You may wonder, if you know me, how it has come to be that I am writing about coleslaw. I consider myself someone that doesn’t even like coleslaw. I have avoided it ever since I was a kid. Maybe it’s because I also didn’t like mayonnaise as a kid either. Even now, if I put mayo on a sandwich, it has to be a very thin layer that vanishes into the bread. I don’t want to see any white globs. So here is what happened, if you must know.

Let’s get this show on the road.

At our favorite neighborhood Japanese restaurant, Kozue, they serve finely shredded cabbage drizzled with some sort of white dressing, and it is oddly one of my very favorite things they serve. I will order a menu item specifically because that cabbage salad comes with it. So I have tried to mimic what they do, minus the white dressing… because mayonnaise… and it’s just not the same. So today while I was at Trader Joe’s, I noticed that they sell small bags of finely shredded cabbage, and for the same price, you can get an entire head of cabbage! So I grabbed the head of cabbage and threw it in my basket. Honestly, this entire thing kind of sneaked up on me.

I don’t use my food processor very often!

When I got home and put away the groceries, I started looking up recipes for coleslaw online. It’s like I was possessed! I found one that got lots of great reviews on allrecipes.com. I read through a lot of the reviews and found that people had opinions about this or that, so I jotted down what I thought might be a good version based on reviews. I liked the addition of Dijon mustard and celery seed. But after pulling out my behemoth of a food processor and shredding the cabbage and some carrots, I realized I didn’t feel like experimenting. I wanted something that would be delicious right away, something that was tried and true by someone that I trust. It was time to talk with my sister Jane, who lives on the other side of the country. I remembered her telling me that she makes a “hippie coleslaw”, and I needed to know more!

Jane’s recipe.

I loved seeing Jane’s recipe. It was scribbled on (in different colored ink, I might add) and cryptic, as all good recipes should be. I was also gratified to see that her hippie mix included mustard and celery seed! The allrecipes recipe was heavy on the sugar, and I had halved the sugar with the version that I had jotted down. Well, Jane’s used even less sugar! She also warned me against using apple cider vinegar; just plain old white vinegar is the way to go. Jane’s version also had less salt and less pepper and less celery seed. I decided to follow it almost exactly as written, but I did use Dijon mustard instead of ground mustard, as I really do love anything with Dijon mustard and lemon.

A perfect summery side dish.

It is absolutely delicious. I cannot believe it. How have I been avoiding coleslaw my entire life??? I am so glad I followed Jane’s recipe! The seasoning is spot on; it doesn’t overpower the flavor of the cabbage and carrots, while still being delicately tangy, sweet, and savory. Jane recommends letting the coleslaw rest overnight in the fridge, mixing it two or three times, to let the flavors mingle. But to be honest, immediately after mixing everything together, I taste-tested it, and then taste-tested it again and again, until I finally surrendered and served myself a bowl-full, it was so good! So here is Jane’s recipe for you to try out. I hope you like it as much as I do!

Jane’s Hippie Coleslaw

• 1 medium head of green cabbage, thinly sliced (maybe eight cups or so)
• 1 medium sized carrot*, peeled and shredded
• 1/2 cup good quality mayonnaise**
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar (don’t skimp)
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• Heaping 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1. Using a food processor or a sharp knife, slice cabbage finely, and peel and shred carrots with the larger holes on shredder. You want to end up with about 8 cups, more or less.
2. In a large bowl, mix the mayonnaise, sugar, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Add the cabbage and carrots and mix well. Cover and store in fridge. You can serve right away, or you can let it rest overnight in fridge to let the flavors mingle, mixing a few times. The flavor mellows overnight, but either way it is delicious. Enjoy!

Notes:

* If you like a sweeter coleslaw, you can add more carrots, but be aware that the extra carrots will change the flavor and the color of the dressing. Jane says to maybe use only 1/3 of a carrot… you decide.

**Jane uses vegan avocado mayonnaise, which is great if you would like your coleslaw to be vegan. I just use Best Mayonnaise (or Hellman’s if you are in other parts of the country). In any case, use a mayonnaise that has a good flavor that you like.

And just for fun, here are a few pictures of me and Jane.

I’m on the left, Jane on the right.

Me and Jane in front of our childhood home.