I have been on a salad-trying spree lately.

And when I say salad, I don’t mean just any salad.

I have been on a mission to see how many different vegetables I can throw together, experiment with familiar recipes, and somehow convince myself that I have discovered something completely new.

This particular experiment started with one vegetable that wasn’t exactly a regular in my childhood kitchen: red cabbage.

Or, as I like to call it, purple cabbage.

Growing up, red cabbage was not a typical vegetable in my world.

In fact, if I had come across it when I was younger, I probably would have assumed someone had taken ordinary cabbage, added a little purple food colouring and said, “Voilà! Red cabbage!“

Because honestly, what else was I supposed to think?

Over the years, though, I have become much more adventurous with vegetables.

I enjoy walking through the grocery store and picking up vegetables that I wouldn’t normally buy, then challenging myself to figure out how I can incorporate them into meals I already enjoy.

So, one day, while doing my grocery shopping, I came across red cabbage.

And almost immediately, two things came to mind:

Coleslaw and kikalayi.

Now, coleslaw probably needs very little introduction.

It is typically made from finely shredded cabbage and carrots, often mixed with a creamy dressing.

It is crunchy, fresh and usually served as a side dish.

To make a healthy version of coleslaw with red cabbage, I used my cucumber tomato avocado salad recipe and replaced the tomatoes and cucumber in the salad with sliced red cabbage and grated carrots.

Kikalayi, on the other hand, is a completely different experience.

What exactly is Kikalayi?

If you are Ugandan, you may already know exactly what I mean when I say kikalayi.

Kikalayi is a descriptive term for a large, circular, saucer-like stainless-steel platter.

But the word has come to mean much more than the actual plate.

It is the kind of platter placed in the middle of a group of people, usually filled with a generous serving of pork and accompaniments, and everyone gathers around to share the meal.

There is something very communal about it.

People sit together, share the food, reach into the platter and enjoy the meal together.

It is one of those eating experiences that feels less like simply having lunch or dinner and more like an event.

Traditionally, kikalayi is heavily associated with pork, and depending on how it is prepared, it can be quite rich and oily.

So naturally, my brain went:

“What if I made a healthier version?”

And that is how this red cabbage kikalayi-inspired salad came about.

My Healthier Version of Kikalayi

I call this a healthier version because I have taken some of the heavier elements out of the cooking process while keeping the parts that make the dish enjoyable.

For starters, I use lean pork rather than fatty cuts of meat.

I also don’t cook the vegetables that make up the fresh base of the salad.

Instead, the red cabbage and carrots remain raw.

This gives the dish a beautiful crunch and, honestly, makes it feel much more like a salad than a traditional pork dish.

The result is a combination of warm, savoury pork and fresh, crunchy vegetables.

And the red cabbage?

It gives the whole thing a gorgeous colour.

It is also proof that sometimes all you need to make an old idea feel new is to introduce one unfamiliar ingredient.

Ingredients

For the pork

• 1 cup chopped lean pork
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
• 2 teaspoons salt, adjusted to taste
• ½ small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 large tomato, chopped and peeled
• 2 teaspoons curry powder (Royco or your favourite seasoning powder)
• Approximately ½ cup water

For the salad

• 1 cup finely sliced red cabbage
• 1 cup grated carrots
• 1 spring onion, chopped
• A small handful of fresh coriander, chopped
• ½ small red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons salt, adjusted to taste
• 1 teaspoon black pepper (optional)

You can adjust the quantities depending on how much salad you want to make.

The beauty of a recipe like this is that you don’t have to be overly precise with the vegetables.

If you love cabbage, add more.

If carrots are your thing, grate away.

If you want more onion, go for it.

This is your salad.

How to Make the Red Cabbage Kikalayi Salad

Start with the pork

The pork is the only part of this recipe that needs to be cooked.

Begin by placing your chopped pork in a bowl and seasoning it with the rosemary and about 2 teaspoons of salt.

Mix everything thoroughly so that the seasoning coats the meat.

Let the pork sit for about 5 minutes.

Now place a pan over medium heat and add the seasoned pork.

At first, you don’t need to add any oil.

As the pork heats up, it will begin releasing its own moisture.

The meat will essentially start cooking in the liquid that comes out of it.

Keep stirring occasionally and allow the pork to cook until most of that water has evaporated.

At this stage, the pork may look like it is almost cooked, but don’t be fooled.

It still needs more time.

Add approximately ½ cup of water, cover the pan and allow the pork to continue cooking.

Let it simmer until most of the water has evaporated again.

