This traditional coleslaw recipe is an easy side dish made with shredded cabbage mix and creamy dressing. A classic summer salad for BBQs!
Cole Slaw is an essential Summer Side Dish for your backyard barbecue! From this classic easy recipe to old fashioned Amish Vinegar Slaw to Copycat KFC and Sweet versions, I’ve got plenty of slaws for you to choose from!
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Sabrina’s Easy Cole Slaw Recipe
This easy and delicious coleslaw comes together in just 5 minutes with the perfect homemade dressing. The hardest part is waiting for it to chill for a few hours before you can dive in for a crisp tangy bite! It is a great make-ahead dish because it gets even better the next day.
Of course, slaw is a classic barbecue side dish. The cool, creaminess of dressing and crunch of the veggies go perfectly with smoky meat hot off the grill. And who can resist a saucy pulled pork sandwich piled high with fresh coleslaw?!
How to Make Video
Key Ingredients
- Cabbage: I used a pre-shredded cabbage mix since this is supposed to be an easy recipe! You can make your own using green cabbage, purple cabbage, and carrots. See below for my instructions on how to do this.
- Mayonnaise: This recipe calls for regular mayo for extra creaminess. You can use a lighter version or vegan mayo if you prefer.
- Vinegar: The tangy, strong white vinegar cuts through the rich mayo and helps soften the veggies as they sit overnight.
- Sugar: The sugar adds some balance and helps tone down the acidic flavors with the lemon and vinegar.
- Lemon Juice: Some fresh lemon juice also helps cut the richness of the mayo and adds a bold freshness to the dressing.
Step by Step Guide
Time needed: 2 hours and 5 minutes.
- Sauce
Combine the mayonnaise, sugar, lemon juice, white vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until it’s a smooth sauce.
- Combine
Add the pre-shredded coleslaw mix, or your homemade cabbage mix, to the dressing. Toss well until it’s completely coated.
- Chill
For the best flavor and to soften the cabbage, you want to chill the slaw in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 14 ounce coleslaw mix with red cabbage and carrots*
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
Instructions
- Add the mayonnaise, sugar, lemon juice, white vinegar, salt, and pepper to a large mixing bowl and whisk together until fully combined.
- Add in the coleslaw mix and stir well to combine.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Chef’s Note: Playing with Flavor
The nice thing about a simple recipe like my slaw dressing is that it makes a great base to play with flavor using your spice cabinet. You can keep it simple with celery salt, white pepper or garlic powder. Or get bold and creative with curry powder, cumin, tarragon, or turmeric. I like to spoon a little dressing out into a small dish, add a tiny dash of spices, mix and taste. Once I have the flavors i’m looking for, I add the spices in ¼ or ½ teaspoon amounts to the actual dressing. This way I don’t risk wasting my whole dressing with the wrong seasoning combo.
Can Cole Slaw be Made Ahead of Time?
The beautiful thing with Cole Slaw is that you can make it in advance! While it is still really yummy as soon as it is mixed together, making your Cole Slaw a day or two earlier and keeping it in the fridge will help bring all the flavors together and help them get into the cabbage mixture. Make sure it is sealed in an airtight container.
How to Store
- Serve: For best results, make sure to refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving, serve chilled, and don’t leave it out longer than 2 hours.
- Store: Cole Slaw can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week. If it starts to break down, add more coleslaw mix to keep it fresh longer.
- Freeze: Coleslaw doesn’t freeze well, so just throw it out and make a fresh batch when needed.
Homemade Shredded Cabbage Mixture
If you want to use your own mix for the coleslaw, follow these instructions.
- Green Cabbage: Cut up a full head of green cabbage into 4 large quarters using a sharp chef’s knife. Taking care, thinly slice each of the quartered cabbage pieces. Discard the thick root part. One head of cabbage should make about 8 cups of shredded cabbage.
- Red Cabbage: Next, shred enough red cabbage to make 1 cup, about a 1/4th of a cabbage head. You don’t want to use too much red cabbage or it will turn your slaw purple.
- Carrots: Lastly, shred 4 carrots into short, thin strips. You can use a grater, the julienne setting on your kitchen mandolin or a food processor with a shredding blade.
Frequent Questions
It is really up to you! I like to grab a pre-shredded bag for convenience, especially when it’s on sale. But chopping it up fresh isn’t that hard since it’s just cabbage and shredded carrots.
