Citrus Slaw – Super Salad

I think this slaw is more a technique than recipe, best adapted to suit individual appetites and ingredients available.

First some principles:

1. White cabbage is nice and crunchy when eaten raw – but after a while you may start to feel like cow chewing its cud. Therefore it needs to be softened. This is achieved by macerating, curing, or light pickling. You will need some store cupboard kitchen chemicals including salt, vinegar or citrus juice, as well as a little sugar to help control sharpness.
2. You can also use red cabbage with the white. But it tends to bleed – and like a red sock in a white wash it will turn your slaw a lovely pink. So pickle separately and mix together after it has macerated (unless you like pink slaws…).
3. Both types of cabbage need to be thinly sliced. I would use a sharp knife. (I owned a mandolin for 10 years but finally threw it out on the grounds that it was intrinsically unsafe.)
4. Do not worry about the time it will take to slice a cabbage – it magically expands as you slice and you will soon fill a bowl with voluminous shreds.
5. I like to mix other veg in with the cabbage – including radishes, mooli, spring onion, carrot, celery, chilli, peppers, or even iceberg lettuce which helps to keep the slaw light and fresh.

To macerate the cabbage:

For one or two large handful of cabbage squeeze 1 lime or lemon (or 1 tbs vinegar) over the shredded cabbage and add half a teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon sugar. Mix well and leave to macerate for a couple of hours. Then drain for half an hour.

To make the slaw:

Squeeze the cabbage and add to a bowl with other ingredients according to your preference. Season with pepper and toss well. This version is made with a dressing of 1  part lemon or lime to 3 parts groundnut oil or other light vegetable oil. You can also add mayonnaise, Greek yoghurt or buttermilk to the dressing for a more traditional coleslaw.