Are you looking for a healthy coleslaw recipe? Our Healthy Kale Coleslaw is perfect! Made with healthy veggies that are loaded with vitamins and minerals and bringing in some healthy fats from our creamy avocado mayo. Superfood salad anyone?
This colourful salad is also ideal for helping you "eat a rainbow", as recommended by nutritionists; eating a wide variety of foods helps your body get all the essential nutrients it needs.
Kale Coleslaw is a tasty way to detox, full of super greens that help remove toxins and carcinogens from the body, and a versatile side that you can serve with anything.
If you need some more coleslaw inspiration, here are some of our other coleslaw recipes:
- Looking for a fancy slaw recipe, try our Red Cabbage and Fennel Salad
- Super hungry try our satisfying Loaded Coleslaw with Bacon Dressing recipe
- For something a bit fruity, our Apple Slaw recipe would be perfect.
- Need a taste of Asia? You can't beat our Tasty Thai Asian Slaw!
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Curly Kale - forms the base of this salad but can be swapped for Tuscan kale or any sturdy leafy greens such as silverbeet, chard or spinach.
- Red Cabbage - here to add a pop of colour, you may also use ordinary white cabbage or savoy.
- Carrots - even more colour, as we all know the importance of ”eating a rainbow” you can swap for raw grated beets if you like.
- Fresh Dill - we used dill because of its wonderful aroma and because it is quite hardy. Any other herbs such as mint, basil, parsley or tarragon. But if you use mint or basil they will discolour.
- Avocado Mayo - is so much healthier than ordinary mayo and really boosts the satiety of our Kale Coleslaw salad.
How to Make It
Step 1 - Prepare the Kale
Wash your kale leaves under cold running water to remove any dirt, then either rip the leafy parts of the kale from the ribs or cut them off with a sharp knife and discard them. For detailed instructions take a look at our kale prep post.
Shred your kale leaves.
Place them in a large bowl with two tablespoons of olive oil, two tablespoons of lemon juice and a teaspoon of sea salt, then gently rub the leaves together for approximately 3 minutes.
Don’t overdo it, as you don’t want your kale to turn to mush.
Step 2 - Prepare the Rest of Your Veg
Wash your red cabbage and shred it finely with a mandoline slicer or with a sharp knife.
Wash, peel and remove the tops and ends of your carrots; cut into a fine julienne using a julienne peeler or with the julienne attachment on your mandoline/v-slicer.
You could also grate the carrot, but I just think the julienne looks a lot better.
Then wash your dill, pat dry and chop finely.
Wash your avocado, remove the pit, peel and dice. For step-by-step instructions head over to our avocado prep post.
Step 3 - Blitz the Avocado Mayo
Place all the avocado cream ingredients in a mini food processor or small high-speed blender, and season with salt and pepper.
Blitz until smooth; if your mayo looks thick, add some water to thin it out; we want it to reach the consistency of thick mayonnaise.
Step 4 - Assemble the Salad
Put all your ingredients in a large mixing bowl, and season with sea salt and cracked black pepper.
Add the avocado mayo and mix well until all the vegetables are well coated with the dressing.
Arrange Kale Coleslaw in a large salad bowl, garnish with some dill leaves and serve.
Serving Suggestions 🍽
This beautiful salad looks AMAZING and tastes even better! It's sweet, tangy, creamy, crunchy, and so full of colour.
Kale avocado salad is a great side dish but can also be made into a main dish just by adding your favourite protein.
As a side, you may serve it along with the following:
What Makes it a Healthy Coleslaw?
In theory, coleslaw should be really good for you as it is loaded with healthy veggies, such as cabbage, carrots, fresh herbs and onion.
Where it goes wrong is that it is usually smothered in fatty mayonnaise, and let’s not forget that most store-bought coleslaw includes preservatives to maintain its freshness, all combined, what should be a healthy salad becomes a high-fat chemical mess.
