This crunchy Asian slaw made with a simple sesame dressing, lots of green onion, and toasted sesame seeds is a fresh side that takes just 10 minutes to make.
This Is My Go-To Side for Any Asian-Inspired Meal
Simple slaws don’t always get the credit they deserve. Too often they’re overshadowed by the light leafy greens, solid Caesar salads, and robust kale or spinach salads that dominate ladies’ lunches or dinner’s first course.
However, because they’re crunchy and fresh, a slaw salad can be the ideal quick-to-make side to lighten up fried foods or heartier main dishes.
In this Asian slaw, thinly shredded Napa cabbage is mixed with slivers of carrot for sweetness and lots of chopped green onion for heat and bite. Similar to the dressing in my Chinese Chicken Salad, toasted sesame oil adds earthy flavor notes with a few splashes of rice vinegar and a little sugar for balance. As a final topper to this Asian slaw, I like plenty of toasted sesame seeds, with either white or black working just fine.
Enjoy!
Heidi’s Tips for Recipe Success
Use a bag of coleslaw mix for ease. I used Napa cabbage and a whole carrot in this slaw, but for convenience, you can use a packaged cabbage salad mix instead.
Napa cabbage provides bold crunch and delicate sweetness. If you use a bagged coleslaw mix to save time, that means you’ll be using green cabbage instead of Napa. That’s a-okay, just know that green cabbage is earthier and more pungent in flavor than sweet and crunchy Napa cabbage.
Toast the sesame seeds for more flavor. Even if the seeds say they’re toasted, I still toast them in a skillet over medium heat just until aromatic. This coaxes out even more sesame flavor.
What’s in This Recipe?
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
- Napa cabbage — Napa cabbage has a more tender leaf, which is why I use it here. But if it’s not available, use a green cabbage or purple cabbage instead. A packaged cabbage or coleslaw blend will also work.
- Carrot — Use the largest side of a box grater to shred the cabbage into slivers.
- Green onion — Adds a milder onion flavor than yellow onion and leans into the Asian theme. Slivered red onion would work, too.
- Rice vinegar — If using seasoned rice vinegar, you may want to add less sugar to the dressing since it’s already sweetened.
- Sesame oil — Make sure it’s fresh! Old sesame oil has a stronger taste.
- Sugar — Don’t omit the teaspoon of sugar; it balances out the vinegar and makes the sesame dressing taste sweet and tangy.
- Toasted sesame seeds — White or black work equally well, or try a mix of both.
How to Make Asian Slaw
- Slice the cabbage into thin ribbons. I recently got this chef’s knife and it’s just right for this job.
- Grate the carrot. I use a julienne peeler to cut the carrot into thin strips. You could also use a box grater.
- Chop the green onion. I like both the white part (more onion flavor) and the green part (more mellow flavor) of green onion. Slice at an angle for a pretty presentation.
- Whisk the dressing and taste for flavor. Add more sugar, sesame oil, or vinegar to taste.
- Dress the salad and serve. Enjoy!
Make Ahead Tip
Over time, the vinegar breaks down the cabbage and it will become soft and more limp. If making ahead of time, prep the ingredients but wait to dress the slaw just before serving.
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo, and tag me on Instagram with #foodiecrusheats.
Asian Slaw Recipe
Ingredients
Slaw
- 4 cups shredded Napa cabbage
- 1 carrot , shredded
- 4 green onions , white and green parts chopped
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Sesame Dressing
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Add the cabbage, carrot, green onion, and sesame seeds to a large bowl.
- In a small bowl whisk together the sesame oil, rice vinegar, sugar, and kosher salt. Drizzle over the cabbage mixture and toss to coat.
- Taste and add more sugar, salt, or sesame oil to taste. This slaw is best served right away or refrigerated up to overnight.
Nutrition
What to Serve With Asian Slaw
More Slaw and Coleslaw Recipes
We send good emails. Subscribe to FoodieCrush and have each post plus exclusive content only for our subscribers delivered straight to your e-mail box.
Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest for more FoodieCrush inspiration.
As always, thank you for reading and supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. There may be affiliate links in this post of which I receive a small commission. All opinions are always my own.
Rate & Comment