It’s all about the Slaws

Recipe of the month No #4: January

It’s all about the Slaws

In honour of Veganuary and a healthy start to the year, we’ve put together a couple of our favourite
slaw recipes. Coleslaws can provide the basis of a light dinner or a versatile accompaniment to pretty
much any meal. For us, the key to a good slaw comes from balancing the vegetables and acidity to find
that perfect balance of flavours. It needn’t be all about the mayo!

Ingredients

Classic Asian Slaw
½ Chinese cabbage, finely sliced
½ small red cabbage, finely sliced
2 carrots, finely sliced into long thin strips (use a julienne cutter if you have one)
3 spring onions, sliced lengthways into long, thin strips
100g mangetout, sliced lengthways
100g beansprouts
1 tsp fine sea salt
1 tbsp caster sugar
juice of 1 lime
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
medium bunch coriander, finely chopped
small bunch mint leaves, finely chopped
small bunch Thai basil leaves, finely chopped
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
50g toasted unsalted peanuts, crushed

For the dressing:
1 garlic clove, very finely chopped
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 tbsp honey
50ml rice vinegar
50ml olive oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method

One
Add your prepared vegetables to a bowl. Sprinkle with the salt, sugar and lime juice and toss through.

Two
Put the bowl in the fridge while you prepare the dressing.

Three
Whisk the dressing ingredients vigorously in a bowl. Taste to check the seasoning. Pour the dressing over the chilled vegetables and mix well. Now add the chilli, chopped herbs and sesame seeds and toss through. Allow the flavours to come together in the fridge for 1 hour. Just before serving, sprinkle over the toasted crushed peanuts.

Four
Serve. This is perfect served with rice noodles stirred through or on its own for something a little lighter.

Another of our favourites…Lexington style Red Slaw with Beets

Ingredients:
1kg red cabbage (cored & finely shredded), 1 medium red onion (finely sliced), 3 carrots (grated), 2 cooked beetroot (grated)

For the ’slaw cure: juice of 1 lemon, 2 tsp fine sea salt

For the dressing: 50ml olive oil, 1 tsp all-purpose BBQ rub, 50ml cider vinegar, 3 tbsp ketchup, 1 tsp caster sugar, ½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper, ½ tsp fine sea salt

Method: Combine the shredded cabbage and onion in a large bowl. Add the ingredients for the ’slaw cure, and mix well. Cover and let osmosis do its thing in your fridge for 2–3 hours. When you’re ready to make your ’slaw, pour off any liquid from the onion and cabbage, then stir through the carrot and beetroot. In a food processor or blender, add all the dressing ingredients except the oil, and with the blade running at medium speed, add the oil very slowly, drop by drop, until the dressing emulsifies and thickens. Pour over the vegetables and toss through, making sure they are all fully coated. Cover the bowl with cling film and allow to sit in the fridge for an hour (to help the flavours come together) before serving. Serve with houmous and fresh crusty bread for a delicious lunch.

Recipe of the month No #4: January