I struggled with calling this recipe a salad or a slaw. I settled on Mango Salad, but one thing is certain....it's delicious! It's full of cool, crisp vegetables, sweet mango, zesty lime, and creamy avocado. It's the perfect pairing for barbecued meats and adds a taste of the tropics on a warm summer day. It will be your new favorite summer salad!
If you're trying to eat more vegetables, this is a great salad because it has some natural sweetness from the mango which hits those pleasure spots of the brain. This makes it a great option to serve to kids since they tend to lean towards more sweeter foods. It's also a great source of vitamins C and A, fiber, potassium, and antioxidants which protect against cancer.
I created this recipe while looking for more vegetable options to pair with our tacos. It's great with spicy foods because it's cooling and a bit sweet, which helps balance out smokey flavor and heat.
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What You'll Need
This salad is full of nourishing, fresh ingredients that are perfect to enjoy during the warm summer months. You'll get lots of crispness from the cabbage and pepper, a bit of citrus from the lime, creaminess from the avocado, and a taste of something tropical from the mango. I recommend purchasing organic produce when you can and using the freshest options possible. Here's what you'll need:
- thinly sliced cabbage or slaw mix
- fresh mango, diced
- orange bell pepper, sliced thin
- avocado, diced
- green onion, sliced thin
- lime juice, freshly squeezed
- cilantro, roughly chopped
(See recipe card below for quantities and specific instructions)
How To Make This Mango Salad
This is a very simple salad that takes only a few minutes to put together. I like to save time using pre-shredded slaw mix, but you can certainly shred the cabbage yourself. Once the cabbage is shredded, you just need to dice and slice the rest of your produce, then juice your lime. Give it all a toss and it's ready to enjoy!
Step 1: Prepare all your produce according to the instructions below.
Step 2: Toss it all together in a bowl, and that's it!
Toss your ingredients together until all of the cabbage has been moistened by the lime juice and the avocado becomes creamy. If your avocado isn't properly ripe and it's still hard, you won't achieve the creaminess we're looking for here. I like to refrigerate the tossed salad while I prepare the rest of my meal to give all the flavors a little time to marry together.
How to tell if your avocado is ripe: the skin of your avocado should be dark green, nearly black. Give it a very gentle squeeze, and it should feel firm but give slightly. It should not have bright green skin, or feel hard or mushy when squeezed.
What To Serve With Mango Salad
Mango salad is a very cooling, refreshing dish to enjoy in the warm summer months. Here are some ways I enjoy it:
- With Grilled Meats - a delicious addition to barbecues, paired with grilled chicken and beef
- Tacos - we love this as a side with tacos or as a garnish on shrimp tacos
- Seafood - a tasty complement to salmon, grilled fish, or shrimp
I also enjoy this as a side salad with my sandwiches and meatless sweet potato chili.
Variations
I love this salad as written but I've also made a few different variations of it. Here are some other options to try:
- Add some crunch - top the salad with some chopped cashews to add a bit of salty crunch
- Grilled chicken - make it a meal by adding some lean protein like grilled chicken or shrimp
- Try lettuce - if you really don't like cabbage, try substituting some chopped romaine lettuce, iceberg, or kale.
If you like salads with fruit, try this strawberry salad with quinoa!
Kitchen tools I used to make this
You won't need any fancy equipment to make this salad, but a good chef's knife for cutting your produce will be helpful. Every kitchen also needs a good cutting board, and I love this one from Virginia Boys.
You'll also want a large mixing bowl to toss the salad in. I love my Cuisinart bowl which has a cover, so it's also great for storing leftovers. For serving, I use my mango serving bowl and bamboo salad hands.
Leftovers
This salad is best enjoyed immediately after making it because the avocados can oxidize and turn brown. The lime juice will help prevent this, and I have eaten leftovers the next day, but it's best to make the salad right before you plan to eat it.
Freezing is not recommended.
Tips
Use the freshest ingredients possible. The fresher the produce is, the more flavorful it will be.
Be sure to use fresh, ripe mangos! You can tell a mango is ripe if it has a light, sweet smell. It should be slightly soft to the touch, not hard and not mushy. If you use overripe mangoes they will be mushy and break apart when you toss the salad.
Cutting your vegetables into uniform shapes will help create a pleasant mouthfeel, but don't fuss over it too much. If you're not using bagged slaw mix, slice your cabbage very thin. You'll also want to cut your pepper into thin slices so they aren't too big or too crunchy, and similar in length and width to your cabbage. This will create a crispy, delicious crunch contrasting with the small soft bites of mango and avocado.
Other Recipes To Try
Looking for more salads? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with mango salad:
Easy Mango Salad
Ingredients
- 12 oz thinly sliced cabbage store-bought bagged coleslaw mix works great
- 2 fresh mangos peeled and diced
- 1 orange bell pepper sliced thin
- 2 green onion sliced thin
- 2 avocados diced
- 3 tablespoon cilantro roughly chopped
- 3 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice 1 -2 limes depending on size and juiciness
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Toss all the ingredients together well in a bowl until all cabbage pieces have been moistened with lime juice and the avocado gets creamy.
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