Who said you need salads to be green?! Break the rules with this red cabbage, beetroot and apple salad. A way to brighten up these winter veggies and fruit, especially now that spring is well and truly here!
I’ve never been a big fan of creamy coleslaws, so for me this is my version of a coleslaw! A lot of tang from the vinegar soaked cabbage, and sweetness from the apples. To keep it vegan I’ve used an olive oil dressing, but if you wanted something a bit creamy and reminiscent of a coleslaw, you could always do a nice yoghurt based dressing with some mint etc. Get creative and share what you found works well!
If you love aniseed flavour as much as I do, a welcome yet optional addition to the salad are the fennel fronds from this weeks veggie box. So, so yummy and a great way to make sure you’re using the whole vegetable. Already eaten your fennel? If you have some fennel herb in your garden that works too. Bronzed fennel, even better in keeping with our red/pink salad theme!
Recipe for Cabbage, Beetroot and Apple Salad
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: depends on how long you want to soak your cabbage. See details in method.
Ingredients:
1/2 small red cabbage, thinly sliced
2 medium beetroots, grated
2 apples, grated
4 small carrots, grated
4 radishes, grated
Vinegar (I used white wine vinegar, but apple cider or white would work well also)
Optional: fennel fronds make a very welcomed addition to the salad
Dressing:
Mustard
Olive oil
Meyer lemon juice (these lemons are sweet and not very acidic. If you don’t have meyer lemons, try not to go to heavy handed on the acidity because there will be plenty from the cabbage soaked vinegar)
Salt and pepper
1. Prep your cabbage by slicing thinly. Put it in a bowl and generously pour in some vinegar, enough to coat all the cabbage. When you mix you will probably see a small bath of vinegar in the bottom of the bowl, this is good. The longer you let it sit, the softer it will become. If you like it really soft cabbage in salad, do it the night before and let it sit over night. If you prefer really crunchy cabbage, you can do it pretty close to serving.
2. Grate your other vegetables and apples and put into another bowl.
3. When your cabbage is as you want it, add the cabbage to the rest of the vegetables and apples without adding the pool of vinegar it has been sitting in.
4. Dress and serve as a vibrant side to any dish!
I personally prefer to dress the salad once I’ve served it onto the plate as I find the salad keeps nicer in the following days. The leftovers are great to use and add life to salad sandwiches or wraps for lunch. Chuck it on a pile of boiled potatoes to bring life to a dish. Endless possibilities!
Bon appétit!
