I don’t know about you, but I have a real addiction to the superfood underdog AKA red cabbage. (Some people call it purple, but technically it’s red.) I’m not sure when the cabbage obsession really started (maybe it was from this salad) but now I’m basically convinced that cabbage needs to be in EVERYTHING.
Did you know that red cabbage is actually the healthier cabbage? Don’t get me wrong, both red and green varieties are wonderful but red cabbage actually contains more vitamin A and iron than it’s green counterpart. Both cabbages colors help to promote a healthy gut (which is what we’re all about these days), fight inflammation, boost your immunity and contain plenty of nutrients your body needs. CABBAGE PATCH PARTY.
Wait wut.
My favorite thing about cabbage isn’t just the nutrition though. It’s the epic CRUNCH it gives salads and slaws. It’s addicting and I can’t stop putting it in recipes.
Fun fact: I loved coleslaw as a little girl. I’d ask for big bowls of it with lots of black pepper. Dad made a homemade version with lots of mayo. This version isn’t Dad’s but IT IS for all you millennials. Heh.
Is coleslaw healthy?
While coleslaw is really just made up of a bunch of crunchy, colorful vegetables, traditional coleslaw recipes are usually covered in dressings made up of mayo and sugar. In this healthy, paleo coleslaw recipe we’re skipping the mayo entirely and tossing all of the gorgeous veggies with a tangy, slightly sweet dressing made with apple cider vinegar and simple ingredients to keep the coleslaw vegan and dairy free.
Ingredients in healthy coleslaw
This incredible healthy coleslaw recipe uses fresh ingredients to create a crunchy, bright gut-friendly coleslaw without mayo or sugar. You’ll need:
- Red & green cabbage: I love using both red and green cabbage for extra crunch and a variety of flavors.
- Carrots: you’ll need plenty shredded carrots in this healthy coleslaw recipe.
- Cilantro: for the perfect amount of freshness.
- Jalapeño: a fun kick of heat in this coleslaw! Feel free to omit if you’re sensitive to spice.
- Green onion: for a little extra zip in this coleslaw.
- Pepitas & toasted sliced almonds: both the pepitas (which are roasted pumpkin seeds) and almonds add a wonderful extra crunch with all of the veggies.
- Olive oil: a bit of olive oil will help the “dressing” coat all of those gorgeous veggies in the coleslaw.
- Apple cider vinegar: use apple cider vinegar to add that tangy delicious flavor found in coleslaw recipes. It’s also great for gut health!
- Pure maple syrup: instead of using granulated sugar like in traditional coleslaw recipes, we’re justing a bit of pure maple syrup to lightly sweeten the coleslaw. Feel free to adjust depending on how sweet you like it.
- Garlic: a little garlicky flavor makes this healthy coleslaw extra delicious.
- Cayenne pepper: add a pinch of cayenne for a little extra heat, or feel free to omit.
- Salt & pepper: to bring all of the flavors together.
While this version isn’t your typical coleslaw, it’s still got delicious flavor thanks to carrots, cilantro, jalapeno (if you want), seeds, nuts and a zippy apple cider maple dressing. It’s a little sweet, a little spicy, and better than that soggy white coleslaw they serve at restaurants.
How to make healthy coleslaw
- Add all of the coleslaw ingredients to a large bowl except for the pepitas, almonds and dressing.
- In a smaller bowl, add your dressing ingredients and whisk to combine.
- Pour the dressing over the coleslaw and toss well to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings if need be. Place the coleslaw in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour to let the flavors marinate.
- Before serving, add in the pepitas and toasted almonds and toss to combine.
How to store healthy coleslaw
Store this easy, healthy coleslaw covered in the fridge for up to 5 days. This is an amazing make-ahead recipe for picnics and BBQ’s because the flavors deepen as the coleslaw marinates!
