This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
This creamy coconut coleslaw takes me back to our vacation in Maui. It is, I could say, a “copycat” of the famous “France’s Coleslaw” we tried in Coconuts Fish Cafe on the island of Maui.
My sister and her husband went to the restaurant with us in Maui. We all had the coleslaw and tried to guess what was in it. I jotted down the proposed list of ingredients and was determined to make it at home. Props to my sister Sveta for picking up on the horseradish. Re-creating this was fun.
I should have taken a picture of my test kitchen. I had ramekins everywhere! The results were amazing. I think you’ll love this coleslaw!
It is delicious in any sandwich, over tacos or just in leu of your average coleslaw. I made the most amazing shrimp tacos with a mountain of this coconut coleslaw and those tacos were basically inhaled.
My sister came over to try them and she went on and on about how much she liked the coleslaw and even packed a to-go box for her husband to try it.
Ingredients for Coconut Coleslaw:
1/2 medium green cabbage, thinly sliced
1/4 small purple cabbage, very thinly sliced
1/2 cup Real Mayo
1/4 cup Coconut milk (Original, unsweetened)
2 tsp granulated sugar
2 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice (both work great!)
1 tsp Horseradish cream sauce
How to Make Coconut Coleslaw:
1.In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together 1/2 cup mayo, 1/4 cup coconut milk, 1 tsp horseradish sauce, 2 tsp sugar, 2 tsp apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice – honestly I tested both and liked them. My husband liked the vinegar slightly more so I went with that one for this batch).
2. In a medium bowl, combine thinly sliced green cabbage with very thinly sliced purple cabbage. I like the contrast of larger green cabbage pieces with thinner purple mixed in.
3. Once the dressing is creamy and smooth, pour it over your prepared cabbage and stir well. Just before serving, give it a quick stir to make sure any dressing at the bottom coats the cabbage. So yummy!
Creamy Coconut Coleslaw Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium green cabbage, thinly sliced
- 1/4 small purple cabbage, very thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup real mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup Coconut milk, Original, unsweetened
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice, both work great!
- 1 tsp Horseradish cream sauce
Instructions
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together 1/2 cup mayo, 1/4 cup coconut milk, 1 tsp horseradish sauce, 2 tsp sugar, 2 tsp apple cider vinegar (
- or lemon juice - honestly I tested both and liked them. My husband liked the vinegar slightly more so I went with that one for this batch).
- In a medium bowl, combine thinly sliced green cabbage with very thinly sliced purple cabbage. I like the contrast of larger green cabbage pieces with thinner purple mixed in.
- Once the dressing is creamy and smooth, pour it over your prepared cabbage and stir well. Just before serving, give it a quick stir to make sure any dressing at the bottom coats the cabbage. So yummy!
Nutrition Per Serving
I am wanting to make this for a group and one of them is vegan. Could you substitute the mayo with yogurt, do you think?
Hi Alanna! I think that could work. It would change the taste though.
Yogurt isn’t vegan! 😅 Haha—I went with vegan mayo. Hope it turns out ok!
We loved this – served with bbq pulled chicken and it was bomb! Next time I think I’ll add more horseradish. 🙂
Recipe looks delishes! How many guests does this serve? I am having 20 guests for shredded bbq chicken sandwiches.
Hi Fifi, The serving size can be found at the beginning of the print-friendly recipe card (located at the bottom of the recipe post). The nutrition label shows counts “per serving.” Hope that helps!
Sorry, but every place I see the number of servings for this recipe, it says 0 (zero).
I made this coleslaw to use as a bed for serving the shrimp from your Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos. It was very good, but I wish it had a bit more zip. Next time I will add some Sriracha or maybe a minced jalapeño.
question — do you think the dressing will travel well if I made it ahead of time and then mixed together a little before serving it?
Hi Dawn. Yes, I think that would be fine.
Love your recipes! Thank you so much ! You do such a great job sharing them ! ❤️
You’re very welcome, Sally! I’m so glad you’re enjoying them. Thank you.
I worked in a Mexican restaurant and we also used coco coleslaw on our shrimp tacos. How long will this beautiful coleslaw hold?
Hi France. It’s best on the day of but will last a couple of days refrigerated however, the cabbage starts to get soft and it can become more watery.
Hello,
Would I be able to use pre-packaged cole slaw instead to cut the time..Thanks in advance
We love using fresh ingredients but if that’s you have on hand, I imagine that will work too.
I am confused because your picture shows regular sweetened coconut milk, but in the recipe it says unsweetened. Which one?
Hi Kelly, either one will work and that is what I had on hand for the photo, but we typically make this with unsweetened.
Could you swap for kewpie mayo? Wasn’t sure due to not wanting to mess up the acid balance.
Hi Kaylee! I assume so. I’ve never had that type of Mayo.
I really wanted to like this and it looked beautiful but the dressing had a strange off putting flavor to it. all my ingredients were fresh. I ended up adding a lot more sugar and salt to try to counter the off funky flavor. I think it might have been the apple cider vinegar. Next time I will try with lemon juice Instead.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me! We believe we found the perfect balance, but I wonder if the type of apple cider vinegar used alters the flavor too? It’s hard to say exactly what caused that without being there, I wish I could be more helpful.
Made this for a gathering to serve with pulled chicken. Was absolutely delicious. The horseradish really added a nice tang.
That sounds amazing! I’m so glad it was enjoyed!
I love your recipes! This coconut slaw looks really good, but I’m glad you added the picture of Silk coconut milk. I was going to use canned coconut milk until I saw the picture. Do you think the Silk coconut milk texture is better in this recipe?
Hi Beth! Either will work. Canned coconut milk can be thick and we wanted a liquid consistency.
This was amazing on your pulled bbq chicken recipe… everyone Loved it!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Terri!
This is so good with your fish taco recipe! I took your recommendation from your response to a comment I made about your fish tacos. That combination has got to be my favorite meal of yours so far. Thanks so much!
Hi Max! That’s wonderful. Thank you for salient your experience.
Hi Natasha, can canned coconut milk be used in place of the coconut milk in the carton?
Hi Theresa! Sure, i think it could work just fine. Sometimes they can be thick, so keep that in mind, and we used unsweetened.
I used can worked great just did a good whisk first before adding from can.