KFC Coleslaw (Copycat)

10 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 0 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes

KFC Coleslaw is a five minute side dish you’ll enjoy all summer long with your favorite chicken and more! Tastes exactly like the original!

KFC Coleslaw is a five minute side dish you'll enjoy all summer long with your favorite chicken and more! Tastes exactly like the original!KFC Coleslaw is one of my most personal childhood food memories. As a young kid I would walk from my elementary school with my great aunt and we would stop at KFC (then Kentucky Fried Chicken) to get a chicken plate to share and a pudding cup to share. I just remember the most happy memories of our time together there, we would sit and talk and laugh.

To this day anytime I eat or make this KFC Coleslaw I think of her. I’m sure many of us have memories like this, which is why copycat recipes are also so personal. You want to recreate those memories or those long lost flavors (Like Pioneer Take-Out Fried Chicken) and anytime you succeed there is joy.

Speaking of KFC, you can also enjoy this coleslaw with KFC Original Fried Chicken and make your own chicken plate for a lot less money!

This KFC Coleslaw is probably one of the easiest copycats I have worked on in a long time. The ingredients were readily available online from so many sources it is hard to tell where the original came from. The version I found was from Food.com.

Looking for more recipes to serve with this easy coleslaw?

We loved this KFC Coleslaw, it tasted exactly like the original.

Tools used in the making of this KFC Coleslaw:
Food Processor: This is the newer version of the one I have used and loved for ten years. It is a workhorse and the new model has similarly awesome reviews…and it is so affordable!
Buttermilk Powder: I stopped buying buttermilk  years ago and keep this on hand for dressings, waffles, homemade ranch seasoning and more. One container has served over 100 recipes to date. You don’t have to throw away 50% full buttermilk containers anymore. I also love their all natural cheddar powder and sour cream powder (I use these to make Cheddar and Sour Cream Roasted Potatoes that taste just like the chips!) and Chicago Mix Cheddar and Caramel Popcorn.
Mayonnaise: I’ve tried a number of different brands, this one is the most spot on flavor.

 

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KFC Coleslaw

KFC Coleslaw is a five minute side dish you'll enjoy all summer long with your favorite chicken and more! Tastes exactly like the original!
Yield 10 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 0 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Course Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder

Ingredients
 

  • 8 cups diced cabbage (I used a food processor shredding disc)
  • 1 carrot (also used the food processor)
  • 2 tablespoons grated onions
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon white pepper
  • 1/4 cup whole milk
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk (I used buttermilk powder to make mine)
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions

  • In a large bowl add the cabbage, carrot, onion.
  • In a second bowl whisk the rest of the ingredients together until combined and smooth.
  • Toss together thoroughly and put in the refrigerator for 4-8 hours (the longer, the better).

Nutrition

Calories: 113kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 200mg | Potassium: 40mg | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1045IU | Vitamin C: 2.1mg | Calcium: 16mg
Keyword: cole slaw, Easy Cole Slaw, KFC Coleslaw (Copycat)
We loved this KFC Coleslaw, it tasted exactly like the original.
KFC Coleslaw in just a few minutes with easy ingredients. It tastes exactly the same!

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your own site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

    1. It keeps well for a day or two in the fridge — remember that the cabbage will soften in the dressing over time. So, for the crunchiest slaw, enjoy it within a day. Please let us know how your Coleslaw turns out!

  1. I made this a few days back. My first time ever making coleslaw and it was delicious. I will be making this again.

  2. This recipe is PERFECT! I used a bag of slaw mix and red onion. This has been my go to recipe since I first found it ??

    1. I used whatever I had on hand but with a little research just now, I found that Wellington’s Mayonnaise was what some thought tasted the most authentic! Enjoy!

  3. I made this recipe a while back and my husband who loves coleslaw took a bite and said this tastes just like KFC! I have been making this recipe ever since. It definitely is a keeper!

  4. This is the first coleslaw I’ve ever tried to make and it turned out perfectly! I halved the recipe and thought I messed it up bc it was very tart. But I let it set for another hour and it was amazing! The only sub I did was I used black pepper. I think I would put a dash more pepper in next time. Wonderful and will now be a staple. Thank you!!

