slaw – Rosemary and the Goat

Summer Coleslaw with Apple and Peanuts

Coleslaw? Slaw? What’s the difference?

I’ve had this debate with myself for years because I love all kinds of slaws/coleslaws. In my mind a coleslaw is a salad made of cabbage and other ingredients and with a mayonnaise based dressing. Slaw on the other hand (to me) is a cabbage and other ingredient salad but with no mayonnaise and usually an oil vinegar and even sugar (plus other ingredients) type dressing. Both will make the salad limp, I think, if left over so I always let the slaws refrigerate along with the dressing in a separate bottle and dress right before serving.

While doing our country morning drive here in Round Top on Memorial Day I was trying to decide what type of dressing to go with our bbqued chicken legs. I love legs and since it was going to be just the two of us (can’t wait to get that new home and kitchen because all holidays will always be celebrated with lots of food and people to enjoy it.) I knew I was making the cheese grits that I seem to make anytime there is bbq involved. I thought the coleslaw with apples, green onions, cabbage and a few other ingredients sounded perfect and why not throw in some candied peanuts. After making these candied peanuts I’ve decided to always just buy them already sweetened.

June 26, 2023 By Sherry

Salads

Nutty Coleslaw

How many ways have you prepared slaw?

I’m not sure what the difference in a coleslaw recipe and slaw recipe is, but here’s my take on it. Coleslaw is usually shredded cabbage and maybe vegetables but always has some type of mayonnaise based dressing poured over it. Slaw on the other hand, to me, is something as simple as shredded cabbage with vinegar, salt and pepper and a tiny bit of oil that we put on top of our pulled pork bbq (You would never put a mayo type slaw on a pulled pork sandwich in my opinion.). The Asian slaw that a lot of people make with the browned almonds and Ramen noodles is a SLAW not coleslaw.

I’ve also made a lemony purple and green slaw that you keep the two colors separate and they are both dressed with the same oil based dressing. You can’t forget KFC coleslaw, of course, I love the stuff and I found a recipe years ago from Top Secret Recipes that to me is just as good as the Colonel’s recipe. (See bonus recipe below for KFC Coleslaw.)

One weekend my husband decided to do some very thick (1 1/2″ thick cut pork steaks) and as usual they were so tender you could cut with a fork. This COLESLAW was just the needed crunch to the meal. I substituted the almonds with toasted sunflower seeds AND pinenuts. The recipe from Southern Living called for bagged coleslaw mix which I used but I would have preferred to buy a red cabbage and green cabbage so the coleslaw would have had more purple cabbage mixed in.

July 31, 2013 By Sherry

Salads

Cilantro Slaw

Slaw, slaw, slaw. What can I say?

I plopped this into my herb garden for a quick picture before I put the dressing on. I don’t have cilantro growing right now but do plant it in the spring.

Slaw is one of those things that you can put with any meal or make a meal of it by topping with some chopped BBQ (my daughter and I use to do this for a quick lunch). Slaw is basically shredded cabbage with maybe some carrot thrown in or anything that suits your fancy from fruit to jicama. Just the word “slaw” doesn’t really tell you what is inside the salad does it? You would think that anything called “slaw” would have shredded cabbage as it’s main ingredient. But what about “broccoli slaw”, and I’m sure there are a lot of other variations out there that I have never heard of.

February 9, 2011 By Sherry