Recipes to pair with this healthy coleslaw
Incredible Slow Cooker Pulled Chicken Sandwiches
Ultimate Vegan Black Bean Burgers with Creamy Tahini Garlic Sauce
See how to make healthy coleslaw
If you make this healthy coleslaw recipe, be sure to tag #ambitiouskitchen on Instagram. We’d also love if you would leave a comment below and rate the recipe. We appreciate you! xo.
Best Healthy Coleslaw Ever (no mayo!)
The BEST healthy coleslaw made with fresh purple cabbage, carrots, cilantro, and a kick of heat from jalapeño. There's no mayo or sugar, just a naturally sweet and slightly tangy dressing with a hint of pure maple syrup. This simple, healthy coleslaw recipe is vegan, paleo & dairy free and perfect serving with your favorite grilling recipes all summer!
Ingredients
- For the slaw:
- 1/2 medium head of purple cabbage, shredded (about 3 cups shredded cabbage)
- 1/2 medium head of green cabbage, shredded (about 3 cups shredded cabbage)
- 2 heaping cups shredded carrots
- 1 cup finely chopped cilantro
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and finely diced
- 1/2 cup green onion (green part only)
- 1/2 cup pepitas
- 1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds
- For the dressing:
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1-2 tablespoons pure maple syrup, depending how sweet you like your slaw
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
-
Add all the ingredients for the slaw except for the almonds and pepitas to a large bowl.
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In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing. Pour all over the slaw and toss well to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Cover and place in fridge for at least an hour to allow flavors to marinate together.
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Before serving, sprinkle with toasted sliced almonds and pepitas; toss again and serve.
Recipe Notes
How to store coleslaw: store this coleslaw covered in the fridge for up to 5 days. This is an amazing make-ahead recipe for picnics and BBQ's because the flavors deepen as the coleslaw marinates!
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
127 comments
This looks perfect. I am one of those people who hates mayo so this is great for me! Will make for my next cook out for sure!
I tried your thai quinoa salad and it was amazing! I still have half of purple cabbage and carrots at home, so I’ll be making this! Thanks Monique!!
I am loving that tangy dressing!
It’s amazing!
I may be alone here, but gloppy coleslaw is so not for me. Love this as an alternative … and that color is gorgeous!
You’re not alone! This one is super fresh – you’ll have to give it a try!
Yes, I LOVE LOVE LOVE red cabbage! I find it interesting that it’s called red cabbage when it’s clearly purple, and it exudes a blue hue after you heat it! But regardless, this healthy coleslaw looks so perfect yet it seems so easy to whip up. Sesame seeds and a little bit of sesame oil and soy sauce with red cabbage is the PERFECT combination. I love it!
It’s the BEST! And the sesame sounds delicious with red cabbage 🙂
I had the most amazing coleslaw over Memorial Day…and I was thinking I need to try making it myself at home! Perfect timing 🙂
Absolutely! It’s super easy and delicious 🙂
Love cabbage in your salads! Looking forward to more recipes with it!
I’m not good on distinguishing between small and medium heads of cabbage. About how many cups of the red cabbage did you get from your medium head? Thanks!
Isn’t it the best?! So crunchy! I think it was about 6 cups or so.
Thank you!
I made this yesterday, and it was great! I used about 6 cups of chopped cabbage, which weighed about a pound. I toasted slivered almonds and pepitas. Delicious!
Love it!!
Made this three times now and cannot say enough about how great this and all the recipes of yours I’ve tried are – I am a fan for life. Thanks for all the great food.
So happy to hear that!! Love this fresh one for summer. Thanks for loving AK!
Though colorful, this was way too much work, and almost no flavor! 😟
Will not be making this again!
I’m sorry you felt that way! I’ve always found this to be super fresh, flavorful and a little spicy. If you do give it another try, you could always use pre-shredded veggies and add some extra dressing.
Just made it tonight! Love it!
How long would it last in the fridge?
This will last about 3-5 days in the fridge!
Made your non-mayo healthy coleslaw for a cookout last night. All 6 had big serving and/or seconds! Even my non-veggie eater liked it! It took a while to cut/ shred everything but way worth! Next time I can buy pre-shredded to save some time.
