This is a terrific fresh, crunchy Asian salad that I call an Asian Slaw because it has shredded cabbage and carrot likeย traditional Coleslaw. The fresh herbs and Asian Dressing infusedย with Thai flavours makes this oriental salad extra special. Delicious AND healthy!
Itโs a terrific all-rounder side salad for any Asian food, including Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese. Make aย big batch because it keeps for days!
Asian Slaw
Named as such because itโs made with shredded cabbage like traditional Coleslaw โ but other than that, it couldnโt be more different! No oily mayo laden dressing, this Asian salad is fresh, bright and crunchy, but certainly not lacking in flavour. (I also have similarly slaw-like Vietnamese Chicken Salad, that uses Chinese Cabbage which you should give a go!)
The three things that makes this Asian Slaw anything but your usual boring salad are:
The fabulous Asian dressing โ I like to give this one a Thai touch with a hit of lime and fish sauce (optional!);
Fresh mint and coriander/cilantro โ the herbs makes all the difference in this, that element of freshness and extra flavour;
Sprinkle of crispy fried shallots โ little salty pops of crispiness, this is an Asian garnish that goes on โeverythingโ. A little bit goes a long way to add extra texture, flavour and interest to anything that itโs sprinkled on. I use it a lot โ so itโs a familiar ingredient to regular readers!ย Foundย in the Asian section of large supermarkets but way cheaper in Asian stores! Hereโs my essential Asian Marketย Shopping list.
TIP: Make a big batch โ use some as a side dish, then turn itย intoย an Asian Chicken Salad for lunch! It keeps well for days.
This Asian Slaw is not an authentic recipe of any cuisine, but the flavours areย reminiscent of Thai and Vietnamese salads because of the bright fresh dressing and the South East Asian herbs (mint and coriander/cilantro) in the salad.
Asian Slaw ingredients
Hereโs what goes in my Asian Slaw:
Asian Dressing
The Asian dressing is made with soy, fish sauce, rice vinegar, lime, sugar, garlic, oil and optional chili.
I know it looks like thereโs a lot of ingredients but donโt worry, a few of them are optional โย little additions that make the dressing extra special but itโs really terrific even without:
Fish sauce โ just a bit adds extra depth of flavour into the dressing. Just skip it if you want;
Lime juice โ optional! Just sub with more rice vinegar;
Chilli โ purely optional!
Turn it into an Asian CHICKEN Slaw!
I like to make a big batch โ and the recipe as written makes quite a lot โ and use it as a side as well as turning it into a meal by adding shredded chicken.
Try cooking chicken using this Foolproof Poached Chicken method โ it will be theย juiciest poached chicken you will ever have!!
What to serve with Asian Salad
I specifically call this anย Asian Slaw as opposed to Chinese or Thai because the flavours really are a natural oriental flavour which means it will go beautifully with any Asian food, including Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese.
Here are some suggestions:
Thai Red Curry or Green Curryย โ or any Asian curry
Chinese marinated chickenย or sticky Chinese Wings
Vietnamese Caramelised Pork Bowls โย super quick!
Asian Beef Bowls โ also super quick!
This is the sort of salad that makes peopleย want to eat their greens. Itโs strange to describe a salad asย moreish โ but thatโs what this is.
Andย I love the colours โ itโs so bright and cheerful, it makes me want to dive right into it.ย Who can resist this kaleidoscope ofย colours?? โ Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Asian Slaw โ crunchy Oriental Cabbage Salad with Asian Dressing
Ingredients
Asian Slaw
- 3 cups green cabbage or Chinese cabbage , shredded
- 3 cups red cabbage , shredded
- 2 large carrots , julienned
- 3 cups bean sprouts
- 3 green onions , finely sliced on the diagonal
- 1/2 cup coriander / cilantro leaves
- 1/2 cup mint leaves
- 1/4 cup Asian Fried Shallots (optional), to garnish (Note 1)
Asian Dressing
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar (Note 2)
- 3 tbsp soy sauce (Note 3)
- 2 tsp fish sauce , or more soy (Note 4)
- 2 tbsp lime juice , or more rice vinegar (Note 5)
- 3 tbsp peanut oil (Note 6)
- 1 1/2 tbsp sugar , any type
- 1/2 tsp birds eye or other red chilli , finely minced (optional)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
Chicken option (for meal)
- 3 cups shredded cooked chicken
Instructions
- Combine the dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well.
- Combine the salad ingredients, except the Asian Fried Shallots.
- Pour over dressing and toss to combine.
- Garnish with Asian Fried Shallots. Serve!
Recipe Notes:
- Crunchy Fried Shallots โ crispy fried shallot pieces, great garnish for Asian salads. Found in the Asian section of supermarket but cheaper at Asian stores!
- Rice vinegar โ can sub with cider vinegar or white wine vinegar.
- Soy sauce โ ordinary all purpose or light soy. Not dark soy.
- Fish sauce โ sub with more soy.
- Lime juice โ Sub with more rice vinegar.
- Oil โ sub with other neutral flavoured oil.
- Storage โ keep dressing separate from salad. Will keep for 3 to 4 days (depending on freshness of beansprouts).