The changes we made to make it a healthy kale coleslaw :
- We skipped out the mayo and used a healthy homemade avocado mayo instead. Avocados contain high levels of healthy, beneficial fats, which help you feel fuller for longer. And are a source of vitamins C, E, K, and B6, as well as riboflavin, niacin, folate, pantothenic acid, magnesium, and potassium.
- Used kale as the base, which is chock full of Calcium, Vitamin K, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, antioxidants, and minerals. Antioxidants help the body remove unwanted toxins that result from natural processes and environmental pressures.
- Swapped white for the red cabbage, as it contains 10x more vitamins, cancer-fighting flavonoids, and a high amount of antioxidants which improve eye, teeth, bone, & immune health.
- Gone for fresh dill, which is packed with flavonoids, has been shown to help reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, and it also may reduce LDL cholesterol levels.
All in we have morphed Kale Coleslaw into a powerhouse of nutrients. 🎉
Tips and Questions
How Can I Meal Prep This Salad for My Lunches?
- Make up your salad without the avocado and avocado mayo and place it in your containers.
- Add your avocado with a generous squeeze of lemon juice on the day.
- Put your avocado mayo in a separate container to add and stir through your salad just before eating
Can I Make It Into a Main Meal Salad?
To transform it into a dinner salad, simply add some:
- Grilled chicken tenders
- Seared lamb fillets
- Pan-fried salmon
- Chickpeas
- Grilled tofu
- Pulled pork
How Can I Store This Salad?
- Despite the avocado mayo, this salad should last in your fridge for approximately 3-4 days.
- Just make sure you drain off any excess liquid and store it in an airtight container.
What Diets is Kale Coleslaw Suitable For?
- This is a great salad for all diets and eating styles; each serving contains 185 calories and has a net carb count of only 6 grams.
Is Raw Kale Bad for You?
- Kale has an extremely high concentration of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, more than most vegetables.
- However, it does have a high concentration of goitrins which can be detrimental to thyroid health in large quantities; Vitamin K, which promotes clotting and can be a problem for those taking blood thinners; oxalates, which can be associated with kidney stones and some gallstones.
- Everything in moderation, I say 😉 so if you eat or juice kale twice a week, you should be safe.
More Kale Salad Recipes
Recipe Card
Equipment
- Mandoline / V-Slicer or Food Processor
- Julienne Peeler
- Small Food Processor, High Speed or Bullet Blender
Ingredients
- 180 grams Kale (approximately ½ a bunch - 6.3oz or 6 cups shredded)
- 2 tbsps olive oil
- 2 tbsps lemon juice (1 medium sized lemon)
- 150 grams red cabbage (approximately ¼ small head - 5.3oz or 2 cups shredded)
- 150 grams carrots (approximately 2 medium carrots - 5.3oz or 1½ cups grated)
- 350 grams avocado (1 large avocado 12.35oz)
- 2 tbsps fresh dill (chopped)
- Sea salt and cracked black pepper
- 350 grams avocado (1 large avocado 12.35oz)
- ¼ cup lemon juice (juice from 2-3 medium sized lemons)
- 3 tbsps avocado oil (you can also use extra virgin olive oil)
Instructions
- Wash your kale, remove the stalks and shred finely, then transfer to a large mixing bowl. Add the 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Massage your kale until it is soft (approximately 3 minutes).
- Wash your cabbage remove the core and the outer leaves then thinly shred with a mandoline slicer or sharp knife.
- Wash, trim and peel your carrots then cut into a fine julienne. Wash, dry and finely chop your dill.
- Peel your avocado, remove the pit and cut into medium-sized chunks, and squeeze a generous amount of lemon juice on top.
- Place all the avocado cream ingredients in a mini food processor or small high-speed blender, season with salt and pepper. Blitz until smooth and thin it out if necessary with some water we want it to have the consistency of thick mayonnaise.
- Put all your ingredients in a large mixing bowl, season with sea salt and cracked black pepper, add the avocado mayo and mix well until all the vegetables are well coated with the dressing.
- Arrange the salad in a large salad bowl, garnish with some dill leaves and serve.
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