Vinegar coleslaw is a staple of the southern table and this easy-to-make vinegar slaw recipe will satisfy your taste buds. This dish has three main ingredients, cabbage, sugar, and vinegar-all you have to do is add them together in a bowl and enjoy! It’s delicious with BBQ chicken or fish for dinner and makes an excellent side dish. Give it a try today!
A go-to favorite to serve with barbecue is coleslaw. But the question in my family is whether or not it should be creamy coleslaw or vinegar slaw. Personally, I prefer creamy. My husband likes his made with vinegar. Either way, both versions are the quintessential side for all things barbecue.
This recipe for vinegar coleslaw is based on my dear sweet mother-in-law’s recipe that she used for years. The recipe is simple and as basic as can be. No mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, black pepper, or celery seed in this version.
🥘 Ingredients
For this super simple coleslaw recipe, you need the following ingredients:
- shredded cabbage
- sugar
- vinegar
- water
🔪 Instructions
To make it, combine the sugar, vinegar, and water in a saucepan and heat over low-medium heat until the sugar dissolves.
Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes. Place shredded cabbage in a large bowl and pour the vinegar mixture on top. The heat from the warm liquid slightly wilts the cabbage.
Put the coleslaw in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours before serving.
Like BBQ? Be sure to check out these other delicious recipes at Southern Kissed that are great for grilling/BBQ season:
Vinegar Coleslaw
Ingredients
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¾ cup vinegar
- 1 cup water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 package coleslaw blend or shredded cabbage
Instructions
- Place all ingredients except for coleslaw blend in a small saucepan and heat on medium setting until sugar has dissolved.
- Remove from heat and pour over coleslaw blend in a large bowl.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
This coleslaw is good paired not only with barbecue but on it, too! That’s right – place a nice, large spoonful on top of your shredded barbecue chicken, beef, or pork. Take a hamburger bun, add a layer of barbecue meat, add a little bit of barbecue sauce, a layer of slaw, perhaps a pickle, and then the top bun.
Be sure to come back and tell us how your vinegar slaw turned out!
ROBERT R STREET says
Ingredients in recipe does not say how much water
Lynda says
Great catch! Thank you so much for pointing that out to me. I edited the recipe and added 1 cup of water to the ingredients list.
JAB says
When I was little (under 10) there was a seafood place near us that people came to on the weekends from 50 miles away. I never liked seafood much, but they had the best spaghetti a girl could ask for, with a deep dark red tangy sauce. It also came with coleslaw that was made with vinegar. It was my absolute favorite! It squeaked on your teeth as you ate it, lol! I have never known how to make it and don’t know any places around me that have anything like it. That particular restaurant closed down many, many years ago. I’m going to try this recipe because it sounds like it might just be right. Thanks for posting it!
Lee Gresham says
I grew up eating the vinegar based coleslslaw in Tennessee-my absolute favorite.on a chopped pork.sandwich. I have lived in Texas for a long time (great state!) but can’t seem to acquire a taste for the creamy, mayo.based slaw–
Lynda says
I like them both; however, my favorite is KFC’s cole slaw.
patti says
i am picky about coleslaw……creamy for me with just a little vinegar as well.