Sweet-N-Sour Cole Slaw with a Kick!

By : DishinandDishes | 1 Comment | On : May 28, 2009 | Category : Uncategorized

I don’t know about you, but when I was little, I loved Kentucky Fried Chicken. Not so much for the chicken, which was yummy (to a young kid), but for the side dishes. I loved the little styrofoam bowls filled with mashed potatoes (were they fake?) and the creamy mayo-based coleslaw. And the biscuits with that little packet of honey? It was one of those childhood treats I loved after church on a Sunday when Dad brought home the big paper bucket.

My how I’ve grown up.

We made this the night we had the White Bass with Coconut-Lime Cilantro Sauce.

I wanted something to counterbalance the creaminess of the coconut milk in the fish sauce, and the old-style coleslaw just didn’t feel like it would cut the mustard….err….mayo.

It seemed like the perfect crunchy counterpart to the mildly-citrus, flaky fish. And it was a snap to make also.

I began by chopping up 1/2 of a jalepeno pepper (seeded and de-ribbed) and 1/2 a medium onion (sliced very thin).

Then I went to work on my dressing. I decided to just make the dressing in the bottom of my serving bowl. I dumped in (this served 2) 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar, and 1 T. sugar and 1 T. of honey. Salt and pepper to taste. Then I added my jalepeno and 1 t. dry mustard. Take a whisk and whisk away until the sugar dissolves into the mixture. Then slowly drizzle in 1/3 cup of olive oil, whisking like crazy.

I know you’re typically supposed to add a ratio of oil to water of 2 to 1 but I just don’t like my dressings that oily.

Now toss in your thinly sliced 1/2 of an onion.

Yes, that’s right – right into the dressing.

Followed by 1/3 cup of julienned or shredded carrots.

Now take your purple and green cabbage and slice about a cup and a half of each reallllll thinly.

Throw it into the dressing as well.

Now take some tongs or 2 forks or large spoons and toss your cole slaw up until the dressing coats everything.

And that’s all there is to a tangy, crispy fresh coleslaw that breaks away from the gooey mayo version you may be used to. Experiment around and add some different veggies in like thinly sliced red pepper ior shaved cucumbers. It’s fun to play with and makes for a new kind of salad to serve during the hot summer days.