So happy to hear that Lisa! And yes – pre-shredded makes it much easier 😉 but definitely worth it regardless!
Oh my! I made this for my lunches at work to have with some chicken for the next few days- oh my goodness it tastes amazing!!! So happy! The best coslaw ever!!!!
Perfect!! Love that idea 🙂
Hi, I want this for a group. What is the serving size (I.e. 1/4 cup) Thanks!
Hi! It’s about 1 cup. Enjoy!
Because of the sweet versus “kick” competing flavors in this recipe I am now adding healthy pretty purple red cabbage to my diet! Took me a few servings before it grew on me and I decided I liked it. Thanks for another wonderful recipe! (From a very picky veggie eater!)
Happy to hear that Mary! Great way to get extra veggies in 🙂
I was wondering if the apple cider biggest taste is very strong. As much as I wish I liked it, I just can’t get used to apple cider vinegar. Do you think red wine vinegar would be a good substitution? I’m struggling with fatty liver disease and I need to eat a lot more of the cruciferous veggies and healthy fats. So this recipe looks perfect. I am a traditional coleslaw lover (but also a millennial lol!) So I love new healthy twists on recipes too, I can’t wait to try this!
The apple cider vinegar isn’t a very strong taste in this one, but you can use red wine vinegar if you’d like! Enjoy 🙂
I would never spend this much time measuring, dicing, mincing, chopping and tossing on a weeknight. I used a bag of Trader Joe’s Cruciferous Crunch (a mix of shredded cruciferous veggies), raw pepitas that I microwaved a minute and a half, and for the dressing only the easy to measure stuff: olive oil, maple syrup (actually the Trader Joe’s maple agave blend), and apple cider vinegar. And a little salt and pepper. No doubt I changed the spicy character of the recipe, but it was delicious all the same.
That works too! I like having all of the fresh ingredients in my fridge to use for this recipe and others 🙂
Coleslaw with a kick! Love it!!! I just made this and it is already a favorite for my husband and myself!
Glad you both love it!!
Can you reduce the calories by eliminating the maple syrup? Will it still be flavourful?
You can but the dressing will be more bitter. Feel free to taste and adjust to your liking!
its* green counterpart
“it’s” means “it is”
This was a huge hit. Fresh, crunchy and tasty. Used some green cabbage too as I find it soften’s up quicker and the purple holds the crunch for a nice combo. Will be going into the regular rotation! Thanks!
Perfect! So glad you loved it. Great for spring & summer 🙂
I am not a sophisticated cook. This recipe was straightforward and the dish was easy to make. My husband and I think it’s fantastic and very healthy. Thanks much!
So glad you found this one! Perfect for spring & summer 🙂
Looking forward to trying this – thank you.
Enjoy! 🙂
Just made this..didn’t have red cabbage so substituted green ..still a beautiful and delicious cole slaw! Thanks for this great recipe!🤗❤️
I’m so glad you liked it, Cat!
Wow! Made without scallions and with green instead of purple cabbage. Delicious! Loved this alternative to mayo-laden cole slaw, and it was fantastic even though I didn’t have time to let the flavors sit and meld! Thanks! Will be making this again!
So so happy you loved this recipe. Great idea on the scallions too!
this is delicious! I think this will be a summer staple in my fridge. I have a box of golden raisins I need to use up and will try tossing some into my leftovers. I have a food processor and used it to shred the cabbage and carrots. It was done in less than five minutes. I highly recommend a food processor if you eat lots of veggies like this. Thank you!
Perfect for summer! And great tip about the food processor – love that.
So delicious – maybe even better the next day!
Absolutely! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
I have noticed a lot of American recipes only use the green part of scallions, is there a reason for this?
The green part is milder in taste, so I like to use just that part if it’s raw in recipes. If I’m using the white part, I typically like to cook it 🙂
I loved this slaw! I used the TJ’s cruciferous crunch, and it turned out delicous. I added it to tacos – with butternut squash and pickled onions. I will be making this again for sure!
