This 5-minute Mexican Coleslaw is just the quick side dish recipe you’ve been looking for it. Perfect for Taco Tuesdays or any other night of the week!
I often serve Mexican food like enchiladas or tostadas with shredded cabbage instead of lettuce because I like the crunch and extra vitamins. Sometimes, we’re having something that is hard to balance lettuce on top of like taquitos or nachos. Of course we should still eat some sort of vegetable on those occasions, so I came up with this SUPER EASY Mexican coleslaw recipe. Seriously, this took 5 minutes to make and was really tasty. This light, crispy, tangy, and slightly spicy side dish is a perfect match with any Mexican fare.
If you need a quick recipe, you can make this and eat it five minutes later, but it’s even better if you have time to make it ahead. It’s fresh and crispy immediately, but the flavors come together more after a few hours. When I made it to enjoy with our Salmon Taquitos last week, I made it a full 24 hours ahead of time. It tasted so good after the flavors marinated for a day! (Just be sure to store it in your refrigerator of course.)
Even if you aren’t usually a cole slaw fan, you might like this recipe. I’ve never really liked coleslaw that much. I think I mostly tried it as a kid at church potlucks and Captain D’s. (Is that place still around?) It was always overly mayonnaise-y, watery, sweet, and just kind of yuck. This version is not any of those things. The lime adds tartness, and there’s not enough mayonnaise to make it too creamy. I personally think this is way better than traditional coleslaw. I hope you’ll give it a try and let me know what you think!
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Mexican Coleslaw in 5 Minutes
This delicious and easy coleslaw recipe is crispy, tangy, and slightly spicy.
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 3 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons reduced-fat mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- hot sauce to taste
- 8–10 ounces finely shredded cabbage I use angel hair shredded cabbage from produce department
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro stems removed
Instructions
-
In a large bowl, add mayonnaise, olive oil, lime juice, cumin, salt, and hot sauce. Whisk together until smooth.
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Add shredded cabbage and cilantro, and toss to coat. Serve immediately, or store in refrigerator for a few hours before enjoying.
- Prep Time: 5
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: Mexican
I think you’ll also enjoy this recipe:
Nichole P says
Needs a little extra salt and some pepper
Daphne says
This was great. A big A+ from hubby and myself.
seth says
this was dreadful, I will not waste time making this again. Lime overpowered everything in this otherwise lack luster recipe.
Jacqueline says
Delicious! I had red cabbage and a slaw blend ready so I mixed those. I was out of Cholula, so I used Tapatio. I also used a key lime. Zesty and yummy! Will go well with spicy tofu tacos! Thanks for sharing!
Donna Johnson says
Give the recipe
Mary says
What on earth makes this a Mexican Slaw?! There’s not even any color to it. This recipe is ok to have with fish or something along that line but it’s definitely not a Mexican Slaw.
Lori says
Hi Mary,
It’s very authentic Mexican slaw being there’s cilantro, lime juice, cumin and hot sauce :)
Laura says
ANDI- Love yr recipes. I will make this using 1/2 red cabbage that I will pulse in the food processor, I am gluten free & I will add 2 tsp green chili pwdr, 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp each garlic & onion pwdr, 1/2 cup homemade salsa, 1 cup sour cream, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp turmeric pwdr (good for brain & memory function), salt & pepper. I will let you know how it turns out. I am southeast of you. >– waving to Andi…
Meghan @ The Tasty Fork says
I love an easy side to a Mexican dinner! Sounds really good! Perfect with tacos!
The Weary Chef says
Thanks, Meghan! We eat Mexican at least once a week, so I think I will be making this often!
LydiaF says
I love this idea. Why not?