What is Kohlrabi?
Kohlrabi, if you are unfamiliar, is a vegetable in the Brassica family along with cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower- and is just as nutrient-dense.
Kohlrabi can be eaten cooked or raw.
The word Kohlrabi is German and translates to “cabbage turnip” and its flavor tastes of cabbage and turnip with a hint of sweetness and a peppery bite. They are fairly common in German-speaking countries and recently have been showing up in masses at our local markets and CSA boxes!
Watch How to make Kohlrabi Slaw!
Kohlrabi ranges in color from pale green to white to deep purple. And kohlrabi greens are edible too! I like to sauté kohlrabi greens in olive oil with garlic and shallot and a splash of sherry.
How to make Kohlrabi Slaw
Kohlrabi has very thick skin and peeling it can be challenging.
Make sure you have a sharp peeler and plan on peeling it twice.
Once it’s peeled, the rest is very easy. The insides are crisp and juicy like an apple or jicama.
If you are uncertain about Kohlrabi and are hesitant to commit to a whole salad made entirely of kohlrabi, you could try substituting part of the kohlrabi in the recipe with shredded cabbage, jicima, apple, sliced cucumber or sliced fennel.
Slice Kohlrabi in to thin 1/4 inch thick match sticks. You could also grate in a food processor, or cut into matchsticks using a mandolin.
Place the kohlrabi in a bowl and add chopped cilantro and lime zest.
Then make the dressing. Using both fresh orange juice and lime juice gives the dressing a delightful and refreshing flavor.
Half a jalapeño gives a perfect little kick. A whole one, for me, was too spicy and detracted from the overall flavor. So very finely chop ½ a medium jalapeño, and maybe even add it a little at a time, tasting, to find the perfect heat for you personally.
Toss it all together.
Combine all the ingredients and toss with the dressing. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish with a little zest and cilantro before serving.
Hope you enjoy this Kohlrabi Slaw with Cilantro, Jalapeño and Lime.
This salad can be made ahead and keeps well in the fridge for several days.
Serve the Kohlrabi Slaw with grilled fish, pan-seared salmon cakes or even inside fish tacos! Tasty and healthy!
More recipes you may like!
- Warm Red Cabbage Slaw
- Lebanese Slaw (Salatet Malfouf)
- Easy Crunchy Asian Slaw
- Lemony Kale Slaw (Vegan)
- Mexican Slaw with Cilantro and Lime
- JICAMA MANGO SLAW WITH CILANTRO AND LIME
xoxo
Kohlrabi Slaw with Cilantro, Jalapeño and Lime
- Prep Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Salad, slaw, vegan, gluten free
- Method: Tossed
- Cuisine: Mexican
Description
Refreshing and healthy Kohlrabi Slaw made with kohlrabi, cilantro, lime, jalapeño and a simple citrus vinaigrette.
Ingredients
- 6 cups kohlrabi -cut into matchsticks or grated in a food processor -about three x 4 inch bulbs (or you could substitute sliced fennel, apple, jicama, cucumber, or cabbage for part of the kohlrabi for more diversity)
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro ( one small bunch)
- half of a jalapeno -minced
- 1/4 cup chopped scallion
- orange zest from one orange, and juice
- lime zest from one lime, and juice
Citrus Dressing :
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice ( juice form one orange)
- 1/8 cup lime juice plus 1 T ( juice from one large lime), more to taste
- 1/4 cup honey ( or agave syrup)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
Instructions
Trim and peel kohlrabi. ( I normally have to peel twice to get thru the thick skin). Cut off two ends. Cut in half from top to bottom. Thinly slice, rotate and slice again, making 1/4 inch matchsticks.
Place in a large bowl with chopped cilantro, scallions, finely chopped jalapeño ( 1/2), lime zest and orange zest.
Whisk dressing together in a small bowl. Toss with salad. Refrigerate until serving. Garnish with zest and cilantro. This tastes good the next day too.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 155
This was absolutely delicious.
Thank you for the great recipe!!
Thanks- so happy you enjoyed this!
Thanks! Looks delicious ! Am going to my local farmer’s market this week to get all fresh ingredients . I have organic rice vinegar not rice wine vinegar .Could you reccomend a brand of rice wine vinegar ?
