Asian Coleslaw

I love this recipe because it's a pretty fun way to get kids to eat veggies. The chow mein noodles and oranges are pretty irresistable! If you want to make it more adult, you can turn up the heat with the chili-garlic sauce.

Here's the ingredient list:

1 small head of coleslaw, shredded
2 small carrots, peeled and sliced thin (you could save yourself the work and just get a bag of coleslaw mix with the cabbage and carrots, but I've not seen any good sales lately and this is the cheaper way to do it)
1/2 red pepper, sliced thinly
1/4 cup finely chopped white onion
1 can mandarin oranges, drained, reserving 3T of the liquid
1t fresh grated ginger root
3T chopped fresh cilantro, or 1/2t dried
1 lime, juiced
1T soy sauce
3T rice wine vinegar (I didn't have so I used white wine vinegar and it turned out fine)
2T honey
1T sesame oil
1/4 to 3/4t chili garlic sauce (optional, use to your liking based on tolerance for spice. We use the low side-doesn't make it hot, just makes it "pop" a little bit)
1/2 cup chow mein noodles
Place all your veggies in a good bowl for tossing.
Place reserved orange liquid, soy sauce, honey, vinegar, lime juice, chili-garlic sauce and sesame oil in a bowl and whisk.
Add cilantro and dressing to the cole slaw and toss to coat. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Just before serving, add 1/2 cup of chow mein noodles so they keep their crunch. My kids will eat these plain for snacks, and later this week I'll post another recipe with a fun way to use the rest of these!

Voila! Such a colorful salad, easy to make, and full of flavor! Tip: for a great main dish salad, add sliced, grilled chicken with the chow mein noodles. Would be perfect with pan fried dumplings as an appetizer!

Linked to the 5 Dollar Dinner Challenge at http://www.5dollardinners.com