The Best Cabbage Salad. Packed with plant-based protein and vitamins. 20-minutes to make. Gut-healthy, delicious, and budget-friendly. Plus, this satisfying salad is rich in iron, as well as vitamins C and B12.
Take your cabbage salad to the next level with the crispiest chickpea croutons and a creamy vegan Caesar dressing the entire family will love. It's a perfect recipe for meal prep.
This combination was inspired by Warm Brussels Sprout Salad with Lentils on this site, as well as this 6-ingredient Red Cabbage Salad.
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👩🏼🌾 Ingredients
- Cabbage has so many health benefits. It's high in beta-carotene, vitamin C and fiber, and contains antioxidants that may have beneficial effects on cancer prevention, inflammation, and cardiovascular disease. Plus, it’s cheap and widely available year-round. It also lasts longer in the fridge than most vegetables. This cabbage salad is made with green cabbage.
- Chickpeas are high in plant-based protein, fiber, and iron. They get deliciously crispy in the air-fryer or oven, making them the perfect croutons for this gluten-free recipe.
- Hummus adds a creamy texture, additional protein, and tons of flavor to the vegan Caesar dressing. Use store-bought or homemade hummus.
- Capers and their liquid add a lemony tang to the dressing. Their brininess adds a sea-like quality, mimicking the umami flavor of the anchovies in traditional Caesar salad.
- Nutritional yeast packs umami into the vegan Caesar dressing, as well as vitamin B12, and additional protein.
See recipe card for quantities.
🥬 Substitutions
- Green cabbage - instead of green cabbage, use 6 to 7 cups chopped curly kale, iceberg lettuce, or a mixture of shredded red and green cabbage to make this dish
- Chickpeas - substitute with crispy baked tofu cubes to change things up
- Puy of French lentils - add roasted lentils for even more protein. Roast ¾ cup cooked lentils tossed with salt and olive oil at the same time as the chickpeas.
- Capers and juice - substitute with red wine vinegar or marinated artichoke hearts to taste
- Nutritional yeast - use vegan parmesan instead as needed
Try this Best Vegetable Bowl for another protein-rich and veggie-loaded recipe. Visit my Vegan Salad Recipes page for more balanced and satisfying salad dinner ideas.
📖 Instructions
Preheat the oven to 425ºF or the air-fryer to 390ºF.
Step 1. Toss the chickpeas with olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, and salt. Either air-fry for about 12 minutes or bake for 20 minutes, or until crispy. For extra crispy, broil for 2 more minutes after baking.
Step 2. Shred the cabbage and toss with salt, pepper, and olive oil. Rub the cabbage until evenly coated with the seasoning. Add parsley, and hemp hearts.
Step 3. Make the dressing: Add the hummus, lemon zest and juice, Dijon, capers and juice, olive oil, and maple syrup to a medium bowl. Grate or press the garlic into the bowl.
Step 4. Mix the dressing with water until the desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper. Add the dressing to the cabbage mixture. Top the cabbage salad with crispy chickpeas for serving.
💡 Expert Tips
- For extra crispy chickpeas, rub them between the layers of a kitchen or paper towel to remove the skins. Use a large rimmed baking sheet and place them in a single layer. If you do not own an air-fryer, change the oven setting to broil after 15 minutes, and cook for about 2 minutes more, or until they reach the desired crispiness.
- Save time and use a food processor with the shredding disc to chop the cabbage.
- Storage: Refrigerate any leftover Best Cabbage Salad in an airtight container for up to 4 days. For extra freshness, meal prep this salad and store the chickpeas, dressing, and cabbage mixture in three separate airtight containers for up to 5 days.
🙋🏽♀️ Recipe FAQs
There are only 22 calories in one cup of green cabbage, and it is high in fiber. Fiber helps us feel full more quickly. Therefore, cabbage can be a healthy addition to a weight loss diet plan. However, you must not solely rely on cabbage. It is important to maintain a balanced diet, rich in a variety of nutrients.
Eat it raw, lightly stir-fried, or fermented in gut-healthy foods like sauerkraut and kimchi. However, keep in mind that fermented foods tend to be high in sodium, and so are best consumed in moderation as part of a balanced diet.
Cabbage is very versatile. It can be eaten raw or cooked and added to a wide variety of dishes like salads, soups, stews, and slaws. It can even be fermented and made into sauerkraut or kimchi.
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📖 Recipe
Cabbage Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the chickpea croutons:
- 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas drained, and rinsed (or 3 cups cooked)
- Drizzle of olive oil (optional)
- Dash of paprika
- Dash of garlic powder
- Salt to taste
For the vegan Caesar dressing:
- ¼ cup hummus
- Zest of one lemon
- 2 lemons juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ⅓ cup nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons chopped capers
- 1 tablespoon caper juice
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (optional)
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup or to taste
For the cabbage salad:
- ½ medium green cabbage shredded or thinly sliced
- Drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil (optional)
- Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- 2 tablespoons hemp hearts (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF or the air-fryer to 390ºF.
- Optional: Rub the chickpeas between the layers of a kitchen or paper towel to remove the skins.
- Season and roast chickpeas: Toss the chickpeas with olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, and salt. Either air-fry for about 12 minutes or bake for 20 minutes, or until crispy. (For extra crispy, broil for 2 more minutes after baking.)
- Make the dressing: Meanwhile, add the hummus, lemon zest and juice, Dijon, capers and juice, olive oil, and maple syrup to a medium bowl. Grate or press the garlic into the bowl. Add water until the desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.
- Toss the cabbage with salt, pepper, and olive oil. Rub the cabbage to coat with the seasoning. Add the parsley, and hemp hearts.
- Combine: Mix the cabbage with the desired amount of dressing. Top with chickpea croutons for serving.
Notes
- Instead of green cabbage, use 6 to 7 cups chopped curly kale, iceberg lettuce, or a mixture of shredded red and green cabbage.
- More protein: Add roasted Puy or French lentils for even more protein. Roast ¾ cup cooked lentils tossed with salt and olive oil at the same time as the chickpeas.
- Capers and juice - substitute with red wine vinegar or marinated artichoke hearts to taste
- Nutritional yeast - use vegan parmesan instead as needed
- Storage: Refrigerate any leftover Best Cabbage Salad in an airtight container for up to 4 days. For extra freshness, meal prep this salad and store the chickpeas, dressing, and cabbage mixture in three separate airtight containers for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
This information is provided as a courtesy and is an ESTIMATE only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased can change the nutritional information in any given recipe.
Jennifer
What a great recipe! I added roasted lentils in addition to garbanzos and since I had a bit of red cabbage added that to the mix. It really added some nice color. We really liked this dish, it was crunchy, savory and easy. Thank you so much!
Nisha Melvani
I'm so glad you enjoyed it, and love your tasty additions. Thank you.
Primla Goddard
This is a great economical dish full of proteins and the hummus just brings it all together! Love this idea ❤️
Nisha Melvani
Thank you. I'm definitely even more focused on keeping recipe costs down with the rising food prices!
Neena Chandiramani
Cabbage, chickpeas with capers - what a great combination!
Nisha Melvani
A fave! Thanks.
Jacqueline Defriece
Absolutely amazing……loved the cabbage salad. I am adding it to my menu in my coffee shop.
Nisha Melvani
So glad you enjoyed it. Looks like you have a lovely coffee shop. Maybe you can refer them to my blog or instagram!