Rice vinegar is fine!
Fresh,adaptive to ingredients, colorful, and tasty
I haven’t made this recipe yet. But, someone just gave me a Kohlrabi yesterday.
One question though. You mention using 4″ Kohlrabi bulbs. But, is that 4″ diameter or circumference? The latter is much smaller in size.
4 inches in diameter. 🙂
Can you email this recipe to my email?
Thanks for kohlrabi recipe!
Yaaaasss. This recipe has great “bones”, but I made adjustments to suit my taste. I omitted the o.j. and honey and substituted a pinch of granulated monk fruit to cut down the carbs & sweetness. I also omitted the oil, used a whole fat jalapeño – ribs & seeds because we love heat. Melt-your-face-off heat (read : ghost peppers are my spirit animal). I only had apple cider vinegar on hand, so I subbed that. The flavors are getting frisky in the ‘fridge to serve chilled with smoked ribs. Perfect.
Thank you for a fresh, inspired, new favorite slaw!
Delicious, I served with pulled pork. I used half kohlrabi and half Granny Smith apple, and it was a huge hit. Thanks for a great slaw and another use for kohlrabi, my teenage daughter’s favorite veggie!
sounds absolutely fabulous
I made this tonight. I didn’t have an orange so I substituted some canned mandarin orange slices and juice and it was a tasty addition. Very good.
My daughter’s mother-in-law brought this for a holiday meal. It was a big hit and I especially could not get enough of it. (I finished up the leftovers in the kitchen-not that there was much left.)
Dearest Feasting at Home-
Delish! Love the “add ins” of apple & fennel! Such a lovely, tasty dish… can’t wait to make it again! I used agave ’cause it was handy! Mmm – thank you for sharing this!
Natalie
I made this Saturday after finding kohlrabi at the farmer’s market. I had no idea what kohlrabi was but had to try it! I left the oil out of the dressing and it turned out great. Today is Tuesday and I am already making the 2nd batch!
I get a local farmers basket of produce and had no idea what to do with the kohlrabi and googled and your recipe came up. I added leeks and Granny Smith apples cause that came in my farm box as well. Made a Panko crispy cod to pair with it. My husband raved about this dish. Thanks!
That sounds wonderful Cindy! Glad you like it!
light and summery and deeeeelicious
Yay Chondra!!! Glad you liked it!!
Delicious, thank you! Can I mention the link to print isn’t working for me?
Thanks, I fixed it! Appreciate you telling me!
Having grown up on mashed, hot kohlrabi (I prefer it like a radish, eaten cold) I shred it and added a ton of lime to the dressing and 1/2 t of cumin for a smoky level of flavor. Delicious!
I served this at our 4th of July cookout yesterday. I followed Sylvia’s tips and substituted 1/2 a cucumber and a small fennel bulb for 1 of the kohlrabi. Scrumptious!
Glad you enjoyed!
I made this for the first time last week. It is amazing. This was my first time having kohlrabi. I’ve now made it twice in one week. I’m addicted!
Awesome- glad you enjoyed!
This was delicious with porkchops. I made it exactly as you specified. Very refreshing on a hot summer evening!
Oh great! Glad you enjoyed!
Kohlrabi, apple, and/or cucumber would be great spiralized for this delicious-sounding salad.
Absolutely!
I am not a kohlrabi fan, but this recipe has turned me into one! Best slaw I’ve ever had!
Thanks Eliza, Glad you liked it!!!
I made this recipe last night but subbed the orange zest and orange juice (rarely have oranges at home) for matchsticks of apple. I also used the food processor to make a slaw with the kohlrabi instead of cutting it. SOO much easier! It is seriously awesome.
What a great way to prepare kohlrabi. I always just roast mine, but this looks so perfect for the summer! Can’t wait to try.
Sylvia, I have never tried Kohlrabi but I have been wanting to..Does it taste bitter?
Having just made it, the dressing is the star with the wonderful crispness of the kohlrabi!
Not at all, kohlrabi is a mild sweet vegetable. It looses the sweet with cooking, but raw it is quite sweet. It was one of the first vegetables my children would eat for that reason.