Easy Apple Coleslaw
Vegan Apple Coleslaw features apples, carrots, cranberries, and cabbage tossed in a peppery-sweet creamy tahini slaw dressing. It’s healthy, full of texture and flavor, and so easy to make!
Fresh & Crunchy Apple Coleslaw
I love making coleslaw, and this fresh & crunchy fruit-filled apple slaw is a wonderful addition to the other great coleslaw recipes on the blog!
Sweet and peppery, this delicious vegan apple coleslaw is crowd-pleasing and a nice change from the usual coleslaw recipes.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Great flavor & texture: Crisp apples and sweet-tart cranberries bring a touch of sweetness and crunch, making for the ultimate crave-worthy slaw.
- Super versatile: It can easily be customized. Change up the cranberries and almonds, or switch up the cabbage and dressing base. We love options!
- Quick and easy: Made with simple ingredients and requires minimal effort. Once you’ve prepped the produce, it’s easy as can be to put together.
- Make-ahead friendly: Make it a day or two in advance and refrigerate for convenience.
Ingredient Notes & Swaps
Made from scratch, this recipe features crunchy veggies and fruit, all tossed in a delicious, creamy vegan dressing.
Here is everything you’ll need, including variations:
- Cabbage — Use regular green or Napa cabbage.
- Carrots — Shred your own, or use pre-shredded carrots for convenience.
- Apples — Use your favorite apples, sweet or tart – Fuji, Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Gala, Golden Delicious, or a combo. We are Fuji fans, so that is what we used.
- Cranberries — We love using organic cranberries, preferably unsweetened. They add a nice pop of color. Raisins make a great substitute when needed – use regular, jumbo, or golden.
- Almonds — We used slivered almonds here, but sunflower seeds, pepitas, pecans, or walnuts work too. They add extra crunch and nutrition!
- Green onions — Diced red onions can be used in place of green onions.
- Apple Coleslaw Dressing — The dressing is a creamy, no-mayo recipe, but feel free to use vegan mayo or plain non-dairy yogurt instead of the tahini, as noted in the recipe.
How To Make Apple Coleslaw
Making apple slaw is super easy, requiring just a few simple steps:
- Start with the coleslaw dressing by mixing together the tahini, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, and pepper in a small bowl, then set it aside to let the flavors combine.
- Prepare the cabbage by removing the first leaf, coring it, and finely slicing it, then give it a good, rough chop.
- Wash the apples well, core, and julienne into matchsticks.
- Assemble coleslaw. In a large mixing bowl, add the cabbage, apples, carrots, cranberries, green onions, and almonds. Pour the dressing over the slaw salad and mix well to combine.
Serve as is, or let chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before serving.
Serving Suggestions
Apple coleslaw can be served at room temperature or chilled. Enjoy it as a side dish or even a light meal. I often make a batch and eat it as a main dish, grazing on it throughout the day. It’s also great for make-ahead lunches and is even better the next day!
Here are a few of our favorite pairings from the archives:
- Healthy Baked Beans
- Veggie & Vegan Sausage Skewers
- 5-ingredient vegan sausage with peppers & potatoes
Storage & Make-Ahead
Coleslaw can be safely stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Make-Ahead
You can make coleslaw 3 to 4 days in advance of serving. For the best presentation, I recommend making it within 24 hours of serving. Otherwise, it tends to become watery and limp. You can always prep the ingredients, keeping the slaw and dressing separate until a few hours before serving. To keep the apples from browning, place them in a bowl of water with a squeeze of lemon juice.
Will the Apples Turn Brown in Coleslaw?
Nope! The apples will not turn brown when apple cider vinegar is used in the coleslaw dressing, so you can safely make your apple coleslaw a day or two ahead of time. Just keep it stored in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
More Coleslaw Recipes!
- Classic Vegan Coleslaw
- Asian Slaw, zesty with a miso-ginger dressing, and my all-time favorite
- Spicy Coleslaw, my all-time favorite, with pepperoncini and creamy tahini dressing.
- See all our coleslaw recipes on TSV!
