Our family loves hearty, simple salads with a ton of crunch, and this red cabbage slaw delivers! This quick and easy Top 9 free salad combines sweet and salty flavors with a creamy homemade vegan poppy seed dressing. Add this to your weeknight side dish rotation today!
I’m not gonna lie, most weeknights I don’t have much energy to cook. When I do, I cook in bigger batches so we can have leftovers for lunches and/or more dinners. So I’m always trying to figure out quick, easy side dishes that can go with leftovers to make dinner seem new! This red cabbage slaw came about when we got a HUGE head of red cabbage in our CSA, but we had to eat it all raw because my kids refuse to eat cooked cabbage.
My kids will eat any kind of “crunchy salad” however, and so this slaw was born. My mother in law makes a yummy chicken pasta salad with poppy seed dressing, and I thought the sweet/sour flavor would work well in a slaw. But I needed to make it from scratch with all of our allergies!
Recipe Notes
You don’t need any special equipment to make this slaw besides a sharp knife and a cutting board. I actually prefer hand cut cabbage in my slaw, because my food processor shreds it too finely for my taste. I also feel that the larger shreds hold up better in the fridge, so we can enjoy leftovers the next day!
This red cabbage slaw is best fresh, but keeps well in the fridge for 1-2 days. The red cabbage does not color the apples purple as much as I feared, but they do color slightly if that bothers you. I often bake the bacon ahead of time and mix up the poppy seed dressing and keep that in a jar in the fridge. Then I can chop up just enough slaw for one meal at a time. It keeps everything nice and fresh and crunchy!
You can adjust the sweetness level in the poppy seed dressing to your taste. Some yogurts are sweeter than others, so add more or less sugar depending on what you love. The vegan creamy poppy seed dressing is great on other salads as well! It’s delicious with spinach, chicken, strawberries, vegan feta, and pumpkin seeds. You can also use it in a pasta salad like my mother in law with pasta, chicken, grapes, and celery. It’s really versatile.
Make Red Cabbage Slaw Allergy Friendly for You!
As written, this recipe is dairy free, gluten free, nut free, Top 9 allergen free, and vegan if you use meatless bacon. For the vegan creamy poppy seed dressing, we use So Delicious brand plain unsweetened coconut yogurt, but you can use whatever dairy free yogurt you love best! Our family cannot have sunflower seeds, but you could definitely sub those in for the pumpkin seeds if that’s safe for you. As always, check your ingredient labels (especially for the bacon and dairy free yogurt) to make sure they are safe for your allergies.
Leave a comment below and tell me how you enjoyed your slaw! Post a photo of your creation on social media and tag @coffeetableeats with the hashtag #coffeetableeats!
Red Cabbage Slaw with Vegan Creamy Poppy Seed Dressing
Hearty, crunchy, and super easy to whip up on a weeknight! The salty-sweet-sour flavor of this slaw brightens up any meal. If you're really pressed for time, you can use a safe store-bought poppy seed dressing instead of homemade. You will have extra dressing, so keep it in a jar in your fridge for up to one week and eat more salads!
Ingredients
Creamy Poppy Seed Dressing
- 1 (5.3 oz.) container plain unsweetened dairy-free yogurt
- 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp. white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp. dry mustard powder
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
- 2 tsp. poppy seeds
Red Cabbage Slaw
- 1/2 head red cabbage, finely sliced or shredded
- 1 tart green apple, finely sliced
- 1/4 c. roasted, salted pumpkin seeds
- 4 slices bacon, cooked and finely chopped (use meatless bacon for completely vegan salad)
Instructions
- Make the creamy poppy seed dressing: combine the yogurt, sugar, vinegar, mustard powder, salt, and pepper in a small jar with a tight-fitting lid. Put on the lid and shake well to combine. Then add in the poppy seeds and shake once more to distribute.
- Make the salad: combine all of the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Pour over as much of the creamy dressing as you'd like! Stir to combine and serve immediately.
Notes
- This salad is great for meal prep! It keeps well for 1-2 days all mixed together, although the apples do turn slightly pink from the cabbage. But if you need the salad to keep a little longer, keep the dressing in the fridge, then slice up the salad ingredients and combine right before serving. The dressing will keep in the fridge for 4-5 days in an airtight jar, just shake well before serving. Cooked bacon also keeps well in the fridge for a few days, I usually bake the whole package and then keep it in the fridge for a few days to use in this salad or for quick breakfasts!
- As always, check your ingredient labels for your allergens! We use So Delicious unsweetened plain coconut yogurt for the dressing, and Hormel Natural Choice thick cut uncured bacon because as of writing this recipe they're free of our allergens. We also source pumpkin seeds that are free from sunflower oil at our local bulk food store.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 Amount Per Serving: Calories: 157Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 232mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 3gSugar: 13gProtein: 6gNutrition facts may vary based on the ingredients, swaps, and products used.