Delia Smith’s coleslaw is her Christmas coleslaw: grated celeriac and carrot with finely shredded white cabbage, salted overnight with a little lemon juice, then tossed in a garlicky dressing of soured cream, mayonnaise and yoghurt with spring onions and a scatter of poppy seeds. It serves 8 to 10, and the work starts the night before.
She calls it her favourite coleslaw, an improved version of the 4-star slaw from her first Christmas book. The four stars are the celeriac, carrot, cabbage and spring onion, and her Vegetarian Collection (2002) prints that original as Four Star Slaw at exactly half these amounts, with no salting at all.
The overnight salting is the improvement, because it pulls the extra water out of the vegetables before the dressing goes on. Your coleslaw stays crisp and creamy for much longer, rather than turning watery in the bowl, with a sharp garlic and mustard edge to the soured cream.
Delia Smith’s Christmas Coleslaw
Course: SaladsCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy8
servings8
hours25
minutes135
kcalFrom Delia’s Happy Christmas (2009), page 93: celeriac, carrot and white cabbage drawn overnight with salt and lemon, then dressed in soured cream, mayonnaise, yoghurt and mustard. These ingredients make a big bowl for 8 to 10.
Ingredients
- For the salad:
225g (8oz) celeriac, peeled and coarsely grated
225g (8oz) carrots, peeled and grated
225g (8oz) white cabbage, finely shredded
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 rounded teaspoon salt flakes
6 spring onions, finely chopped, green parts included
poppy seeds, to garnish
- For the dressing:
150ml (5fl oz) soured cream
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons natural yoghurt
1 teaspoon mustard powder
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Salt: The night before, put the celeriac, carrots and cabbage in a large bowl with the tablespoon of lemon juice and the rounded teaspoon of salt. Toss well, cover and chill overnight.
- Press: Next day, tip the vegetables into a colander, lay a clean tea towel over them and press down hard to squeeze out all the liquid.
- Dressing: Mix the soured cream with the garlic, mayonnaise, yoghurt and mustard powder. Stir the oil, vinegar and lemon juice together, whisk them gradually into the soured cream mixture, then taste and season.
- Toss: Put the vegetables and spring onions in a bowl, pour over the dressing and toss with two forks until everything is coated. Check the seasoning.
- Chill: Cover and keep in the fridge until you need it.
- Serve: Toss once more just before serving and sprinkle over the poppy seeds.
Notes
- The prep time counts about 8 hours for the overnight salting, and the hands-on work is about 25 minutes.
- Use the coarse side of the grater for the celeriac, and peel it thickly, as the knobbly skin is tough.
- Stored covered and chilled, it stays good for up to 3 days by my own reckoning.
FAQs
How far ahead can I make it?
Well ahead, which is the whole reason for the overnight salting. Delia’s headnote says drawing the liquid out first means the finished salad keeps much longer, and I’d happily make it a day or two before a party, which is my own timing.
Her earlier Four Star Slaw, made without the salting, she suggests making only the day before, covered with clingfilm in the fridge. Whichever you make, save the poppy seeds for the last minute.
Which cabbage is best for coleslaw?
A round white cabbage. In How to Cook Book Two Delia picks out round cabbage, green on the outside and whiter towards the centre, as the one that’s good for coleslaw.
Choose one with its outer leaves still on and a heart that feels firm, and the leaves should squeak as you pull them apart. Shred it as finely as you can with a sharp knife, so it softens a little in the dressing.
Can I make it as a red cabbage coleslaw?
You can, though it will tint the dressing pink, which is my own warning. For red cabbage, Delia has a separate winter salad in her Complete Cookery Course, red cabbage and coriander salad, with grated Cox’s apple, onion, celery and a yoghurt dressing flavoured with toasted coriander seeds.
She suggests it for help-yourself parties, and like this coleslaw it can be made and dressed well ahead. A mix of half red and half white cabbage in this recipe is my own compromise, if you want some colour.
Can I make a smaller amount?
Yes, by halving everything, which is just what her Four Star Slaw does. It uses 110g (4oz) of each vegetable, 3 spring onions and 75ml (3fl oz) of soured cream.
The dressing halves in the same way, with 1 tablespoon each of mayonnaise and yoghurt, ½ teaspoon of mustard powder and 1 dessertspoon each of vinegar and lemon juice. I’d still salt the vegetables overnight, with half the salt and lemon, which is my own choice.
What goes with it at Christmas?
Delia puts it on her Christmas buffet as one of a selection of salads, next to her winter potato salad and a spiced rice salad with nuts and seeds. The main dishes on that menu are fillet of beef in pastry and a Stilton and Lancashire cheese terrine.
All three salads can be made ahead and kept chilled, so they suit a day when the oven is busy. It’s just as good with cold turkey or ham on Boxing Day.
