Cilantro Lime Slaw

This Cilantro Lime Slaw recipe is easy to make in just 10 minutes, it tastes extra fresh and light, and it can work great as a zesty side dish or as a topping for tacos, burgers, sandwiches and more.

Guys, I’ve got the yummiest fish taco recipe comin’ your way tomorrow.

But first — we’ve gotta talk about this coleslaw. ♡

It’s my go-to, back-pocket, easy-breezy, fresh-and-flavorful cilantro lime slaw recipe that I’ve made for years, and it somehow magically goes with just about everything. I make it most often just as a simple side dish when we’re grilling out in the summertime, especially anytime that BBQ sauce or Mexican food are involved. But it’s also fantastic served as a topping on pretty much any kind of tacos — fish, shrimp, carnitas, sofritas, barbacoa, chicken, you name it. It also works great as a topping for burgers or sandwiches, or mixed into buddah bowls or burrito bowls. Or hey — if you want to maybe add a protein and avocado in there too — this slaw can easily be transformed into an entree just like that.

Mostly though, I just love this cilantro lime slaw because it tastes super light and healthy, and it’s a breeze to make. Just pick up a bag of coleslaw mix at the store (or shred some cabbage and carrots and make your own from scratch). Pop a handful of simple ingredients to the blender to make the sauce. Toss everything together and then — voila! — the most delicious, creamy, tangy coleslaw can be ready to go in less than 10 minutes.

Let’s make some!

Cilantro Lime Slaw Ingredients:

To make this recipe, you will need the following cilantro lime coleslaw ingredients:

• Coleslaw mix: To make this recipe extra quick and easy, I recommend just picking up a bag of coleslaw mix at the store. Or you’re welcome to just shred some cabbage and carrots and make your own homemade coleslaw mix.
• Greek yogurt: I like to make this slaw with (full-fat) plain Greek yogurt. But you are welcome to use mayo (or a 50/50 split with mayo) if you prefer. Or mix in some sour cream for an even tangier slaw.
• Fresh cilantro: We will add lots to the coleslaw dressing, but feel free to also stir in some (larger) chopped cilantro leaves to the finished slaw too.
• Green onions: We will just add the green parts.
• Lime juice: Freshly-squeezed, please.
• Garlic: A few cloves of fresh garlic. Or you can sub in a teaspoon of garlic powder.
• Seasonings: Just salt, pepper and cumin.
• (Optional) Jalapeño or Serrano Pepper: I love adding in a seeded chile pepper for a little extra heat. Or, if you would like a significantly spicier slaw, leave in the seeds. :)

How To Make Coleslaw:

To make this easy coleslaw recipe, simply…

1. Make the coleslaw dressing: Combine the Greek yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, cumin, salt, pepper, jalapeño (if using), green onions and garlic in a blender or food processor, and pulse briefly until the mixture is combined. (Or alternately, if you would rather not use a blender to make the coleslaw dressing recipe, you can just finely-chop the ingredients and then stir everything together.)
2. Toss everything together. In a large bowl, toss the coleslaw mix with the dressing until combined.
3. Serve.  Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day.

Full instructions in the recipe below.

Possible Variations:

Want to mix things up with this homemade coleslaw recipe? Feel free to:

• Use a different creamy base: If you love a good mayo-based coleslaw, feel free to use mayo in place of Greek yogurt, or do a 50/50 blend. Or for an even tangier slaw, feel free to use sour cream in place of Greek yogurt, or do a 50/50 blend.
• Make it sweeter: For a slightly sweeter slaw, feel free to mix 1-2 tablespoons of honey into the coleslaw dressing.
• Make it smokier: For a smokier slaw, add 1 chipotle pepper in adobe sauce to the dressing. (It’s so good!!)
• Add avocado: Adding in some avocado is always a good idea. ;)
• Add extra veggies: If you would like to gussy up the coleslaw mix with extra veggies, feel free to add in some thinly-sliced bell peppers, red onions, jicama, and/or radishes.
• Add nuts: For some extra crunch, try adding a handful of pepitas or sunflower seeds to this slaw too!

Ways To Serve This Coleslaw:

As I mentioned above, this cilantro lime slaw recipe can be served any number of ways! Some of my favorites include…

• Easy side dish: This slaw tastes great on its own as an easy side dish, especially with Mexican or Thai food, or when served with any kind of grilled meats or veggies.
• Fish tacos: I most often make some form of this slaw to serve on fish tacos. (Stay tuned for a new recipe tomorrow!)
• Burgers/BBQ/etc: This slaw works great as a topping for burgers, bbq sandwiches, sloppy joes, and many other kinds of sandwiches/slider.

Cilantro Lime Slaw

4.86 from 67 votes

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes minutes

Makes: 4 -6 servings

Author: Ali

Rate Pin Print

This Cilantro Lime Slaw recipe is easy to make in just 10 minutes, it tastes extra fresh and light, and it can work great as a zesty side dish or as a topping for tacos, burgers, sandwiches and more.

Ingredients

0.5x1x2xCustom

• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt*
• 1/2 cup tightly-packed fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup freshly-squeezed lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper
• 3 green onions (just the green parts)
• 2 garlic cloves
• (optional) 1 jalapeño or serrano pepper, stemmed and cored
• 1 (14-ounce) bag cole slaw mix* (about 7-8 cups)

Instructions

• ▢
  Combine the Greek yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, cumin, salt, black pepper, green onions, garlic and jalapeño (if using) in a blender or food processor*.  Pulse briefly a few times until the mixtures is combined.
• ▢
  Place the cole slaw mix in a large mixing bowl.  Drizzle the sauce on top of the cole slaw, then toss until the mixture is evenly combined.  Season with extra pepper and/or lime juice if needed.
• ▢
  Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.

Notes

*Greek yogurt: I used plain full-fat Greek yogurt for this recipe.  But if you prefer a mayo-based slaw, you are welcome to use mayo instead, or a 50/50 blend.  Or you could do a blend with sour cream if you would like an even tangier slaw.

*Cole slaw mix: If you would like to make homemade cole slaw mix, just combine about 7 cups of shredded cabbage (green, red, or a mix) and 1 cup of shredded carrots.

*Skip The Blender: If you would like to skip the blender/food processor step, you're also welcome to make this coleslaw dressing recipe entirely by hand.  Just finely chop the cilantro, jalapeño (if using), green onions and garlic, and whisk them all together with the other dressing ingredients until combined.

Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit.

Additional Info

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mexican

Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!