While this recipe takes only five minutes to put together, you want to let it chill so that the dressing can soften the crunch of the cabbage and really absorb the flavors. I recommend 2-4 hours, or overnight if you have the time.
Cole Slaw is a dish that comes from the Netherlands. Its first presentation showed up in a cookbook there in 1770.
Making coleslaw from scratch can be as easy as pouring and mixing! At the most, you may have to do some chopping if you don’t buy a bagged mix. All the ingredients are pantry staples which means you’ll likely have them already at home! If not, you can easily find the ingredients in your local grocery store.
Variations and Substitutions
- Fresh Herbs: Adding a few teaspoons of fresh dill, chives, or parsley will give your slaw a tasty herby kick! For a bold flavor, try finely diced green onion or grated white onion.
- Mustard: Adding a bit of mustard seeds or a tablespoon or two of Dijon mustard to the mix really adds a wonderful depth of flavor.
- Mayo vs Miracle Whip: Mayo is really creamy and rich while Miracle Whip is a bit sweeter in flavor. It really comes down to preference on this one!
- Vinegar: Try making your slaw apple cider vinegar or pickle juice instead of the white vinegar for a tangy flavor with a twist!
Related Recipes
More Delicious Homemade Coleslaw Recipes!
Photos used in a previous version of this post:
To thin the dressing, if too thick, I use apple juice or pineapple juice… delicious ?
This is the absolute best coleslaw ever! Thanks so much for this recipe!!
I have looked for the perfect, basic coleslaw recipe for YEARS. This one is IT! Thank you, Sabrina!
You’re welcome Sue and thank you for the five star review!
Easy and delicious! Used it on my pulled pork sandwiches on Kings Hawaiian rolls! Was a hit and just made it again. Thank you! I’ll never buy store bought again!
This has been my go to recipe for a couple of years.
Thank you
Great recipe all items on hand and super easy. Love it!! Thank you you for sharing your recipes
You’re welcome! Thank you Ellen for the five star rating.
This is by far the BEST coleslaw recipe I’ve tried out of a bunch!!! The dressing is spot on and the perfect ratio of vinegary and sweet!! I do cheat and use a packaged pre-mixed coleslaw but it’s the dressing that makes this soooo good!! I always add in some golden raisins and a mix of sunflower/ pumkin seeds for some extra crunch. My husband would sit and eat the entire batch if I’d let him… but I try to grab my portion first lol!! This will forever be my go-to coleslaw recipe!!!
I love reading comments like yours Dea! Thanks so much for taking time to let us know your thoughts and for the five star review.
Only thing I did different would be that I used fresh green cabbage, onion, green pepper and one carrot. Turned out great!
Glad you enjoyed the Cole Slaw Lona and thanks for the five star review.
Easy and delicious. I substitute the lemon juice with another tablespoon of vinegar and it comes out perfect every time.
You like a bit of “zing” to your cole slaw! Good for you. Thank you for the five star review!
Best Cole slaw recipe ever! My one and only recipe from now on. Absolutely delicious ?
Glad you enjoyed the Cole Slaw Dee and thanks for the five star review!
Why not look for a vinegar coleslaw recipe? This recipe is great as is. No need to add or subtract anything. I make this all the time. It’s not just a summer Cole slaw. Family always asks for it.
My Mom always added grated onion to her coleslaw so I grated 1/2 red onion and added that along with the juice from the grated onion. It kicked it up a notch! Thanks for a great recipe!
Great idea Marcie! Thanks so much for the 5 star review.
Great recipe! Just added a little more sugar because we like ours a little sweeter but definitely a keeper.
Love it…sometimes my readers give me a little “push back” because my recipes are too sweet! Love that you added a bit more and thanks for the 5 star review!
How much is a serving ??
Our nutrition values are created by a nutrition calculator. Feel free to use your own nutrition calculators with the recipe ingredients. Serving sizes become an issue because people will have ingredients of different sizes. Packaged products are weighed and measured at the time of creation which makes their measurements accurate. The only way to accurately know the measurements of meals is to weigh and divide.
So yum! Very simple and delicious recipe! I would say the only thing I changed is add sugar to taste. I added couple more spoons but other than that it’s my go to recipe
Great easy recipe. I tweaked it a bit by using Granny Smith white balsamic vinegar, green onions, Dijon mustard, celery salt and some fresh cilantro. I never follow a recipe completely. I always like to put my spin on it. Really tasty! Thank you for the recipe!