Love that! Great idea to add to tacos – YUM.
I’m not a big fan of mayo, therefore not a fan of regular coleslaw, so I searched non-dairy recipes for slaw and this was AWESOME!! My boyfriend and I have been chowing on it, I even have it in the morning! lol I told him we could also probably add tiny pieces of broccoli and/or cauliflower for some added veggies sometime! I also ended up making another batch of the dressing to throw on it.
Perfect! I’m glad you found this recipe – great idea to add some more crunchy veggies to it, too!
I do not like mayo and it does not like me. Pulled Pork on Traeger today so this is great to serve with it. I went with sesame oil and apple cider vinegar.
This is the perfect recipe for you! Sounds great with pulled pork.
We love this recipe! I leave out jalapeños and cayenne and leave out the pepitas; our whole family loves it.
Perfect! So happy to hear that.
This recipe is sooooo good! Being new to clean eating has been a bit of a challenge, especially since I have practically cut out sugar, processed carbs (and all processed foods!), and dairy. Needing a change of “food scenery”, I was lucky enough to come across your website. This slaw is amazing! Crunchy, healthy, tasty with the perfect amount of dressing, and super colorful. This would be a great side dish for any occassion, and it’s easy! Thank you!
I’m so glad you loved this one! Perfect side dish 🙂 I hope you find more recipes here that you love, too!
My current go to salad! It stays good for several days and just seems to get better with time!
Love that! Such a great lunch.
Love this!!! I didn’t have jalapeños so I used green pepper and it turned out great! Better than going out to eat —for pennies. More healthy salads please.
Perfect! More healthy salads to come this year 🙂
Best cabbage salad EVER!!!
My favorite coleslaw too! Glad you enjoyed!
Tasty. Really tasty. The maple syrup is brilliant. I used a serrano Chile because I like the flavor better. Keeper recipe.
Perfect! Such a great side dish.
So tasty, can’t stop eating it and don’t feel guilty at all
One of my favorite sides!
I loved this slaw salad. I added some Granny Smith apple and it was outstanding! Thanks
Hi, The recipe is pretty good except for the amount of oil. You can reduce that by half or more.
Hi! Feel free to adjust as-needed 🙂 glad you enjoyed!
Just made this slaw for chicken tacos tonight! So excited to eat with some Queso Fresco and sour cream…delicious by itself, though! Thanks, Monique!
Perfect! Sounds like an amazing combo 🙂
How long will this last in the fridge?
It should last about 3-5 days in the fridge 🙂
I appreciate the low carb/low sugar approach!
A great twist on traditional coleslaw! 🙂
I RARELY comment on Recipes but this recipe is worth leaving a review! My friend introduced me to this recipe and I LOVE it!!
Thank you so much for this delicious, healthy recipe!!! Everything from the crunch of the combo of cabbage, carrots to the heat from the jalapeño to the slightly sweet and tangy dressing is perfection!
I Made a video of me making it and am sharing this recipe on my Facebook Cooking Group! Can’t wait for others to try it too! ♥️
I’m so glad you loved this one! One of my go-to’s 🙂
This was fantastic! I made it without cilantro for my wife who has the “cilantro = soap” taste buds. I also didn’t have a jalapeño but did have a whole bag of serranos so used one Serrano instead. It added some nice spice and I might even do two next time. This will be a go-to staple for BBQ / cookouts when the world finally returns to normal and we can do those again!
Perfect! This one’s great for adjusting 🙂 glad you enjoyed!
This is delicious! Thanks for a yummy, healthy recipe!
Absolutely! Glad you loved it!
I can’t wait to try these recipes. They are exactly what I’m looking for to add to my collection.
I hope you find new ones you love!
I made the dressing for this recipe and added it to a bag of pre-chopped slaw. It was delicious!!!!
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
I have enjoyed a lot of creamy coleslaw recipes, but this may-free version may be my favorite yet. And the flavor simply gets better with time! I used it as a topping for some pork carnitas and it was delicious. I will definitely make it again just to eat as a side with another summer meal. Delightful!
