The stuff that sounds like some kind of spot on your face; coleslaw (5 minutes)

Coleslaw, it was only about 4/5 years ago I started eating this stuff and I fell in love with it.

Fresh, crunchy with a strong onion flavour, yah ples 😍

Ingredients (serves 4-8)

• 1/4 of a white or red cabbage
• 1 medium onion
• 1 large carrot
• Mayonnaise (home made or shop bought, will post a mayonnaise recipe later)
• Salt & pepper

Equipment

• Large bowl to mix everything
• A sharp knife large enough to handle the cabbage or a mandolin slicer
• Peeler
• Chopping board
• A fork comes in handy, or a wooden spoon
• A cheese grater

Prep and cooking

1. Slice the cabbage into thin strips, if you want crunchier coleslaw cut it a bit thicker.
2. Slice the onion into thin strips, if you want a more prominent onion taste and again a crunchier coleslaw then cut it a bit thicker.
3. Peel the carrot and grate with the cheese grater.
4. Put everything in the bowl and add mayonnaise, how much is up to you I usually use about 7-8 tablespoons.
5. Mix well and season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Eat, incorporate to another dish etc.

Cold sores and coleslaw

It turns out the two are (thankfully) in no way related. The term we use today (coleslaw) originated in the Netherlands in the 18th century from the Dutch saying ‘koolsa’ which translates to ‘cabbage salad’. When said with a Dutch accent the word ‘kool’ is pronounced ‘cole’.

Cold sores on the other hand are as it sounds, sores, usually around the mouth and you’ll be delighted to know that it’s a nicer term for oral herpes.

Yes oral herpes, we’ve probably all had it at some point and apparently67% of the worlds population have it at any given time, but don’t worry it’s not the same as genital herpes(!)

Mix up ya ‘slaw

So anyway enough about herpes, back to the food.

As I said I was never a great fan of coleslaw and I find it’s got quite a marmite opinion (love it or hate it) but after actually knocking some up myself and trying it I got completely hooked.

My favourite thing about it is it’s diversity which is something I usually look for in recipes / ingredients.

Keep you’re eyes out for updates to this recipe and I’ll start to document the hundreds (thousands?) of variations of coleslaw I’ve seen over the years or get involved with your own take in the comments.

When you start to diversify a bit you’ll see how it can become an a compliment to almost any dish, for example an apple slaw in pulled pork burgers, a celery slaw for a fish dish, I could go on all day but I’ll leave that part up-to you for now.