Marinated Beet and Cabbage Salad
Makes 6 to 8 servings
I found this recipe on Bon Appetit’s website a few years ago and have tweaked it just a bit.
You’re making two salads independently then combining them. When plating, my preference is to make a ring of the cabbage mixed with spring mix, then put the beets in the center of the plate so the beets don’t bleed all over the cabbage.
This salad is best if the veggies are allowed to sit for a few hours up to overnight.
As usual, choose organic whenever possible.
For the beets:
3 large raw beets, washed, peeled then coarsely grated.
If you have a good processor with the shredding disk that’s the best way to grate the beets.
Beets are difficult and a mess to grate on a box grater, needless to say what your hands look like from holding all those beets.
When using the food processor, make sure to cut the beets to fit into the small shoot. Easy breezy.
Remove the grated beets from food processor and put into a bowl.
Marinade for the beets
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar (no sherry vinegar – any ol’ vinegar will be nice in this)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons good olive oil
sea salt to taste
For the cabbage:
1 small head cabbage or ½ large head cabbage, quartered, cored and shredded and put into a bowl
A handful or two of spring mix mixed in to the cabbage after it’s marinated.
Marinade for the cabbage
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon liquid sweetener of your choice: either agave syrup or coconut nectar
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill or mint (optional)
sea salt to taste
Directions
Beets
In a small bowl, whisk together the 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, 3 tablespoons olive oil and salt to taste. Mix with the beets. I use tongs to mix the marinade with the beets so my hands don’t look well, all bloody.
Cabbage
Mix the marinade in a bowl: ¼ cup apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon either agave or coconut nectar, 2 tablespoons olive oil and the mint or dill. Mint or dill is optional but they do add a little extra something, something to the flavor or the dish.
Toss the marinade with the cabbage and allow to sit for a few hours.
Stir the separate salads
About every 20 minutes or so give the beets and cabbage a stir, using two separate pairs of tongs, one for the beets, one for the cabbage, so you don’t get the red beet color all over the cabbage.
To serve:
Toss the cabbage salad with a handful or two of baby salad greens.
Put the cabbage salad on the plate first and top with the beets.
Variations on a theme:
• Spice the salad up with a bit of cayenne or chipotle powder in the marinades. Or maybe a hit of shiricha.
• Try using some toasted sesame oil instead of olive oil. Makes it incredibly yummy.
• Do the beet part with red beets and gold beets: but these will need to marinate separately or the red
bleeds into the gold beets. Then when you plate them have a ring of cabbage, then either red beets then
gold beets. It’s beautiful!
• I often add some sweet pea shoots to the salad at the end.
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