Amazing! So glad you loved it!
I made this salad yesterday as a side dish and it became an instant hit with everyone. I did not have green cabbage, so omitted it, but all other ingredients were the same. I will definitely make this again.
Perfect! So happy to hear that!
I was in a hurry so used a bag of coleslaw from the grocery store. The dressing is great! Next time I might do one less TBSP of oil. I didn’t toast the pepitas. I left out the jalapeño, cilantro and almonds and it was still very good! My kids really liked it!
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed!
Great recipe, just added some Granny Smith apples. It went beautifully with boneless spare ribs and homemade baked beans! A perfect summer meal!
Sounds delicious! Glad you enjoyed!
Loved this! added a splash more AVC cause why not!
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed!
This coleslaw is absolutely delicious, and is my new favorite recipe! Only variation was that I added finely diced fresh jalapeño because I love the extra kick.
Amazing! Glad you love it 🙂
Good idea but it’s more of a Thai salad or Korean salad than coleslaw isn’t it?
I treat it just like a coleslaw but you can enjoy it as a salad if you want!
Easy and delicious. Added slices of mango for a tropical coleslaw to go with jerk chicken and rice and beans.
Love that idea! Sounds delicious 🙂
Very easy to make, colorful feast for your eyes, and an explosion of flavor in your mouth. I, too, would rather eat cole slaw without mayo. I have been making another similar recipe, but I like this one because of the added cilantro, cayenne, seeds and jalapeno. Thank you for sharing. Delicious!!!!
I found the slaw a little flat without the jalapeño, which I removed because I was serving to children. I may have shredded too many vegetables, so I did 1.5x for the sauce. That seemed to help, but I could tell it was still not quite right. To augment, I added a little more salt and supplemented with the juice from half of a lime. Took it from pretty good to really tasty.
I’m glad the extra salt + lime juice helped out!
First, I’m a big fan of mayo coleslaw but always looking out for a healthier recipe. I’ve tried other variations but wasn’t impressed until now. This recipe is absolutely delicious! It went great a great with our fish tacos!
So happy you found this one! Fresh and delicious 🙂
Wow this is amazing! I found that it came together rather quickly, I didn’t think there was too much chopping, but then again I cook every meal from scratch so I’m use to it. I believe it took me 5-8 minutes to assemble everything. At first I almost added more ACV because I wanted more tang, but after letting it sit for a few minutes the flavors blended quite well. Will be making this again!
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed!
The BEST slaw ever!! I use all red cabbage because it’s my favorite. The dressing is soo good with a little spice. And the toasted almonds add the best flavor and crunch. I like to double the recipe because once I start eating it I can’t stop and I want it to last a couple days!!
So delicious! Used pre-shredded bags of cabbage I got at Trader Joe’s which made this recipe even easier! Leftovers were amazing the next day too. I’ll be adding this to my dinner rotation!
So easy! Glad you enjoyed!
Wow!! This dressing was absolutely delicious. I’m a southerner, so I’ve been a coleslaw purist my whole life. But I wanted to find a healthier alternative. This won my heart!
Amazing! So glad you gave this one a try!
Thank you for this recipe. I was eating it before it had a chance to marinate. My bad! I didn’t use a Jalapeño because I was afraid it might be too much heat for me, but I did put the cayenne pepper in. This is a really good coleslaw recipe. Hopefully, COVID will be moving on and I will have a chance once again to cook for my many friends. This will be on the menu.
So glad you enjoyed! Perfect freshness 🙂
I have made this a couple times for family, and every time has been a hit! A tasty twist on a cole slaw!
So happy to hear that!
Delicious. Great recipe.
We didn’t have green cabbage, pepitas or jalapeños and it turned out amazing still. The toasted almonds are what put this recipe over the top so don’t leave those out. Instead of using extra virgin olive oil we used avocado oil because we prefer a milder flavoured oil.