If you try this apple recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
Print Recipe
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EASY APPLE COLESLAW
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 – 6 1x
- Diet: Dairy-Free, Vegan
Description
Crisp, fresh, and delicious, this vegan Apple Coleslaw features a colorful combo of fruits and veggies tossed in a delicious creamy apple cider dressing! The recipe is versatile and can be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Ingredients
- 1/2 head green cabbage (about 4 – 5 cups), shredded
- 2 carrots (about 1 1/2 cups), julienned or shredded
- 2 apples (green or red), cored and cut into matchsticks
- 3/4 – 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds
- 2 – 3 green onions (about 1/2 cup), sliced
Tahini Maple Dressing
- 1/4 cup tahini (sub with 1/2 cup mayo or plain non-dairy yogurt)
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
- pinch of salt
Instructions
Dressing: In a small bowl, combine the tahini, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, and pepper. Add 1 -2 tablespoons of water as needed to thin. Set aside to let the flavors mingle.
Assemble coleslaw: In an x-large bowl, add the cabbage, apples, carrots, cranberries, green onions, and almonds. Drizzle the dressing over the top and mix well to coat. Finish with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve as is, or store in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill.
Coleslaw can be made a day ahead and stored, covered, in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Makes about 8 cups
Serves 4 – 8
Notes
To replace the tahini: use 1/2 cup non-dairy plain yogurt or vegan mayo.
The ingredients can easily be changed up for variation:
- Replace green cabbage for napa or red cabbage, or use a combo.
- Use your favorite apples – fuji, granny smith, honey crisp, gala, golden delicious, etc.
- In place of cranberries, raisins would work well.
- Vary up the almonds, using sunflower seeds, pecans, or walnuts.
- Use diced red onion in place of green onions.
Store: Leftovers can be kept in a sealed container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
Make-Ahead: You can make coleslaw 1 or 2 days before serving. For the best presentation, I recommend making it within 24 hours of serving. Otherwise, it tends to become watery and limp. You can always prep the ingredients, keeping the slaw and dressing separate until a few hours before serving. To keep the apples from browning, place them in a bowl of water with a squeeze of lemon juice.
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Category: Salad, Side
- Method: mix
- Cuisine: American
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How many days could this stay relatively good for?
It will be good for 3 to 4 days, and the best quality will be within the first 2 to 3 days. Enjoy!
This is really tasty and easy to make. Great dish for a gathering, especially in hot weather! I used oat milk yogurt instead of tamari, partly because I prefer it and partly because some people are allergic to sesame.
This apple coleslaw looks absolutely delicious and so refreshing! I love how simple the recipe is, and the addition of apples must add such a nice crunch and sweetness. Can’t wait to try it out for my next gathering! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Great recipe! Perfect for using up loads of farm share cabbage. No vegan mayo is a bonus.
Delicious! I have to eat low sodium and this is perfect. I add the almonds at the last minute so they stay crunchy.
Made this twice and it is a hit! I plan to add it to my holiday dinner because it is also colorful. Thank you!
This recipe really earned its five stars – fantastic! It’s hard to find good vegan recipes with no oil, and this one is a gem! I’m going to use it as a side and also a topping on some lentil sloppy joes.
This is an excellent coleslaw recipe. Sweetness from the fruit, tangy from the dressing and I added a fresh jalapeno for some spice! Very light and refreshing. No mayo is a bonus! So delicious!
My entire family LOVED this coleslaw! So delicious!!
I can’t believe this doesn’t have any reviews! Made this a couple of days ago and it was DELICIOUS! I was a little worried about the amount of apple cider vinegar as I thought it would be wayyyyy too sour but the dressing is so so good and the tahini and agave syrup (I didn’t have maple so I used agave) really offset the sourness. Made this 4 hours in advance and it was great at that point but the leftovers on day 2 were even more delicious. Thanks for this recipe – bookmarking it for future use, will be perfect to bring to BBQs and potlucks :)
This was just added to my favorite list for rotation!!! Had a small party and everyone loved!! I almost always change recipes to fit my preferences, did not on this one!! Thank you Julie!!!