Kohlrabi & Apple Slaw with Creamy Coleslaw Dressing ♥

Kohlrabi & Apple Slaw with Creamy Coleslaw Dressing, a fresh take on slaw ♥ A Veggie Venture. Weight Watchers Friendly. Gluten Free.
Step aside, cabbage slaw, there's a new vegetable for slaw in town! The vegetable called "kohlrabi" makes an unusual and refreshing coleslaw, especially paired with tart apple and fresh mint. And this creamy coleslaw dressing? It's made from scratch, whisked by hand in seconds and tastes n-o-t-h-i-n-g like the stuff from a bottle.

Fresh & Seasonal. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Great for Meal Prep. Weight Watchers Friendly. Low Carb. Low Fat. Naturally Gluten Free.


What a Salad!

It has a summery taste and feel, thanks especially to the ribbons of fresh mint. The kohlrabi and apple meld so beautifully together that for anyone prone to hiding vegetables amid fruit, well, you're not likely to get caught.

And the Dressing. Oh! the Dressing!

Have you ever made homemade coleslaw dressing? Not just a little mayo and stuff but real, damn-it's-good creamy coleslaw dressing. It occurs to me – ha! – that homemade creamy coleslaw dressing is what creamy coleslaw dressing is supposed to taste like! It's that good!

Best of all, it's super-super simple. Just whisk some real cream into lofty pillows, then stir in a little lemon juice, mustard and salt and pepper. The dressing is light and airy, not in the least bit heavy like commercial salad dressings. This recipe is a complete keeper.

You Might Be Wondering

Red Kohlrabi and Green Kohlrabi, another unusual vegetable ♥ A Veggie Venture.
WHAT IS KOHLRABI ANYWAY? Kohlrabi [pronounced kole-ROB-ee or kall-ROB-ee] is a funny looking vegetable, usually with a thin green skin. But there are red kohlrabi too! Awhile back, a friend and grocery-store scout tipped me off that a local store was carrying "red kohlrabi", whose color must have been named by someone color blind for red kohlrabi is the the same color as, um, oops, red cabbage – that is, they're both purple. But red kohlrabi is white inside, just like green kohlrabi, just like a red-skinned apple is white-fleshed. The flesh inside is dense and wet, similar to a potato. Kohlrabi may be eaten raw but it's also good cooked, especially roasted .

HOW TO SERVE KOHLRABI & APPLE SLAW This is such a sweet change from cabbage slaw, lighter, less picnic-ish, a lovely bed for fish, say Roasted Salmon & Asparagus. But it's also just a nice salad to have on hand in the refrigerator, a dollop here, a dollop there for lunch or dinner.





Just updated, first published way back in 2008.

KOHLRABI & APPLE SLAW with CREAMY COLESLAW DRESSING

Hands-on time: 25 minutes
Time to table: 25 minutes
Makes 4-1/2 cups, easily adapted for less

DRESSING
1/4 cup cream
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon good mustard
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Salt & pepper to taste - go easy here

SALAD
2 pounds fresh kohlrabi, trimmed, peeled, grated or cut into batons with a Benriner
2 tart apples, peeled if you like, grated or cut into batons (try to keep equivalent volumes of kohlrabi:apple)
Fresh mint, chopped

DRESSING With a hand whisk, whisk the cream into light pillows; this takes only a minute or so, there's truly no need to get out an electric mixer. Stir in the remaining dressing ingredients.

SALAD Stir in the kohlrabi, apple and mint. Serve immediately or within a couple of hours. Best on the first day but does keep for several days in the refrigerator.

ALANNA's TIPS & KITCHEN NOTES
KOHLRABI When you trim and peel a kohlrabi, you lose almost half its weight. A compost bowl means the trimmings don't entirely go to waste. But in the mean time, to yield about a pound of edible kohlrabi, you'll need to buy almost two pounds.
APPLE CHOICES A tart apple really works best here, Granny Smiths are perfect. A sweeter apple works as well but the tartness is missed. Once grated, the apple begins to brown instantly so move it straight into the dressing and toss right away.
GRATING I go back and forth on the grating question. A hand grater is definitely easier and quicker and I appreciate the rustic appearance and familiar coleslaw texture. That said, on occasion I do pull out the mandoline (also called a Japanese Benriner, affiliate link) because the perfect, even slices are so pretty. Other times, I've pulled out the mandoline and the kohlrabi just wouldn't cooperate and so went back to the hand grater. Arrgh! Could you just dice it up? Hmm, I think so, that's my next bowlful!
FRESH MINT Mint is a summery herb around here, a big pot grows thick and lush out in our herb garden. So in winter, I've experimented with other fresh herbs, especially fresh cilantro and fresh parsley. They're good, just not as good (and definitely not as special as) fresh mint.
INGREDIENT SWAPS Kohlrabi & Apple Slaw is almost a sweet-ish Celeriac Rémoulade and in fact, I'd interchange the sauces and the vegetables for these two recipes in a heartbeat. The dressing is excellent as is, truly. But to change it up some times, I would try sour cream or Greek yogurt with lime juice or maybe a delicate vinegar.



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Still Hungry?



