Indian Cabbage Slaw is a vegan cabbage salad made with chopped cabbage, tomatoes, cilantro, roasted peanuts, mustard or cumin seeds, turmeric, oil, and lemon juice. It’s quick and works well for a fresh summer side dish when you want something light, vegan, and crunchy alongside spicy mains. Unlike classic coleslaw or yogurt-based koshimbir-style salads, this version gets its bold flavor from a hot oil tadka poured over the cabbage for instant Indian-style seasoning.
What Is Indian Cabbage Slaw?
I'm not really sure what to call this. I don't even know if this is a proper Indian dish, but I do know I've been making it for years, and my cabbage-loving husband devours it.
And let me tell you, even if this might not be a proper Indian dish, it is still full of Indian flavor and is absolutely delicious! It's made up of chopped cabbage, tomatoes, cilantro, roasted peanuts, and a few seasonings and whatnot, resulting in a slaw that is just as refreshing as it is tasty.
It's made pretty much like you'd make the Cucumber Koshimbir, except without yogurt (and of course, substituting cabbage for cucumbers).
This is one of those side dish recipes that I find myself craving in the hotter months because it has such a crisp and refreshing taste. And it's one of those super easy recipes that I find myself making again and again.
Watch the video to see How To Make this Cabbage Slaw
This video is also helpful to learn how to do a classic Indian "Tadka" or what is meant by tempering in Indian Recipes.
How To Make Indian Cabbage Slaw
- Roughly chop the cabbage and carrots slaw mix into bite-size pieces
- Chop the tomato, cilantro, and peanuts into a fine dice.
- Place all the vegetables into a bowl and season with salt and sugar.
- In the smallest little heatproof bowl you have, heat the oil until it is hot and shimmering.
- Place the mustard and/or cumin seeds and allow them to sputter like popcorn about 30 seconds.
- Add the turmeric and stir quickly.
- Pour this hot, flavored oil over the cabbage mixture and mix well.
- Squeeze lemon juice and mix once again and serve.
Tips and Tricks for Making Indian Cabbage Slaw
- To make this easy on myself, I buy a package of ready chopped coleslaw mix which is usually cabbage and shredded carrots. I rough chop that mix, use my Kuhn Rikon Pull chop for the tomatoes, cilantro, and peanuts, and then I'm ready to just mix and season.
- If you don't have any small heatproof bowls, I highly recommend getting this mini fry pan. It's perfect for applications such as this.
- This salad tastes great the first day but it is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING the next day!
- You can sub 1/4 cup of lemon juice instead of yogurt if you prefer. This is good if you're planning to use it for a picnic or leave it out with no refrigeration for hours.
- Use this slap chopper for smashing up the peanuts.
- I like to use Red Spanish peanuts but if you can't find those, just use regular roasted peanuts.
- If you're not sure how to do the hot oil technique, watch this video to see how I did it for the cabbage slaw.
To keep Indian cabbage slaw crunchy overnight, salt the shredded cabbage lightly and let it drain, then pat it dry so excess water does not soften the slaw.
Store the cabbage, tomatoes, lemon juice, and tadka separately and combine right before serving, since tomatoes and acid pull moisture and make Indian coleslaw no mayo watery.
If you are meal prepping, add the roasted peanuts and cilantro at the end so the slaw stays crisp and fresh.
Yes, you can make Indian cabbage slaw without peanuts and still keep the crunchy texture and bold flavor.
Swap in roasted sunflower seeds, toasted pumpkin seeds, or crunchy roasted chickpeas for a similar bite, or simply leave the nuts out for a lighter vegan Indian coleslaw with no mayo.
The key flavor still comes from the lemon, cilantro, and hot oil tadka with mustard seeds and turmeric, so the slaw will taste Indian style even without peanuts.
Indian cabbage slaw is mildly spicy, with most of the heat coming from green chile and the mustard seeds used in the hot oil tadka rather than from heavy chili powder.
You can make this Indian coleslaw very mild by skipping the green chile and using less mustard seed, or make it hotter by adding more chile or a pinch of red chili powder.
The lemon, cabbage, and cilantro keep the flavor bright and crunchy even when you adjust the spice level.
More Of Our Best Cabbage Recipes
If you want a cooked cabbage dish, try the Cabbage with Fennel Seeds, Cabbage with peas and carrots or the Szechuan Pepper cabbage!
This Indian Cabbage Slaw makes a great appetizer, side dish or vegan main dish for those times you want something fresh without needing to put a whole lot of effort into it. Let me know in the comments if you enjoyed the dish!
Ingredients
- 4 cups (280 g) chopped cabbage, or use ready slaw mix
- 1 (1) Tomatoes, diced
- 1/4 cup (4 g) Cilantro, chopped
- 2 tablespoons (2 tablespoons) Spanish peanuts, chopped
- 1 teaspoon (1 teaspoon) Kosher Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) Sugar Or Other Sweetener Equivalent, (Optional)
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) Oil
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) black mustard seeds, or cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) Turmeric
- 1 (1) Lemon, juiced
Instructions
- Roughly chop the cabbage and carrots slaw mix into bite-size pieces
- Chop the tomato, cilantro, and peanuts into a fine dice. I use my trusty Kuhn Rikon pull chop which I love and it works on all of these equally well.
- Place all the vegetables into a bowl and season with salt and sugar.
- In the smallest little heatproof bowl you have, heat the oil until it is hot and shimmering.
- Place the mustard and/or cumin seeds and allow them to sputter like popcorn about 30 seconds.
- Add the turmeric and stir quickly.
- Pour this hot, flavored oil over the cabbage mixture and mix well.
- Squeeze lemon juice and mix once again and serve.
- To make this easy on myself, I buy a package of ready chopped coleslaw mix which is usually cabbage and shredded carrots. I rough chop that mix, use my Kuhn Rikon Pull chop for the tomatoes, cilantro, and peanuts, and then I'm ready to just mix and season.
- If you don't have any small heatproof bowls, I highly recommend getting this mini fry pan. It's perfect for applications such as this.
- This salad tastes great the first day but it is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING the next day!
- You can sub 1/4 cup of lemon juice instead of yogurt if you prefer. This is good if you're planning to use it for a picnic or leave it out with no refrigeration for hours.
- Use this slap chopper for smashing up the peanuts.
- I like to use Red Spanish peanuts but if you can't find those, just use regular roasted peanuts.
- If you're not sure how to do the hot oil technique, watch this video to see how I did it for the cabbage slaw.
AshleyThompson
Such a refreshing side to eat with rich curries. I love this slaw so much!
Stevie Dellarocco
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Cat
I see in the notes you could substitute lemon juice for the yogurt. But I don’t see yogurt in the ingredients. Thank you for clarifying. I want to make this law but I wanna make sure I’m doing the right thing.
Betsy
I have the same question. I hope we get an answer.
Carolyn
Outstanding! Ideal accompaniment to an Indian meal and easily adapted to other cuisines by changing up the spices.
If there are any leftovers (unlikely) they are fantastic in a wrap or as a taco or burger topping.
Jen
When do I add the peanuts?
Great flavor. Easy!
Carolyn
Wonderful addition to any Indian themed meal. It’s the perfect foil for spicier dishes. My family loved it!