  5. This is so delicious!! I’ve made it with and without buttermilk..not.ucj difference. My people I stay with absolutely love it!
    Thank you for sharing this recipe!

    1. Hi Jan, I apologize for the late response. It’s been crazy in the kitchen lately! Sour cream is thicker than buttermilk, so it’s best to thin it with water or milk when making a buttermilk substitute. To replace 1 cup (240 mL) of buttermilk in a recipe, combine 3/4 cup (172 grams) of sour cream with 1/4 cup (60 mL) of water or milk, and whisk the mixture until smooth.

  6. Really, excellent! It taste very much like the KFC in our community. I don’t think it can be improved upon.

  7. Hi, I made this for my family yesterday. We have some people who have serious love for KFC coleslaw and they said this was spot on. Everyone loved it. Thanks for the awesome recipe.

  8. Debbie, I think the goal here is not necessarily using all the same ingredients but achieving the same flavor. This recipe tastes spot on!

  9. KFC slaw don’t make milk, onions, lemon juice, white pepper, white vinegar or butter milk in it. It has apple cider vinegar, oil, sugar and mayonnaise. I use to work there and that is all we put in it.

    1. Debbie, I think the goal here is not necessarily using all the same ingredients but achieving the same flavor. This recipe tastes spot on!

  10. Since we are diabetic & high cholesterol I substituted the sugar & buttermilk for low fat milk & sugar substitute, they both worked out great & we can have coleslaw that is good for us too.

    1. I do the same thing! Both hubby and I are type 2 and my coleslaw is hubby’s favorite! He compares all restaurant coleslaw to mine and he always likes mine better! I always used chopped cabbage and carrots..etc..my favorite texture!

  11. The cole slaw recipe is good but if you want it GREAT use terragon vinegar. Many years ago and elder in the family gave me the KFC’s recipe and that is what it calls for. It’s GREAT. It’s available everywhere.

  12. What brand of buttermilk powder do you use? The link takes me just to Amazon but not the product.

    Thank you

    1. I use Saco brand, which can be found near the powdered skim milk or canned evaporated milk in most grocery stores. One tablespoon powder to 1/4 cup of water is the ratio. Kroger’s carries refrigerated low fat buttermilk in their dairy case. Splenda sweetener works great.

        1. Hi, you can just mix all the ingredients together and whisk the rest the together until combined and smooth.

  13. Do you add the powdered buttermilk as powder or dilute it 1st as per directions on container? I have seen some recipes just use it dry.

  14. My all time favorite Cole slaw! Thank you for sharing the recipe!! So many times i personally tried to duplicate it, and so many times it came out tasting wrong! This time, it was COPY CAT Delicious!! Funny you call it that cuz I too am an artist but not with foods I draw/sketch portraits of people! I am called copy-cat artistry for my exact likeness of images! Dogs are a real bread winner here in Henderson, NV so I’ve mastered that as well! People much rather see their fur babies in art form vs their personal faces of themselves or loved ones. So today is my first time stumbling oooo

  15. This is the only coleslaw I ever make. I buy the bagged coleslaw and add everything else as is in the recipe.

  16. The kfc original is: miracle whip,sugar tarragon vinegar saltpepper,cabbage,carrots onion. No milk the sugar and vinegar whisked in mayo, mix with veggies. Gets milky on it’s own. I made it for them as a kid.

    1. I have heard that it’s a different vinegar and what you’re saying I think that’s correct but do you have the recipe.
      How much on each ingredient

  17. This was so good! It reminds of the coleslaw we used to get at Rudolph’s BBQ Restaurant in Mpls. Thanks so much for the recipe!

  18. I just made this for the first time today. I forgot to ask my husband if he even liked KFC’s version (it’s my favorite). He said, “I love KFC’s!”. I asked him to try it and see what he thought. After one bite he said, “That is gold.” Thank you for a great recipe!

  19. I’m confused…don’t want to ruin the first try….Do I use milk and buttermilk along with more vinegar and lemon juice??? Or do I substitute if I don’t have buttermilk??

    1. You’ll use all the ingredients in the recipe card. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make your own using milk and lemon juice. Hope this clears things up. Enjoy!