Watery Cole Slaw

Cooking Discussions
1

Before preparing, I sliced and salted the cabbage, put it in a sieve, and put the sieve in a mixing bowl. A weight is placed on the top of the cabbage, and the sieve is elevated from the bottom to allow it to drain for probably 3-4 hours. Which it did. The amount of drained liquid varies.

After preparation, the dressing was creamy. The next day, it was a pond. Maybe that’s a slight exaggeration, but it was very watery. I never before had that much water in that time span.

I saw an Alton Brown video in the past in which, after draining, he rinsed off the cabbage to remove the salt. I always wondered why, since you’re just going to reintroduce the salt with the dressing, so I do not rinse.

I know there are probably several variables, including the age of the cabbage.

What did I do wrong? How do you avoid this? Should rinse?

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2

Question: what were the ingredients in your dressing?

3

Well, the salt’s gonna make the cabbage exude more water over time.

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4

I stopped fussing with winging it myself and now follow this method, these directions and a pro deli guy from NYC tips for dealing with the brine.

The step by step video

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5

3-4 hours is not likely to work…
try overnight in the fridge.

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6

You could readily expand this to watery (anything) type salad. Why does my (egg, chicken, etc.) salad have a pool the next day or two?

I also suspect the answers to all will be similar.

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7

Hi, thanks for the recipe.

That recipe confuses me. I’m not questioning the validity. but I guess I don’t understand the science.

What exactly is the brine doing? Leeching the water? Flavoring the cabbage? It’s all sitting on the bottom of the bowl the next day, with all that seasoning, waiting to be drained off. And what would be the purpose of saving the brine?

8

Are you saying use the same method, and just let it sit longer?

9

Similar to the Deli recipe, mayo, but cider vinegar instead, no extra water, pepper, sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, celery seed, sometimes a little onion

10

Sure, but I’ve never had that extreme amount of liquid overnight before.

I’m trying to figure out why.

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11

ok, as you say, it’s expected, but not to that level from what I’ve experienced.

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12

The brine flavors the cabbage/carrot overnight and the mayo is added the following day. The excess brine is removed to avoid the very problem you experienced but saved if the slaw dries out and needs some liquid days later. This recipe, based on how commercial deli’s prepare slaw, allows for better control over how liquidy the slaw is. There is no need to salt it. It’s a different approach. I now prefer it.

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13

Okay, so you can still use your flavor choices without salting the raw cabbage.

14

I use celery seed too. In all deli styled salads actually.

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15

And finally, if you were happy with how the slaw tasted, you can drain off the excess liquid and adjust the seasoning or even the mayo if needed.

Because I do find all deli salads really are a taste as you go thing.

16

Oh, No, sorry, I wasn’t trying to minimize what happened to you this time.

I’m just frustrated by how often my stuff ends up watery, too!

17

You could just drain the water from the slaw, and then serve and eat as-is.

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18

Ice bathe fresh shred, drain and toss in towels, and season and dress right before serving.

19

. . . same method . . .

yup. it also helps to turn / stir it a couple hours in.

if it is an amount you that will be consumed “same day” the salting/draining is not essential.
but overnight+ drawing out the ‘free water’ really helps keep it crisp.

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20

I also find that if you prefer a crunchier slaw, more like a vinegar based slaw or say a taco slaw, use less dressing. I don’t do anything other than finely slice the cabbage. There is plenty of salt in the dressing or brine depending on the dressing approach you choose.

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