Chinese Cabbage Salad Recipe (Easy Peanut Dressing)

This sweet and tangy Chinese Cabbage Salad Recipe with warm peanut salad dressing is a healthy and delicious side dish that’s bursting with the most incredible flavor and amazing crunch. If you’re looking for the perfect side dish for your next potluck, backyard BBQ or just when you’re wanting a new spin on regular salads, you’re going to love this recipe! 

Asian Cabbage Salad Recipe

If you’re a fan of Asian food, this quick and easy, crowd-pleasing salad will quickly become your new obsession. Between the crunchy cabbage, the sweet and juicy mandarin oranges and the warm peanut dressing, it simply doesn’t get any better. And the best part is, it’s super versatile. Serve it as the ultimate side dish or throw in your favorite lean protein for a healthy and hearty meal that will impress all your friends and family.

For other easy Asian inspired meals, you should also try this delicious Cashew Pork Stir-Fry! It’s another great recipe to keep on hand when you’re short on time.

Why We Love this Recipe

• Because cabbage holds up well to any dressing, this is a wonderful salad to make in advance for meal prep.
• Tasty homemade sesame dressing is loaded with such great flavor that can be served over steak, fish or chicken as a dipping sauce.
• Super tasty way to add more healthy vegetables into your weekly meal planning.

Recommended Tools

• Sharp kitchen knife
• Large skillet
• Cutting board
• Large salad bowl
• Measuring cups
• Measuring spoons

Variations and Add-ins

• Cabbage: Regular cabbage is great in this recipe but if you like a little more bite, you can throw in some shredded brussels sprouts. You can also take a short cut and instead of buying a small head of green cabbage and red cabbage, you can use the cabbage slaw mix you find in the produce department.

• Veggies: This recipe call for red peppers but feel free to use green bell pepper or even tri-colored peppers. Other great veggie choices are edamame, snow peas and

• Protein: If you really want to make this a protein powerhouse salad, add sliced grilled steak, a sliced chicken breast or even some shrimp. A great way to make this a super quick and easy weeknight meal is to make it an Asian Chicken Salad using grocery store rotisserie chicken.

• Crunch: Some Asian potluck salads like this use ramen noodles, but we omit them in this recipe and use peanuts. Peanuts go hand in hand with the other flavors in the dressing. But if want to add even more texture and crunch, sunflower seeds are a great idea. They taste great and won’t compete with the peanuts. Sliced almonds are another way to add healthy crunch without changing the flavor.

• Vinegar: Rice wine vinegar is a classic ingredient found in a lot of Asian cabbage salads. But you can use, white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar or even apple cider vinegar if that’s what you have on hand.

What’s Needed to Make this Chinese Cabbage Salad Recipe

Spicy Peanut Salad Dressing Ingredients: 

• All-natural peanut butter
• Rice vinegar
• Sesame oil
• Sriracha sauce
• Tamari or coconut aminos
• Honey, preferably local
• Fresh lime juice
• Fresh ginger, finely minced
• Garlic cloves, finely minced
• Reserved juice from canned Mandarin oranges
• Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Salad Ingredients:

• Green cabbage, shredded
• Red cabbage, shredded
• Large carrots, shredded
• Red bell pepper, sliced thin
• Green onions (green parts only), sliced
• Fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
• Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
• Toasted peanuts, chopped
• Sugar-free Mandarin oranges (packed in juice)
• White sesame seeds 

How to Make Asian Salad with Homemade Peanut Dressing

Step One: Make the Peanut Butter Asian Dressing

• For the dressing, combine the peanut butter, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sriracha sauce in a medium skillet over medium heat. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and heat, stirring continually, until the peanut butter melts, and the ingredients are combined completely, about 2-3 minutes.
• Reduce heat to low and next whisk in reserved mandarin orange juice and the rest of the dressing ingredients until combined. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until heated through, approximately 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Keep warm.

Step Two Prepare the Salad

• In a large bowl, combine shredded green cabbage, red cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, green onion, and fresh cilantro. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and drizzle with a small amount of the warm peanut dressing. Toss lightly to combine.
• Transfer salad to serving platter. Top with chopped peanuts, Mandarin oranges, and sesame seeds. Serve immediately with remaining peanut dressing on the side. Enjoy!

Asian Salad with Warm Peanut Dressing FAQs

What Can I Use Instead of Peanut Butter?

If you prefer, you can use all-natural almond butter instead of peanut butter. You can use Tahini, but it will have a stronger flavor, so you may want to add a little extra honey to balance it out.

Can I Freeze Leftover Peanut Dressing?

This dressing is so addicting that you may be tempted to make a double batch. If you’re planning on using it withing a few days, that’s a great idea. Unfortunately, this dressing does not freeze well. The ingredients tend to separate once frozen.

If you’d like to try to freeze it, I recommend reheating it just until it’s a little warmer than room temperature then use an immersion blender to mix the ingredients, heating it more until it is warm enough to easily pour. Honestly, it’s such a simple dressing to make, it’s better when made fresh and it only take a couple of minutes.

How Long Does Asian Salad Last in the Fridge?

A prepared salad can last in the fridge for a couple of days. For best results, store the salad in one bowl and the tasty dressing in a separate container. This will help the salad last up to 4-5 days in the fridge. Warm up the dressing

Want More Healthy Salad Recipes?

• Keto Caprese Salad
• Easy Kidney Bean Salad
• Easy Beef Taco Salad
• Cold Green Bean Salad
• Healthy Broccoli Salad
• Greek Quinoa Salad
• Cold Asparagus Salad