Versatile Mexican Slaw

You guys totally rock! Your advice to HGK reader-in-need in my last post just totally blew my mind.


Thank you.


Today I want to talk about something less serious, or not: cabbage.

Cabbage is ridiculously good for you. Dr. Fuhrman writes in Super Immunity, "Cruciferous vegetables are not only the most powerful anticancer foods in existence; they are also the most micronutrient-dense of all vegetables." 


You can find out all about the health benefits of cabbage here and here. Cabbage is probably something, in one variety or another, that should be in your shopping cart every single week.


We get the maximum benefit from eating cruciferous vegetables raw. But that's not always palatable to some people. Raw broccoli, raw Brussels Sprouts, raw kohlrabi? But cabbage, most of us are used to eating that raw in a slaw. Phew!

Mexican Slaw

serves 4-6

Print me!

6 cups shredded cabbage-all one variety or multiple types, such as green, red, and/or savoy

1/2 cup rough chopped cilantro

Dressing:

¼ plus 1/8 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for 1 hour and then drained

2 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 cup water

½ Tbsp chipotle chili in adobo sauce

1 Tbsp minced fresh jalapeno pepper

1 clove garlic

1 tsp maple syrup

½ tsp salt

dash of pepper

Place all dressing ingredients into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Pour over shredded cabbage and cilantro and stir to combine.

Optional add-ins: Pepitas (pumpkin seeds), shredded carrots, scallions

This slaw is delicious as a side dish for any Mexican meal. But there are lots of ways to incorporate a slaw into a dish. One thing that I really find tasty is a wrap sandwich with slaw as one of the major ingredients. 

In these wraps, I used the following components:

• steamed tempeh (2 8-ounce packages cut into large strips and steamed for 5 minutes) that I mashed and then mixed with green enchilada sauce (1 15-ounce can)
• a homemade roasted vegetable spread with Mexican seasoning (optional)
• Mexican Slaw (above)
• whole wheat lavash (the wraps)

Do you make cabbage a regular part of your diet? What is your favorite way to eat cabbage?