Nutrition serving 8 as a side, without chicken.Nutrition Information:
Originally published July 2014. Updated with new photos, new video!ย
More great Asian salads
Life of Dozer
He didnโt need this for the salad โ just the chicken!
Another genius recipe Nagi, thankyou. Youโre making me a better cook, one recipe at a time and my family are very happy about that ๐คฃ
I love hearing this Rachael โ thanks so much! N x
I love that you do the short videos! Iโm a visual person with a short attention span. I learn a lot of the video. Thank you. Lots of hugs.
Just WOW!!!!!
Hi Nagi, I just wanted to say Thank-you for brightening up my menu, my family is loving the awesome meals you have created โ Jenny ๐
Can I use nappa cabbage with it?
Sure can Eva! N x
Thank you very much!!
Stay healthy
hugs
Eva
Winner Winner!!
Fabulous dressing. I cheated โ used Woolworths packet coleslaw with carrot and beetroot. I add the bean sprouts to the mix and then used the dressing and fried shallots. An empty bowl was all that remainedโฆโฆ..
Wow Nagi, another AMAZING recipe! I combined this recipe with your crispy oven chicken recipe and made chicken slaw burgers with sarachia sauce..so good! Thank you for all the wonderful and versatile recipes x
What is the mandolin you are using in the Asian Slaw video to shred the carrots? Wondering if it has interchangeable blades. So very glad you decided to change careers!
PAF, my mandoline doesnโt grate this fine or long, so I googled โgrater long shreds carrotโ and found one that looks like the one Nagi used for A$14 (plus postage) on ebay. Not sure if links are allowed, but this was it: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/323389524230
Hi Nagi I bought some Peking duck breasts but no pancakes was wondering what you thought of tortillas filled with the breasts and your aisian slaw a chimex combo unless you have a easy recipe for the pancakes
Yes that would be amazing Pippa, Iโm actually in the process of Bao buns (which would be amazing with duck too)
OK, I did a half job of this. I had a packet of Kaleslaw in the fridge I need to use, so I used that but made your dressing. It was just beautiful. Served with your sticky chinese chicken wings.
Sounds great Karen! N x
Whats best chicken to useโฆpoached?
Hi Troy, a left over roast chicken or poached chicken is perfect here. N x
Itโs good to see so many fresh ingredients!
And itโs super tasty too! N x
I love the light creamy dressing that is served at our local Japanese Sushi restaurant. It is a very light, white colored creamy tasting dressing that goes terrifically with plain old iceberg lettuce. Do you know a recipe for it?
You can google Japanese ginger dressing to find that dressing.
Hi! Iโm soooo bad at prepping fresh cilantro & parsley and looks like that part wasnโt included in the video. Any tips for us fans? Itโs always getting stuck on my knife. ๐๐ป
This is a v late reply Cheryl, but one tip I have learned during this pandemic and resulting reduced grocery shops is washing, spinning herbs dry, then storing wrapped in tea towel in plastic bags. I find the moisture from freshly washed herbs contributes to โsticky knife syndromeโ. The herbs last much longer with this technique, are virtually dry whenever you need them. Of course as our โguruโ Nagi has said a sharp knife is key as well.
Hi Cheryl, just roughly chopped it fine in this salad. A sharp knife is all you need โ N x
Thanks for posting these recipes, they are so good!
Youโre so welcome Rachel!! N x
Such a yummy salad!! Looks fantastic and tastes fantastic too!! Not a big fan of mint in salad so skipped that and for the dressing I added Mirin (reduced the sugar as per your other recipe notes) and sesame oil and it was soooo good!! Iv been looking for a recipe for dressing like the one at Japanese restaurants and this truly nailed it!!
Using the leftover salad to make chicken chow mein ๐ค thanks again for sharing your awesome recipes.
Hi Nagi, I feel like Iโll miss a hit of sesame in this dressingโฆ what do you think of adding a little toasted sesame oil to the dressing? Thanks in advance!
Tiina
Hi Tiina, yes you can definitely add sesame oil if you like โ enjoy! N x
Made this a few timeโs now but never with all ingredients due to not having everything it itโs beautiful. I use crispy bacon instead of fried shallots I just cremate three slices in the microwave and crumble into salad itโs amazing thanks for recipe
I used to get a nice spicy dressing in Vietnam it looked similar to a rosey coloured mayo it was just drizzled over and was amazing but I canโt replicate it but this one is also very good
I just keep making this. Itโs so tasty and healthy! This has been my quarantine go-to lunch. AND my husband loves it, and he really never likes veggies. So happy to see him eating a big bowl of vegetables and saying, โmmmmm!!โ the entire time. LOVING your blog! Tomorrow Iโm making your Japanese beef bowls! Thank you so much for keeping me inspired. ๐๐๐
WOOT!!! So glad it was a hit Julie! N x
Cooked this and Nagiโs Asian Beef Bowls for dinner the other evening and the family loved it. Easy to cook and tasted great. Thanks for sharing your recipes. Best regards
Iโm so happy you loved it Shane! N x
Love this salad. What is the gadget you use to shred carrot?