More Favorite Kohlrabi Recipes

~ Roasted Kohlrabi ~
~ Kohlrabi & Apple Slaw with Creamy Coleslaw Dressing ~
~ Raw Beet, Carrot & Kohlrabi Salad ~
~ more kohlrabi recipes ~
from A Veggie Venture




Looking for healthy new ways to cook vegetables? A Veggie Venture is home to hundreds of super-organized quick, easy and healthful vegetable recipes and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables. Join "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg to explore the exciting world of common and not-so-common vegetables, seasonal to staples, savory to sweet, salads to sides, soups to supper, simple to special.

© Copyright Kitchen Parade
2008, 2010 & 2020



Alanna Kellogg
Alanna Kellogg

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

Comments

  1. And I really need a new slaw dressing. Thanks again Alanna.

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  2. This is my first time visiting your blog, and I'm thrilled to have come across such a gem of a recipe right away. I've been experimenting with kohlrabi from my farmers' market, so I'll be sure to try this one soon. Thanks!

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  3. I made this last night.
    I think I almost doubled the recipe by accident, because holy cow it made a lot.
    I used labne instead of cream but I think that my mustard was not up to the task, it was pretty tame.
    I am guessing that the mint will have infused it longer over the course of the night and that the leftovers for lunch will be outstanding.
    BTW, a nice garnish of mint leaves and dried cranberries does not go amiss for presentation either...

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  4. I've never had kohlrabi, though I often see it at the market. I think you've inspired me to give it a try!

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  5. I just stumbled across your blog - just like alison said, your blog made a great first impression!

    BTW - it's nice seeing a veggie blogger from St. Louis! I grew up there. I'm now living in KC but I always look forward to coming back "home" whenever I can. :-)

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  6. Tanna ~ Look for this dressing again, I promise :-)

    Alison ~ Welcome!

    DervishSpin ~ It does seem to make a pile, doesn't it?! The dressing isn't what I'd call 'hot', it's more a subtle creamy underlying dressing, pillowy. And your presentation ideas are great!

    Lady ~ It's much recommended!

    Vegan Blog Tracker ~ Welcome! Please know that A Veggie Venture is 100% vegetables but is an omnivore site and not vegetarian. Still, you'll find plenty of vegetarian and vegan recipes here!

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  7. What a tasty-looking slaw! Do you suggest a particular kind of apple, or would any do, so long as it's a firm variety?

    I, too, love kohlrabi raw, so much so that I usually eat it raw before I can do anything else with it!

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  8. This looks great - I'll have to try the slaw dressing as there are lots of cabbages in my vegetable box this time of year, and my waistline can't take too much mayonnaise.

    I had never seen nor heard of kohl rabi until a couple of weeks ago, when it appeared in my box. We ate ours in an Asian stir-fry, which was quite nice. But if I get it again, perhaps I'll try this instead.

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  9. Tania ~ Any 'fresh' apple will do. I tend to use empire apples because they're reliably $1 a pound (vs $1.80 - $2.50 for others) and have good flavor and don't tend to mealiness. Just avoid the red delicious - no flavor, often mealy.

    Caitlin - Asian stir-fry sounds good, too!

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  10. not a veg I have had much experience of - so time to expand my culinary horizons!

    Thanks for the entry to Waiter...

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  11. yummy! thanks for the idea. our family liked it.

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  12. I made this slaw last night. It was simple, delicious and refreshing - a perfect side to grilled pork chops! And, it did keep wonderfully as leftovers for lunch the next day! Thanks for the idea!

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  13. I just found your Kohlrabi & Apple Slaw and will be trying it this evening. It looks really good!

    In your introduction to the recipe, you mention that the person who labeled red Kohlrabi red must have been color blind. Actually, it might have been pretty red (or at least a very red shade of purple) when it was named. The color of some vegetables, "purple/red" cabbage is one, depend on the type of soil they were grown in. If they were grown in an acidic soil, they will tend to be more red. If they were grown in an alkaline soil, they will be a more blue shade of purple. This is because the chemical coloring agent in the vegetable is pH sensitive.

    If you want to see an interesting effect, boil some purple cabbage. Save a little of the boiling water. Put a couple of tablespoons in a clear glass and 2 tablespoons in another clear glass. Dilute the juice in each glass by adding 1/4C water. Add vinegar to one glass and see what color the juice changes. Add baking soda to the other and see what color it changes to. If you want to see something really spectacular, add laundry detergent to some cabbage juice. It will turn a bright electric lime green! The more alkaline a substance, the brighter green/yellow it gets and the more acidic a substance is, the more red/orange the juice gets.

    If you put some juice in a clear bottle and cap it, you will notice over a period of several days that the juice gets more pink. This is because the juice has started to ferment. In the fermentation process, bacteria and yeast produce carbon dioxide (carbonation) which is a mild acid.

    The color agent in these vegetables can be used as acid/base indicators which means they can be used to test whether a substance is acidic or alkaline. My middle-school science students used this test to test a number of substances and place them in order on a pH scale which rates amount of acidity or alkalinity.

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  14. I love the idea of cream that is whisked into "pillows" sounds lovely!

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  15. I know this is an old post, but I just wanted to say that as part of my recent "let's eat more vegetables!" endeavour I've decided to try kohlrabi. Stumbled upon this recipe on Google search and have already made it three times! Boyfriend loves it, too, and he'd never eat vegetables of his own willing!

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  16. Verdict: Deliciously crunchy! Would be a great pick-nik food!

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Thank you for taking a moment to write! I read each and every comment, for each and every recipe, whether a current recipe or a long-ago favorite. If you have a specific question, it's nearly always answered quick-quick. ~ Alanna