Eating healthy doesn’t mean sacrificing great creamy coleslaw. You’ll love the tangy, slightly sweet flavor, and all the amazing crunchy textures. And at just 1 smart point per serving, you can enjoy one of your favorite warm weather side dishes without guilt!
Earlier this year, when I shared my easy Instant Pot BBQ Pulled Pork, I had a few of you email me asking about a healthy coleslaw to pile on top of it. I already had this recipe developed, so I’m happy to share it with you here today!
Here in the Midwest, it’s an unspoken thing that most people put coleslaw on top of their pulled pork/chicken/beef sandwiches. There’s something about the combination of temperatures, textures and flavors that’s just SO mouthwatering!!
HOW DO YOU MAKE COLESLAW
Traditionally, coleslaw is mayo based, and it uses a lot of it. Shredded cabbage, carrots, onion, mayo, vinegar/lemon juice, sugar, salt, pepper and ground celery seed are the usual ingredients in a coleslaw recipe. All of my regular, non-skinny coleslaw recipes use at least 1/2 cup of mayo, which adds up to a lot of points! They usually use a good bit of sugar, which also racks up the points.
HOW CAN YOU MAKE COLESLAW HEALTHIER
The first major swap was to switch out the mayo in favor of a zero point food, non-fat plain greek yogurt. It’s more tangy than mayo, but still gives it a nice creamy consistency. I also reduced the amount of sugar.
HOW LONG DOES COLESLAW KEEP IN THE REFRIGERATOR
The beauty of a great coleslaw is that it actually needs to sit in the fridge in order for the flavors to really combine and mellow. But coleslaw can be made in advance and kept refrigerated (in an airtight container) for 2-3 days.
CAN YOU FREEZE COLESLAW
Certain kinds, yes, but with reservations. Oil and vinegar based coleslaws can be frozen, but they will lose their crunch. Any coleslaw that’s mayo or yogurt based will not freeze well, as the dressing can separate.
The inspiration for this recipe comes from three sources. My sweet and tangy coleslaw, a Chick-Fil-A copycat recipe I’m working on for my other website, and this recipe from Gimme Some Oven. Ali has some fantastic recipes there, and she really got the proportion of greek yogurt right.
To make it easy and really cut down the prep time, I used a bag of shredded coleslaw mix and just chopped it up a little bit. I chose not to add purple cabbage here, to keep that classic coleslaw color, but it would be a great addition. If you’re feeling ambitious, go ahead and grab a head of green cabbage and a few carrots and grate them on your box grater.
As we head into summer bbq and potluck season, give this skinny coleslaw recipe a try, and don’t forget to have some on top of this pulled pork or shredded beef barbecue!
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Ingredients
- 2/3 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice , fresh is best
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp ground celery seed
- kosher salt and black pepper, to taste (I like mine peppery)
- 10 oz bag of shredded coleslaw mix
- 1/3 cup red onion or shallots , finely minced
- 2 Tbsp green onions, sliced
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine Greek yogurt, vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, celery seed, salt and pepper. Whisk until a dressing forms.
- Add coleslaw mix, red onion, and green onions. Toss to combine, making sure all the coleslaw is coated.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. Taste and adjust salt and pepper seasoning.
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Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Calories: 34 | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 0g | Saturated Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 13mg | Potassium 93mg | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1% | Vitamin C: 17.1% | Calcium: 3.4% | Iron: 1.1%
I’m not a nutritionist, and nutritional values here on my recipes should be used for general information purposes only. This information is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for specific medical conditions. You should seek prompt medical care for any specific health issues and consult your physician before starting a new diet and fitness regimen.
phylliss greene says
i would love your ebook recipes.
The Chunky Chef says
Thank you! They’re available for purchase on this page: https://www.thechunkychef.com/books/
Donna says
I don’t see the recipe. Can you post it?
The Chunky Chef says
You scrolled past it to leave a comment 🙂 The recipe card has a large navy blue header to make it stand out, or you can click the “jump to recipe” button at the very top of the page, and it takes you right to it.
Lyd says
It just tasted like cabbage with yogurt: not good at all.
cindy says
I think it needs just a tad of dijon to cut the tartness. Thanks for thinking of yogurt instead of low fat mayo which tastes awful.
Becky says
There’s no fiber count listed in the nutritional info. It is needed to calculate PP on the current WW plan. Can you add the fiber please?
The Chunky Chef says
The nutritional information is automatically calculated by the recipe card plugin, so if full nutrition information is important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer, or that you seek a nutritionist/dietitian for exact nutritional information.
Susan says
I made dressing first and let it chill overnight. Next day I added a bag of shredded cabbage with carrots
Peggy says
Delish will definitely make again.
Chris Codrington says
Lovely so far will let it sit an hour or two!
Debbie says
I’m so happy I didn’t read the comments before making this. This is a great recipe for a lighter, cleaner, fresher tasting coleslaw. Next time I’m going to try to replace the granulated sugar with another sweetener since I’m trying to eliminate granulated sugar.
Debbie S. says
Exactly what I was thinking too. Either Monk fruit or Organic Stevia.
Gary Balkam says
Chunky Chef. lol Love the name. Me, I’m flat out Fluffy! (Ice Age ref)
Aislinn says
This made a really good dressing! I was looking for something creamy and low calorie. It was a really tangy base, which I liked, but may put some people off….I also used 1/2 packet of stevoa in place of the sugar, so that probably did it. Now that I have a basic base, it’ll be easy to spice up to meet dinner needs. For example, I don’t ever have celery, but it was going on tacos so I put some chipotle spice in. It was delicious!
diane says
im going to try this.hope i like it.
i really miss mayo.im on plant based eating plan
Gina says
I had high hopes but it just tasted like yogurt mixed into cabbage. I guess maybe we were expecting too much. We ended up throwing it out. Sorry, but didn’t taste like coleslaw at all to us.
Gary Balkam says
Nothing like my recipe either. I’m looking for high fiber, low cal filler for meals for weight loss. I’m a 4 hotdog kinda guy. lol, 2 sandwiches at least!. And the yogurt just doesn’t appeal to me so….
1/2 head of cabbage (remove the core) chop in a food processor
1 large carrot, peeled. Shred in food processor on top of cabbage.
*option for sweeter coleslaw.. remove core from one apple, add to carrots and cabbage and chop in food processor. **
1/4 cup Miracle Whip OR store brand whipped salad dressing OR Mayonnaise. Don’t bother with the “light” version for a couple calories you may as well enjoy your coleslaw.
mix well in food processor and put in sealed containers when done, refrigerate. Should keep 3-5 days or more if the air doesn’t get at it. (or add 1tsp lemon juice-will prevent cabbage from turning black)
You can also shred the cabbage but tbh I LOVE the old KFC coleslaw so I really fine chop my cabbage.
This recipe is so simple and plain you have lots of room to get funky with it. Toss in 1 ounce walnuts and dice with the cabbage and toss in 1/4 cup raisins when you add the dressing. You could even use purple or red cabbage.
if you wanted to get really freaky, you could omit the dressing, add 1 tsp oil, 1 tbls vinegar and say 1/2 cucumber (Hmmmm some melon instead?) lol this is just for wetness to stick it together.
Sarah says
What is the serving size?
Amanda says
I don’t measure my serving sizes exactly, it’s just 1/8th of the total amount 🙂
Ksthy says
Thank you for this yummy recipe! I’ll have to figure the points but I know they are low!!
Sarah says
I made this and love it!!! Sooo good!!