Beyond cabbage: great variations on slaw, from beetroot to mango | Kitchen aide

A slaw doesn’t have to be a cabbage and carrot number; it can be adapted to suit just about every cuisine

Adaptable slaws for summer tables
Slaws are things of beauty, and such an important category of the salad world. They’re super-flexible, whether you’re feeling something creamy or lighter and brighter, but all slaws require a “healthy combination of dressing and crunch”, says Melanie Brown, chef/restaurateur at the Laundry in Brixton, south London. One such dressing is, of course, a classic mayonnaise, but Brown mixes things up with the addition of brown butter (for which butter is heated until the water evaporates and the milk solids caramelise): “It introduces a richness, complexity and nuttiness that I love.”

For a welcome bit of texture, chef Ana Ortiz deploys pumpkin seeds in her slaw dressing. “Toast them, then blend with spring onion, garlic, oil, salt and a little lemon juice,” the co-founder of Fire Made in the West Country advises. Then toss with grated carrot or squash: “That goes really well on the side of lamb chops or barbecued vegetables.” Apple cider vinegar is another fine match for a cooling carrot slaw. Riaz Phillips, author of East Winds, combines a tablespoon each of vinegar and melted coconut oil with two teaspoons of caster sugar, then tosses that in a bowl with a grated large carrot, a third of a white cabbage (also grated) and a third of a sliced red bell pepper: “If you like a creamier slaw, add three tablespoons of mayo, too.”

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