Food Friday: Asian Coleslaw with Peanut Sauce

I hate coleslaw. I can't stand the weird flavor of it, and I absolutely hate mayonnaise so I've never been a big fan. Plus, coleslaw reminds me of summer family reunion barbecues where it was so swelteringly hot that I felt like I was going to have a heat stroke at any moment (it was the south, after all). In addition, over the last year I've developed some wacky allergy to raw carrots, and since most coleslaw has shredded carrots in it, it's a no-go for me.

As a result of this aversion to coleslaw, anytime I see a recipe for it I skip right past without even looking at the ingredients. So you may find it surprising that I actually sought out this recipe. You see, I had a whole bunch of cabbage leftover from another recipe that I desperately needed to use (what that original recipe was, I cannot remember). I don't like to waste food, especially produce that I have hand-picked and someone has worked hard to grow for my enjoyment.

Anyway, I went to my old stand-by, Allrecipes, to do an ingredient search for cabbage. And, of course, a ton of coleslaw recipes came up. Of course, I didn't even think of coleslaw because I hated it, and started skipping by all those to try and find something a little more creative. Then I came across this recipe for Asian Coleslaw and said to myself, I don't think Asians use mayonnaise so maybe this'll be okay. When I read through the recipe and saw it was a peanut-based sauce, I knew I was in business.

Just a couple of nutritional notes: the red cabbage in this is an excellent source of vitamin C (85% of your DV in only 1 cup), and a pretty good source of vitamin A (20% DV in 1 cup). Bok choy and Napa cabbage are also very high in vitamin A (bok choy contains 60% of your DV) and both are still pretty good sources of vitamin C, though not as much as red. All cabbages are a good source of dietary fiber as well as B1, B2, B3, iron, potassium and calcium. And, of course, raw is best. A lot of nutrients are lost when food is cooked. (Not that you would eat cooked coleslaw, but I just wanted to make the point.)

I altered the recipe quite a bit based on what I had on hand, and it turned out really well. I'll definitely make this again, though I think I might cut back on the ginger in the dressing. It was a tad bit strong for my taste. Also, I had no trouble finding Napa cabbage at my grocery store. But if you can't find it, you can use pretty much any cabbage in this. Just slather some peanut sauce on it and you'll forget what the heck kind of cabbage it is anyway. Mmm!

Oh, and this does make quite a bit, so if you're just cooking for one or two I would recommend halving this recipe.

Asian Coleslaw with Peanut Sauce
INGREDIENTS

Peanut Sauce:
6 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
5 tablespoons creamy peanut butter (I used natural PB with no sugar and it was tasty)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger root (I would start with 1 tablespoon, then taste and adjust if you want more)
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic

Slaw:
4 cups thinly sliced Chinese cabbage (Napa)
3 cups thinly sliced red cabbage
2 cups thinly sliced bok choy

*You can add green cabbage, carrots, cilantro, red bell pepper, or whatever else you like to mix things up.

DIRECTIONS
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the rice vinegar, oil, peanut butter, soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, and garlic.

2. In a large bowl, mix the cabbage and bok choy. Toss with the peanut butter mixture just before serving.