Crunchy Asian Cabbage Salad is a classic potluck dish that I've made a hundred times. I tweaked the recipe slightly, by adding shelled edamame and adjusting the salad dressing to up the health factor. Still SO good and an easy recipe I keep coming back to again and again!
I may be dating myself, but how many of you recognize this cabbage salad? You know the one with ramen in it? Well, if your hand is up, stay tuned because I've made this one HEALTHIER. It's still awesomely tasty, but it has zero refined sugar and skips that nasty salt bomb in the tiny little packet of the ramen noodles. Is this ringing a bell yet?
My mother made this salad for SO many potlucks back in the day, and I have too. I've made a lot of salads over the last couple of years, and love playing with ingredients to make it both tasty and healthy. Gone are the days of eating boring lifeless salads. Bring on all of the flavor, the crunch, and the familiarity.
Packaged Cabbage Slaw – but you could chop your own green cabbage.
Red Cabbage – or use an equivalent amount of extra packaged slaw.
Matchstick Carrots – you could also cut your own here.
Shelled Edamame – found in the frozen vegetable section of your grocery store.
Package of Ramen Noodles – broken up and toasted.
Slivered Almonds – toasted as well.
Sunflower Seeds – optional salad topping.
I did most of the tweaking here, because salad dressings shouldn't be loaded with sugar.
Canola Oil – you could try swapping this for olive oil, but I decided to stick with the original.
Apple Cider Vinegar – or Rice Wine Vinegar would be nice too.
Honey – used to sweeten instead of sugar.
Soy Sauce – to give an Asian flavor.
Chili Paste or Sriracha – for some added flavor (and color!). This won't make it super spicy, it's just for flavor. Try it, you'll like it!
Mix the salad dressing together, and shake vigorously. Set aside, or in the refrigerator if you are prepping in advance.
Microwave the frozen edamame. Add a pinch of salt, and let cool.
Break up the ramen noodles, and toast on the stove top until fragrant and slightly browned. Set aside to cool.
Toast the slivered almonds as well. Set aside to cool.
Combine all the salad ingredients in a large bowl. To serve, drizzle salad dressing on top, and mix well. EAT.
Add all the salad dressing when you make it, or well in advance of your meal.
Before adding the ramen or nuts, add the dressing, and then add ramen and nuts right before serving.
Apply dressing to individual salads at meal time.
What do they call potlucks now? Share-a-dish? Bring-a-plate? Hmmm. Do tell. What do YOU call it?
Crunchy Asian Cabbage Salad is a classic pot-luck dish that I've made a million times. I tweaked the recipe slightly, by adding shelled edamame and adjusting the salad dressing. Still SO good and an easy recipe I keep coming back to again and again!
Mix the salad dressing ingredients together and refrigerate.
Microwave the shelled edamame according to package directions. Remove from package to cool.
Spread the ramen noodle pieces and slivered almonds in a large saucepan. Toast on medium heat, just until you can smell them and they are slightly browned. Remove from heat to a paper towel to cool.
Combine the cabbage slaw, red cabbage, shredded carrots, and green onions in a large bowl. Add cooled edamame, ramen noodles, and slivered almonds. Stir to combine.
Drizzle dressing over the salad and stir. Serve immediately.
You can omit the red cabbage, and just add more green cabbage mix, if desired.
This salad can also be prepared by adding the dressing about an hour before serving. Wait to add the ramen, almonds, and sunflower seeds until serving, for best results.
You can add dressing to individual servings as well, if you don't plan to eat the entire salad.
Just made this salad for dinner. I added cooked-then-chilled shrimp and used sesame oil/sunflower oil mix instead of canola. Oh and added some red pepper flakes on top. It was delicious! We ate 2 heaping bowls each, oopsie! I will definitely make this again, thanks for the yummy recipe.
We all know salads are healthy for you, but sometimes they get boring. This salad is awesome and is different than most! It won't disappoint.