Name: Festive Holiday Coleslaw Salad
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 265 min
Ingredients: 9.52 ounces red cabbage (shredded or very thinly sliced); 10 large brussels sprouts (shredded or very thinly sliced); ⅓ cup dried sweetened cranberries; ½ cups pecans; 2 tablespoons maple syrup; 3-4 tablespoons cilantro/fresh coriander (finely chopped); 2 teaspoons fresh ginger (peeled, finely grated); 2 tablespoons tangerine/orange juice; 2 tablespoons lemon juice; 2 tablespoons cider vinegar; 1½ tablespoons maple syrup (plus 2 for coating the pecans); 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; ⅓ teaspoon fine sea salt, plus ⅓ tsp for the pecans (plus pepper to taste)

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This delicious, marinated Christmas holiday salad is a great alternative to traditional cooked vegetables. It's filled with festive flavours including orange, cranberry and a hint of ginger and comes with deliciously moreish salted maple glazed pecans for an extra special finish.

This delicious marinated Christmas slaw recipe takes just minutes to put together. Leave the cabbage, sprouts and cranberries in an easy marinade for a few hours or overnight, then just before serving combine with maple glazed toasted pecans and cilantro and enjoy!

What’s your favourite festive vegetable? If it’s brussels sprouts then you are likely to enjoy them boiled or roasted. If it’s red cabbage then you might make a quick braised red cabbage recipe and also enjoy it hot.

Would you consider serving these vegetables cold?

Why this recipe works

My cabbage sprout slaw recipe offers a less traditional, but no less delicious, way of serving your favourite festive vegetables. Marinating cabbage and brussels sprouts is very simple and yields fantastic results! It tenderises the vegetables allowing them to absorb all the lovely citrussy zesty flavours!

This is important as both the red cabbage as well as the brussels sprouts are quite tough and can be a little chewy served raw. The dried cranberries will also absorb the moisture from the marinade – they will be juicy and full of flavour!

Not only that, this Christmas coleslaw is made ahead (see below) so you can concentrate on preparing your hot dishes.

Holiday salad ingredients

The red cabbage, brussels sprouts and dried cranberries are marinated in a zesty mixture of orange and lemon juice, vinegar, fresh ginger, a little maple syrup, oil and seasoning. This festive holiday coleslaw is served with cilantro for freshness and maple glazed salted pecans to finish off.

The sweet and salty roasted pecans add loads of flavour to this Christmas salad and for me are essential in this recipe.

How to prepare the ingredients

Trim the brussels sprouts and remove loose leaves and cut the tough middle from the red cabbage before shredding/chopping. There are 2 ways of preparing the cabbage and brussels sprouts for this holiday salad. You can either shred these in a food processor (or even using a box grater) or simply cut them thinly using a sharp knife.

The first method tends to produce a finer slaw, which doesn't need marinating more than 4 hours. The second usually makes a crunchier slaw which needs up to 8 hours to marinate (this is my recommendation but you can use your own judgement).

Step-by-step recipe instructions

1. Start by preparing the marinade mixture by combining the ingredients.

2. Shred or slice the vegetables very thinly and place in a mixing bowl along with the cranberries.

3. Pour in the marinade, stir and refrigerate for 4 - 8 hours (see Notes below).

4. Preheat the oven to 400 F/ 200 C/ gas mark 6. In a bowl combine the pecans with 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and ⅓ teaspoon of salt.

5. Spread the pecans in a single layer on top of a baking sheet. Roast for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned (take care not to brown them too much). You can scatter them over the salad (whole or roughly chopped) straight away or cool them before tossing into the salad.

6. When you are ready to serve your festive coleslaw combine the marinated vegetable mixture with freshly chopped cilantro and toss in the pecans. Add more seasoning or a drizzle of oil or lemon juice if needed and serve.

Top tips for making holiday salad

Marinating: If you shred the vegetables in a food processor (or even using a box grater) I recommend marinating them for no more than 4 hours. If they are cut by hand marinating them for up to 8 hours will work better (they won't be as fine and will need longer to tenderise and absorb the flavours). Give the mixture a stir once in a while.
Add the pecans to the salad just before serving – you don’t want soggy pecans. If you want to make them ahead, once cooled, place in a bowl to use later.
I recommend adding the herbs just before serving.

Substitutions

Herbs other than cilantro/fresh coriander that will also work in this salad include parsley, chives or dill.
Use either tangerine, clementine or orange juice.
I used cider vinegar but white wine vinegar will work well, too.

Make ahead

What I really love about this Christmas salad, apart from the amazing flavours it offers, is the fact that it's made in advance which eliminates any last minute panic. Simply leave it in the marinade and just add the cilantro and pecans before serving.

The pecans can also be prepared in advance and once cooled completely placed in a bowl to use later.

Serving suggestions

This simple Christmas holiday salad makes a great addition to a festive spread. It works equally well with turkey dishes including turkey wellington, roasted ham or chicken as well as vegetarian holiday recipes such as stuffed butternut squash.

Other holiday salads you might like

Fan of red cabbage? Try my chunky red cabbage soup with winter vegetables.

Keep in touch!

If you make this festive holiday salad I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Did you make any substitutions? Did you serve as part of your Thanksgiving dinner, Christmas Eve buffet or on Christmas day? Let me know in the comments below, thanks!

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