oven baked chicken thighs.
- Rice: If you have leftover rice mix it in! You can add just the rice or create a delicious rice bowl.
- Potatoes: Make potato cabbage slaw by adding cooked, cubed potatoes or add on top Instant Pot baked potatoes.
How to Store
Store: Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for up to 2 days stored in an airtight container. You can add a splash of sunflower oil to revive salad’s flavor a bit.
Freeze: Just like any coleslaw, do not freeze it.
FAQs
I highly recommend not to substitute the sunflower oil. However, if you are OK with a more average coleslaw, you can use half extra virgin olive oil and half toasted sesame oil. I use this dressing in my Ukrainian dill coleslaw. Please note sesame oil has to be toasted! Or just use olive oil.
You can buy unrefined sunflower oil on Amazon or in any Slavic store that carries products from Ukraine, Russia, Belorussia etc.
Yes. You can add coleslaw mix, cucumbers and tomatoes in a large bowl, covered with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Because this recipe is so easy, simply just add oil, vinegar, salt and pepper before serving.
There are so many vegetables and herbs you can add to this coleslaw! Thinly sliced bell pepper, diced avocado, mushrooms, green onion, fresh herbs like dill, parsley, mint or basil.
More Coleslaw Recipes to Try
- Vinegar based coleslaw
- Ukrainian dill coleslaw
- Healthy coleslaw
- Peanut slaw
- Mango slaw
- Savoy cabbage salad
My Favorite Easy Coleslaw Recipe
Ingredients
- 14 ounces coleslaw mix store-bought
- 1-2 medium tomatoes coarsely chopped
- 1/3 long English cucumber coarsely chopped
- 2-3 tablespoons unrefined sunflower oil
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar white wine or red wine vinegar
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add coleslaw mix, tomatoes and cucumber.
- Drizzle with oil and vinegar, then season with salt and pepper.
- Using tongs, toss well to coat. Adjust seasonings to taste and serve. No need to chill!
Thank you for sharing! This was so much lighter and tastes so great I really like this recipe ❤️
Yay, I am so glad you gave it a go! You are so quick! Did you have sunflower oil on hand?