Sponsor
  • News/Talk
  • Music
  • Entertainment

Sweet Slaw

August 16, 2008

From A Love Affair with Southern Cooking by Jean Anderson (William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, 2007). Copyright 2007 by Jean Anderson.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

To most of the country, coleslaw is crisp and sharp, but down south it's sometimes so soft and sweet it might be dessert. The best sweet slaw I ever ate is that served at Mama Dip's Kitchen in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It's not overly sweet; in fact the balance of sweet and tart is exactly right. Mama Dip (Mildred Council), a six-foot-two African American well into her seventies, has written two best-selling cookbooks, Mama Dip's Kitchen (1999) and Mama Dip's Family Cookbook (2005). This coleslaw, which I double-order every time I eat at Dip's, appears in her second cookbook - a last-minute addition after I raved on and on about it.

  • 8 cups (2 quarts) moderately finely grated cabbage (you'll need a 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 pound cabbage)
  • 3/4 cup firmly packed mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1. Place the cabbage in a large nonreactive bowl. Quickly whisk together all remaining ingredients, pour over the cabbage, and mix well. At first you may think that there isn't enough dressing. There is because the cabbage will release a fair amount of liquid.

2. Let the slaw stand at room temperature for 30 minutes, mix well, then cover and refrigerate for several hours.

3. Stir the slaw well, taste for salt, and adjust as needed, then serve as an accompaniment to fried chicken, fish or shellfish, or any kind of barbecue.


Turkey Confidential

On the day even non-cooks are busy in the kitchen, The Splendid Table team is ready to help on-air and online. We've also collected all our Thanksgiving Recipes in one place.


Find us on Facebook

Be notified when new recipes are posted and talk with other fans of the show for people who love to eat.
See what it's all about»


Weeknight Kitchen E-mail Newsletter

Weeknight Kitchen® is a free weekly e-mail newsletter full of new recipes and tips from Lynne and our guests.
Sign up »
This week's newsletter »


The Splendid Table Podcast

The Splendid Table®, is available in podcast form. Follow the Sterns as they travel the country, hear all our unique and wonderful guests and, as always, Lynne takes your calls, downloaded direct to your computer every week.
Get the podcast


Recent Picks from the Splendid Table Store

[an error occurred while processing this directive]