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This sweet sesame cabbage salad is a mixture of shredded green cabbage, scallions, and toasted slivered almonds, tossed in a sweet sesame dressing, with loads of sesame seeds.
This salad borrows from Japanese “addictive cabbage”, which is a fitting name, because it’s addictingly good.
Sesame Cabbage Salad Ingredients
- Green cabbage: I’ve made this salad with red cabbage, napa cabbage, and a few other varieties; they all work well. Green cabbage definitely works/ tastes the best.
- Scallions
- Cilantro
- Sesame oil: Not toasted, just regular sesame oil.
- Soy sauce
- Honey: If you’re vegan, agave would work well as a substitute.
- Lemon juice
- Garlic clove
- White pepper
- Slivered almonds: Feel free to swap these out for toasted cashews or peanuts – just give them a rough chop before adding them to the salad.
- Toasted sesame seeds and black sesame seeds: I like using a mix of both white and black sesame seeds – the aesthetics of the salad look better with both.
Method Behind this Cabbage Salad
Quarter the cabbage into wedges and remove the core. Using a mandoline or knife, shred the cabbage (fairly thin) and add to a large mixing bowl. It looks like a lot of cabbage, but it’ll lose a lot of volume once it’s tossed in the dressing. Finely slice the scallions on a bias, finely slice the cilantro, and add to the bowl of cabbage.
Whisk the sesame oil, soy sauce, honey, lemon juice, garlic, and white pepper in a small bowl or jar, and pour over the cabbage salad. Sprinkle over the slivered almonds and sesame seeds and toss to combine. Adjust for salt as needed – I always add salt, but depending on the soy sauce you use, you may not need to.
Serve this salad immediately with extra sesame seeds for garnish.
A Single Note
- The moment you dress this salad, the cabbage will start to release water. I say this because it doesn’t save well – it starts to lose its crunch after an hour. That said, highly recommend dressing this and serving it immediately before you’ll be eating. I have experimented with keeping this in the fridge for 12 hours – the flavor is still fantastic, but it’s not as crunchy and fresh.
So excited for you to make this! Don’t forget to leave a starred rating and review, love hearing your feedback.
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Sesame Cabbage Salad
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2–3 servings 1x
- Category: Mains, Salads, Side Dish
- Cuisine: Japanese
Description
A sweet sesame cabbage salad with loads of scallions and toasted almonds that borrows from Japanese “addictive cabbage”, which is a fitting name, because it’s addictingly good.
Ingredients
- 1/2 head cabbage, shredded (280g)
- 1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced on a bias (35g)
- 2 tbsp finely sliced cilantro (chiffonade)
- 2 tbsp (16g) sesame oil
- 2 tbsp (16g) soy sauce
- 2 tbsp (30g) honey
- 2 tbsp (24g) lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 1/2 cup (60g) slivered almonds, toasted (can sub w/ toasted peanuts/cashews)
- 2 tbsp (12g) toasted sesame seeds/ black sesame seeds
Instructions
- Shred the cabbage, scallions, and cilantro. Quarter the cabbage into wedges and remove the core. Using a mandoline or knife, shred the cabbage (fairly thin) and add to a large mixing bowl. It looks like a lot of cabbage, but it’ll lose a lot of volume once it’s tossed in the dressing. Finely slice the scallions on a bias, finely slice the cilantro, and add to the bowl of cabbage.
- Make the dressing and toss the salad. Whisk the sesame oil, soy sauce, honey, lemon juice, garlic, and white pepper in a small bowl or jar, and pour over the cabbage salad. Sprinkle over the slivered almonds and sesame seeds and toss to combine. Adjust for salt as needed – I always add salt, but depending on the soy sauce you use, you may not need to.
- Serve this salad immediately with extra sesame seeds for garnish.
Can confirm it’s delightful!
Having the cabbage super finely shredded is key.
I had mine with cold grilled lemon chicken breast for lunch and I will definitely be keeping this in the rotation!
Yaay! So happy to hear that you liked it, thank you so much for the kind review ☺️
Have you tried keeping the salad base and the dressing separate and then dressing it just before eating? Or does the cabbage brown? – Just thinking about bringing this to a work potluck but wouldn’t have time to make it in the morning.
Yes, I’ve been doing this a lot, and the cabbage stays perfect! I keep it in a Ziploc/glass container in the fridge. Hope everyone loves it – will need a report back ☺️
It’s going in my recipe book
So honored this made it in your book – the best compliment! 🥰
I made this salad for lunch yesterday, I made it again today, and I’m only going to stop when I run out of ingredients.
Hehe totally agree, it’s addictive! Thank you so much for leaving such a lovely review, means so much ☺️
Incredible. I can see why it’s so addictive!! I prepped the cabbage, scallions and cilantro ahead of time, then dressed individual bowls with the salad dressing. I could easily eat an entire serving to myself (and then some!). Excited to add this into my meal prep rotation. THANK YOU!
Ah thank you so much for the lovely review!! Such a good idea to dress the bowls individually!
Deliiiiiicious!!! Have this salad constantly in the fridge :0)
So honored this has become a staple!!
Could this be used over several days as a lunch for work if you kept the dressing and the cabbage mixture separate?
Yess, absolutely! Just dress the salad right before you eat.
Great Salad recipe! Agree that it’s best dressed right before eating!
Delicious, add avocado and crispy wonton strips!