Red Cabbage Salad: Simple Ingredients, Serious Benefits

My nurse coaching clients have expressed that they love when I share some of my favorite recipes that pack a powerful, nutritional punch 👊

Before I hand out the recipe, I encourage you to read and educate yourselves on the benefits of the ingredients. My clients will tell you that I give them homework and make them read! 😉

(The following is a summary from articles with links to support them using AI. I will always tell my readers when I use AI, and you can trust that I review the articles myself)

💜 Red Cabbage: More Than Just a Pretty Color

That beautiful deep purple color is actually part of what makes red cabbage so interesting.

Red cabbage contains anthocyanins, which are the pigments responsible for the purple, red, and blue colors found in foods like blueberries, blackberries, and purple vegetables. Anthocyanins belong to a larger group of protective plant compounds called polyphenols.

Red cabbage also provides vitamin C and glucosinolates, naturally occurring compounds found in cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, kale, and Brussels sprouts.

One study comparing red and green cabbage found that red cabbage juice contained significantly higher amounts of total phenolics, vitamin C, and glucosinolates, along with anthocyanins that weren't detected in the green cabbage juice. In experimental cell and C. elegans models, red cabbage also demonstrated greater protection against oxidative and heat stress. The researchers even observed an increase in the worms' average lifespan.

🥕 Carrots: Beta-Carotene & So Much More

Carrots bring another color—and another group of beneficial plant compounds—to the bowl.

They're particularly well known for beta-carotene, a carotenoid that our bodies can convert into vitamin A. Vitamin A plays an important role in normal vision, immune function, skin, and cell growth.

There's also a surprisingly large body of research surrounding carrots and carotenoids. One peer-reviewed umbrella review evaluated 30 meta-analyses covering 26 different health outcomes and found a number of associations between carrot or carotene intake and health outcomes.

It's another great example of why I love the idea of eating the rainbow!

Different colored vegetables provide different combinations of phytochemicals. A large umbrella review examining colorful fruit and vegetable pigments found potential health benefits across carotenoids, flavonoids, and other plant pigments, although the strength of evidence varied considerably depending on the outcome.

🫘 Garbanzo Beans: Fiber + Plant Protein

Garbanzo beans—or chickpeas—are part of a group of foods known as pulses. They're naturally rich in dietary fiber, plant protein, and a variety of micronutrients while being relatively low on the glycemic index.

Fiber is particularly important because it supports digestive health and helps make meals more satisfying. Adding chickpeas also gives the salad some staying power instead of leaving you hungry shortly afterward.

Research examining pulses has found evidence of benefits for several cardiometabolic risk factors. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized trials have reported improvements in measures including blood glucose control, LDL cholesterol, body weight, and blood pressure, although the quality of evidence varies between outcomes. So if you're trying to get more beans and fiber into your diet, tossing chickpeas into salads is an incredibly easy place to start.

🧄 Garlic, Dill & All Those Little Extras

Fresh garlic contains sulfur-containing compounds and other phytochemicals that continue to be studied for their potential roles in cardiovascular and cellular health.

Fresh dill contributes its own collection of naturally occurring plant compounds while adding a ton of flavor.

The best part is that herbs, garlic, pepper, and vinegar allow you to build a tremendous amount of flavor without needing a heavy bottled dressing.

🍎 What About the Apple Cider Vinegar?

I used apple cider vinegar with "the mother" because that's what I had and what I like, but the part of vinegar with some of the better human research behind it is actually acetic acid.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of controlled clinical trials found that consuming vinegar with meals was associated with lower post-meal glucose and insulin responses.

That doesn't make apple cider vinegar a miracle food, and you certainly don't need to start taking shots of it. In this recipe, it's simply a delicious way to add acidity while potentially offering some metabolic benefit as part of the meal.

🌱 Put It All Together

This is what I love about looking at food from an integrative nutrition perspective.

There's no single "superfood" in this bowl that's going to transform your health overnight.

Instead, you have red cabbage and carrots providing colorful plant compounds, chickpeas bringing fiber and plant protein, fresh herbs and garlic adding additional phytochemicals, and vinegar bringing acidity and flavor.

Together, you're getting fiber, plant protein, carotenoids, vitamin C, anthocyanins, glucosinolates, polyphenols, vitamins, minerals, and a whole range of naturally occurring plant compounds in one ridiculously simple salad.

My Red Cabbage Salad

Ingredients:

¼ head red cabbage, finely sliced or shredded

2 carrots, shredded

1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

About ½ cup fresh dill, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

Apple cider vinegar, to taste (i used about a half cup)

2 freshly squeezed lemons

Celtic sea salt, to taste

Freshly cracked black pepper

A small drizzle of honey

Directions:

Throw everything into a big bowl and toss it together. I like to let mine sit for a little while before eating so the vinegar has time to soften the cabbage and all of those flavors can come together.

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A Note on the Research

Nutrition research is constantly evolving, and an association between a food or nutrient and a health outcome doesn't necessarily prove that the food itself caused that outcome. Some of the red cabbage research discussed above was conducted in cells and C. elegans, rather than humans. I include research like this because I think it's fascinating to understand what's happening inside the foods we eat, not because any single ingredient should be considered a treatment or cure.

References:

Jana, S., & Shekhawat, G. S. (2010). Anethum graveolens: An Indian traditional medicinal herb and spice. Pharmacognosy Reviews, 4(8), 179–184. https://doi.org/10.4103/0973-7847.70915

Li, S., Guo, W., Lau, W., Zhang, H., Zhan, Z., Wang, X., & Wang, H. (2023). The association of garlic intake and cardiovascular risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 63(26), 8013–8031. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2022.2053657

Shishehbor, F., Mansoori, A., & Shirani, F. (2017). Vinegar consumption can attenuate postprandial glucose and insulin responses: A systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, 127, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diabres.2017.01.021

Viguiliouk, E., Glenn, A. J., Nishi, S. K., Chiavaroli, L., Seider, M., Khan, T., Bonaccio, M., Iacoviello, L., Mejia, S. B., Jenkins, D. J. A., Kendall, C. W. C., Kahleová, H., Rahelić, D., Salas-Salvadó, J., & Sievenpiper, J. L. (2019). Associations between dietary pulses alone or with other legumes and cardiometabolic disease outcomes: An umbrella review and updated systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. Advances in Nutrition, 10(Supplement_4), S308–S319. https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmz113

Yi, X., Li, J., Liao, D., Peng, G., Zheng, X., Xu, H., Zhang, T., & Ai, J. (2023). Carrot and carotene and multiple health outcomes: An umbrella review of the evidence. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 103(5), 2251–2261. https://doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.12425

Zhang, N., Jiao, S., & Jing, P. (2021). Red cabbage rather than green cabbage increases stress resistance and extends the lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans. Antioxidants, 10(6), 930. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox10060930