Salads in the summer are so refreshing. I especially like the crunch of a tasty coleslaw. A slaw is any salad that consists of shredded cabbage as its primary ingredient. (It comes from a dutch term, “koolsla,” meaning cabbage salad- foodtimeline.org). When making a slaw I try to achieve a wide range of textures, colors, and taste. We’ve had an abundance of arugula in our garden this month and added that to my favorite slaw; full of herbs, farm fresh produce, and dressed with a fresh ginger vinaigrette.
Store bought salad dressings are loaded with sugars and processed ingredients. Making your own dressings are easy and requires few ingredients while cutting out unhealthy additives. All you need for a basic salad dressing is oil, an acid- like lemon juice or vinegar (here I use orange juice), and salt and pepper. The traditional dressing ratio is 3 to 1 oil to vinegar though some prefer an equal mix. Place the ingredients in a jar (reuse jelly or other glass jars) and shake or whisk in a bowl. Experiment with additional ingredients for all your salads like dijon mustard, crushed garlic, dried oregano, etc.
More Coleslaw Recipes:
- Elana’s Pantry – Asian Slaw
- 101 Cookbooks – Tassajara Warm Red Cabbage Salad
- Los Angeles Times – Three-cabbage Coleslaw
- smitten kitchen – not your mama’s coleslaw
More on Homemade Salad Dressing:
- Jamie Oliver- Jam Jar Dressings
- the kitchn – Dressing Spring Salads: How to Make a Basic Vinaigrette
- Christie’s Corner – 5 Basic Elements of Homemade Salad Dressing
- Common Questionable Ingredients in Store-Bought Salad Dressing
- Divine Health – An Artfully Crafted Blend of Herbs and Spices (includes links to many more homemade salad dressings).
Herb Slaw with Ginger Cumin Dressing
This salad can be easily doubled to serve a crowd. I prefer to use the pomegranate seeds when in season instead of the dried cranberries.
