This winter root vegetable salad is crisp and tasty! Kohlrabi Slaw includes carrots, cabbage, and a lemony dressing. And it's ready in just 30 minutes.
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I created this recipe for slaw after discovering an intriguing, new-to-me root veggie at a winter farmer's market in Burlington, Vermont: kohlrabi. Bright green spheres with concentric, pale ridges in the skin.
Kohlrabi is a member of the turnip family, with a texture and mild taste like that of broccoli stems. My friend Lisa mentioned that her family likes to grate it into salad recipes, to add crunch and flavor.
I thought, yes—there's a great idea. A fresh, crispy winter salad to balance out all that heavy comfort food the season tends to bring. And let's make it colorful, too, to brighten up the dark, gray winter days. And this crunchy, tangy kohlrabi salad was born.
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Why you'll love this Kohlrabi Slaw
Equal amounts of thinly sliced kohlrabi and purple cabbage make the base of this slaw recipe, along with carrots, a little celery root (or celeriac), and a few ribbons of scallions. A tangy, creamy-but-light dressing of lemon juice and maple syrup brings the whole slaw together.
The Kohlrabi Slaw recipe has a lovely texture and taste! Because the vegetables are cut into thin sticks, it's a type of matchstick salad. However, if you want to speed things up and don't mind a somewhat softer slaw, the vegetables can be grated instead.
And then there's the color! Try to use purple cabbage if you can, for that striking hue. And if you have access to colorful, heirloom carrots at your local store, farmers market, or CSA, this is a great dish in which to use them. (But don't worry if you can only get regular carrots—they will still add gorgeous color and flavor to your salad.)
I used hefty red Dragon Carrots in my carrot and kohlrabi slaw. Though I was sad to see the brilliant ruby color disappear when I peeled the carrots, I found that underneath was a dazzling shade of orange and a pale yellow center. Once cut into matchsticks the carrots looked beautiful in the slaw.
More winter recipes!
Winter Root Vegetables Recipe Round-up
Ideas for potatoes, rutabagas, parsnips, and more.
🔪 How to make Kohlrabi Slaw
Ingredients in Kohlrabi Slaw:
- Kohlrabi: Choose a green or purple kohlrabi that's firm to the touch with no brown or mushy spots.
- Cabbage: I use purple cabbage for the pop of color it adds to this salad, but green cabbage is fine to use, too.
- Carrots: Use any kind of carrot, but colorful varieties are especially nice in this slaw. Choose firm carrots that don't have a lot of cracks.
- Celery root: Also called celeriac. Just as with the other veggies, choose a celery root that's firm without any mushy spots.
- Scallions: A couple of green onions add a little flavor to the slaw.
- Vegetable oil: I prefer a neutral-flavored oil, but if you love extra virgin olive oil you can certainly use it in the dressing.
- Lemon juice: It provides the acidic balance in this dressing, plus a lovely citrus flavor.
- Sour cream: Just a little sour cream gives the dressing a lightly creamy texture.
- Maple syrup: Only the real stuff, please! I use Grade A dark for the stronger maple flavor, but lighter, fancy maple syrup varieties are also good.
- Vinegar: Just a splash of white vinegar helps balance the dressing.
- Salt and ground black pepper: Just a pinch of each for this cole slaw!
Prepare the veggies
For each root veggie, peel off the tough outer skins or leaves. Use a sharp knife to slice them into thin matchstick-sized cuts.
Toss them in a bowl
Add all these sliced veggies to a large bowl and toss them together.
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Make the dressing
Combine the dressing ingredients in a mason jar, and shake to blend them.
Finish the salad
Toss the dressing with this raw kohlrabi salad until everything is combined. Give the slaw a little time to let the flavors meld, then serve.
Veggies please!
9 Radish Recipes
Ravishing radishes are delicious in dishes like grain bowls, salads, and roasts!
Kohlrabi Slaw FAQs
This member of the brassica family, which includes cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower, has a mild flavor similar to that of broccoli stems. It's very lightly sweet and also has peppery notes.
One way to tell if slaws have gone bad is just to look at them. If the veggies are beginning to turn grayish-brown in color and getting mushy, these are signs that it's time to get rid of the slaw. The dressing may look separated, too. If the cole slaw tastes old or off, this is another sign that it's been hanging around too long.
For the best flavor and texture, plan to eat your kohlrabi slaw within five days of making it.
Tips:
- Slicing the kohlrabi, carrots, and celery root into matchstick-sized pieces takes a little time, but when cut this way the vegetables are wonderfully crunchy, even after they're tossed with the dressing.
- To save time, you can instead grate the vegetables to make thinner shreds. Since they'll be thinner, the slaw may have a little less crunch to it.
The recipe for Kohlrabi Carrot Slaw is below, and here are more winter root veggie recipes:
💬 Did you make and devour this recipe? Leave a comment below.
📖 Recipe
Kohlrabi Slaw
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Ingredients
Slaw:
- 1½ pounds purple cabbage
- 1½ pounds kohlrabi
- ¾ pound fresh carrots
- ¼ pound fresh celery root (celeriac)
- 2 fresh scallions
Dressing:
- ½ cup neutral-flavored oil (like canola)
- ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 3 tablespoons Vermont dark maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Prepare the vegetables:
- Be sure to use a very sharp knife to get the best cuts on these firm winter veggies.
- Peel away the loose outer leaves of the purple cabbage. Cut the head in half and cut out the core.
- With the cut side of the cabbage down on the cutting board, make thin slices down through the cabbage to cut it into long shreds. Place the shredded cabbage into a very large bowl.
- Slice the ends off the kohlrabi and use a vegetable peeler or sharp paring knife to peel them. Cut each bulb in half.
- Lay them cut side down on the cutting board and slice into thin slices. Make a stack of 2-3 slices and cut them lengthwise into matchstick-sized pieces. Add them to the bowl.
- Peel the carrots and cut the tops and tips from them. Slice the carrots in half lengthwise.
- Lay them cut side down and slice them lengthwise into long planks. Make a stack of 2-3 planks and cut them lengthwise into matchstick-sized pieces. Add them to the bowl with the cabbage and kohlrabi.
- Cut off the ends of the celery root and use the vegetable peeler to peel the skin away. Cut the celery root into matchstick-sized pieces following the same method as above for the carrots and kohlrabi.
- Add the celery root to the bowl. Toss everything in the bowl together until the different veggies are well mixed.
- Cut off and discard the ragged tips, white ends, and thicker light-green parts of the scallions. Pull the tip of your knife down the length of the remaining scallion to slice it lengthwise: continue to make these cuts to create long, sometimes curling strands of scallions. Set these aside.
Make the dressing:
- Place the oil, lemon juice, sour cream, VT maple syrup, vinegar, pepper and salt into a mason jar with a tight-fitting lid. Put the cover on the jar and shake it well, until the dressing is really blended and smooth.
Finish the salad:
- Pour the dressing over the veggies in the bowl. Use a fork to toss the slaw until all of the vegetables are well coated with the dressing. Allow the slaw to sit for about 30 minutes to allow flavors to meld.
- Place portions of the slaw into serving dishes and garnish each with a few strands of scallion greens. Makes about 10 cups.
Notes
- Slicing the kohlrabi, carrots, and celery root into matchstick-sized pieces takes a little time, but when cut this way the vegetables are wonderfully crunchy, even after they're tossed with the dressing.
- To save time, you can grate the vegetables to make thinner shreds. Since they'll be thinner, the slaw may have a little less crunch to it.
Nutrition
Heidi says
This sounds so good, Nancy!
Nancy Mock says
Thanks Heidi, I'll have to make some for you sometime!