Name: Sweet-and-Sour Coleslaw
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Ingredients: 1 pound cabbage (about 1/2 medium head), red or green, shredded fine or chopped (6 cups), (see illustrations below); 1 large carrot, peeled and grated; 1/2 cup granulated sugar; 2 teaspoons kosher salt or 1 teaspoon table salt; 1/4 teaspoon celery seed; 6 tablespoons vegetable oil; 1/4 cup rice vinegar; Ground black pepper

Why This Recipe Works

We wanted to find a coleslaw recipe that would keep the cabbage from watering down the dressing, with a piquant dressing that wasn’t too sharp. Salting cabbage caused it to lose most of its liquid, leaving the cabbage pickle-crisp. We found that salted cabbage also took on more of the dressing's flavors. After a number of failed experiments with dressings for our coleslaw recipe, we decided to give low-acidity rice vinegar a try. We drizzled a bit over the mayonnaise-tossed cabbage and found its mild acidity perfect for coleslaw.

Before You Begin

Since rice wine vinegar tends to mellow, you may want to use cider vinegar if making the slaw a day ahead. The presence of the sugar in this recipe keeps you from having to rinse off salt from the cabbage, as is ordinarily the case.

Instructions

Toss cabbage and carrots with sugar, salt, and celery seeds in colander set over medium bowl. Let stand until cabbage wilts, at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours.

Pour draining liquid from bowl; rinse bowl and dry. Dump wilted cabbage and carrots from colander into bowl.

Add oil and vinegar; toss to coat. Season with pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. (Can be refrigerated 5 days.)