Enjoyed reading your “spin” on this recipe and thanks for the 5 stars Jacquie!
Easy and quick. Ingredients you would likely have on hand.
This is delicious. I add red onion and a lot more cabbage so it’s not “too” wet. However, it’s yummy! I add a few dollops to a shredded chicken salad for sandwich’s and it’s soo good!
This is a great recipe. Delicious and basic. It’s a keeper.
Your recipe is our family favorite!
With common staple ingredients this recipe comes together in minutes and is simply DELICIOUS! We especially enjoy this cole slaw with bbq and as a crunchy treat year round.
No revisions, GREAT recipe as written.
Thank you for this easy fresh favorite salad!
You’re welcome Irene! And thank you for the 5 star review 🙂
OMG! I have been searching for the perfect homemade coleslaw recipe and I have finally found it! Thank you so much! I almost ate the whole thing before I was able to serve it to my guests LOL I can’t wait to make this again! Loved it!
You’re welcome! So glad you enjoyed it and thank you Loriann for the 5 star vote of confidence 🙂
Thanks for a terrific recipe! It’s my whole family’s favorite and I HAVE to bring this cole slaw to all get togethers (along with my sweet potato casserole). ?
LOVE this recipe! I was looking for an easy coleslaw recipe my teen son could make for a potluck. Turned out not only easy but delicious! We’ve made this twice since then and it’s now my go-to for burger night! Thanks.
So glad you enjoyed it Bridget!
This is THE only coleslaw recipe I need! Fast & Easy to make, consistent results and always tons of compliments!! We love to top our pulled pork sliders with this slaw. Thank you!
It’s rated five stars for a reason! It’s super easy to make and it’s delicious
Thanks Barbara and thanks for the 5 star rating!
Oh so scrumptious! Just finished making and grabbed a small spoonful before placing remainder in fridge to marinate flavors. Oh, this is so so delicious! I doubled the batch for my purposes and only had green angel hair coleslaw mix on hand – 2 bags. I did add a few carrots I finely shredded to equal to about 5.4 ounces since I didn’t have the beautiful color of the tricolor coleslaw mixture. It was still pretty with the colorful carrots! All else was added as recipe directs but I only had the apple cider vinegar on hand. I was pleasantly surprised and gobbled my small portion quickly. So easy to make and most things are staples we tend to keep on hand. This coleslaw has a smidgeon of a kick behind each bite and the “sweetness” is not overwhelming. It is a perfect balance of all ingredients. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Loved your feedback and so glad you enjoyed the coleslaw. Thank you Sheri and thanks for the 5 star rating!
Worked out great! Very simple, everyone liked it. I used local honey as my sugar and supplemented white vinegar with apple cider vinegar. I also put a little Dijon mustered recommended under the tips. Will definitely use this receipt again, thank you so much!
You’re welcome Lew! Thanks so much for the vote of confidence!
Made this as written for my family, they loved it! We all did! Thank you for sharing.
This is a super popular recipe on the site. Thanks so much for the 5 star rating!
Super delicious and so easy to make!
Thank you Kembre and thanks for the 5 star rating!
Made this for a Labor Day cookout. It’s marinating in the fridge as I type – but in tasting while mixing – it’s going to be a winner! Thanks for sharing this easy recipe. I did use apple cider vinegar since that was what I had – and also added a few shakes of celery seed.
This is my husband’s favorite! I’m not a huge slaw fan and I really like it too.
Well that’s high praise from someone who isn’t a cole slaw fan! Glad your hubby enjoyed it to and most of all thank you for the 5 stars Amy!
Made this homemade coleslaw dressing for the first time – tasted good – made it this evening so the flavors will be even better tomorrow when we have it with spare ribs – yum.
Great! Thanks for the 5 stars Maria!
This was a really delicious cole slaw recipe. I only did 1 tbsp of sugar and it was quite perfect actually. I also used a 16 oz bag of slaw. I will be keeping this in my recipe card box and only my go-to recipes make it in there.
Deliciously balanced. I subbed greek yogurt for mayo and still came out perfectly. My first time trying coleslaw.
Sounds delicious. Glad you enjoyed your very first coleslaw!