Carrot and Cabbage Slaw

Light and bright with just enough sweetness, this carrot and cabbage slaw is practically designed for outdoor dining.  As an accompaniment to the main dish, it makes a plate more beautiful and lends some tang.  Include it in a picnic spread, and it livens up the rest of the offerings.  For subtle variations in raw carrot flavor and the most gorgeous assemblage of vegetables, opt for a bunch of rainbow carrots or make your own mix with varieties such as atomic red (my favorite), solar yellow, and cosmic purple.

In place of the raisins which often appear in a carrot slaw, this recipe includes chopped pitted dates for a more caramel tasting sweetness that’s tempered by thinly sliced green onion. Best of all, this is a raw dish that can be prepared and popped in the refrigerator until you’re ready to enjoy it.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
½ cup chopped, pitted dates
2 cups peeled, shredded carrots (orange, white, purple)
2 cups shredded red cabbage
¼ cup sliced green onion, about ¼-inch thick
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Prepare the Dressing

Begin by preparing the tangy part of the dressing.  Whisk the apple cider vinegar and light brown sugar until the sugar mostly dissolves.  It will continue to dissolve as it sits.  Add the chopped, pitted dates to the dressing and let them sit while preparing the vegetables.

Shred the Vegetables

A box grater is my preferred tool for shredding the carrot and cabbage in this recipe.  Use the side with the large holes for the carrots, holding the peeled carrot at an angle and being careful not to move your hand close to the grater. 

Prepare the cabbage by quartering it and removing the triangular sections of white core. The cabbage then can be shredded using the slicing side or large holes of the box grater or a mandoline.  Alternately, it can be quartered, cored, and sliced as thinly as possible using a large knife.  I prefer to shred or cut starting with the short side of the cabbage so that the pieces are not very long.

Assemble the Carrot and Cabbage Slaw

Add the carrots, cabbage, and scallions to a large boil with olive oil and salt.  Toss to combine. Stir in the dates and their liquid until well-combined. Let slaw sit in the refrigerator at least 1 hour before serving. This dish can even be refrigerated overnight, which will give more time for flavors to meld.

For a side dish to set beside this slaw, try my potato salad with crispy shallots and red wine vinaigrette.