If you are using lean pork, you will notice that the pieces may start sticking slightly to the bottom of the pan as the liquid disappears.

This is when the olive oil comes in.

Add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan and stir the pork.

Continue cooking until the meat develops a beautiful brown colour.

And this is where things start smelling really good.

Add the onions

Once the pork has browned, add half of your sliced onion.

Stir the onions into the meat and allow them to cook until they develop slightly golden edges.

You don’t necessarily want them completely caramelised.

Just let them soften and pick up some of that flavour from the pork.

Add the tomatoes

Next, add your chopped tomato.

One little tip here: remove the outer skin of the tomato before chopping it.

This prevents pieces of tomato skin from floating around in the finished dish and gives the pork mixture a smoother texture.

Allow the tomatoes to cook until they soften completely.

Add your curry powder and stir everything together.

If you are using Royco or another seasoning powder, dissolve it in a little water first rather than adding the powder directly to the pan.

Add the dissolved seasoning mixture to the pork and stir well.

Allow everything to cook together until the pork mixture is fully cooked and the flavours have come together.

Once you’re happy with the pork, remove it from the heat and set it aside.

Now for the Fresh Part

This is where the salad comes together.

And thankfully, there is very little cooking involved.

In a large bowl, add your:

• Sliced red cabbage
• Grated carrots
• Sliced red onion
• Chopped spring onion
• Fresh coriander

Give everything a good toss.

Sprinkle salt to the mixture according to your taste, and maybe black pepper if you’d like.

Don’t overthink this part.

The goal is simply to distribute the vegetables evenly so that every bite gives you a little bit of everything.

You should now have a beautiful mixture of purple, orange, green and white.

And honestly, this is one of the reasons I love red cabbage.

It makes an otherwise ordinary-looking salad feel a little more exciting.

Bring Everything Together

Now comes my favourite part.

Add the fresh vegetable mixture to the cooked pork.

Give everything a gentle toss until the vegetables are evenly distributed throughout the meat.

And…

VOILÀ!

Your red cabbage kikalayi-inspired salad is ready.

The beauty of this dish is in the contrast.

You have the warm, savoury and spiced pork alongside the cool, fresh and crunchy vegetables.

The red cabbage gives you that satisfying crunch, while the carrots add a little natural sweetness.

The onions bring their sharpness, the coriander adds freshness, and the curry-seasoned pork brings everything together.

It is a surprisingly simple combination, but it works.

Why I Love This Salad

One of my favourite things about cooking is taking something familiar and giving it a little twist.

In this case, the familiar part was the pork.

The new part was the red cabbage.

And the result was something that felt both familiar and completely different.

And Then There Is the Nutrition

Another reason I enjoy this salad is that the vegetables aren’t just there to make the plate look colourful.

Because I leave the cabbage and carrots raw, they provide a fresh, crunchy component to the meal while contributing a range of important nutrients.

Red cabbage is particularly interesting because of its colour.

That beautiful purple-red colour comes from natural compounds called anthocyanins.

These are antioxidant pigments also found in foods such as berries and purple sweet potatoes.

Red cabbage also provides vitamin C, vitamin K, folate and fibre, as well as smaller amounts of other vitamins and minerals.

And because I don’t cook it, the cabbage keeps that characteristic crunch that I love in a salad.

Then there are the carrots.

Carrots are well known for their beta-carotene, which the body can convert into vitamin A.

Vitamin A plays an important role in normal vision, immune function and maintaining healthy skin and other tissues.

Carrots also contribute fibre and several other micronutrients.

The red onion adds more than just flavour and a little sharpness.

Onions contain vitamin C and various plant compounds, including flavonoids.

The spring onions and coriander add even more variety to the vegetable mixture while contributing small amounts of vitamins, minerals and other plant compounds.

So, by the time all these vegetables come together, you’re not just getting colour and crunch.

You’re getting a mixture of different nutrients and naturally occurring plant compounds from several different vegetables.

Red Cabbage vs. Ordinary Cabbage

Now, you might be wondering: Is red cabbage actually healthier than the ordinary green cabbage I’m already used to?

The answer is a little more nuanced.

Both are nutritious members of the cruciferous vegetable family, and ordinary green cabbage is absolutely a healthy food.

So this isn’t a case of red cabbage being “good” and green cabbage being “bad.”

They simply have somewhat different nutritional profiles.

One of the biggest differences is anthocyanins.

Green cabbage contains many of the same beneficial compounds found in other cruciferous vegetables, but red cabbage contains considerably more anthocyanin pigments.

These compounds are responsible for its distinctive red-purple colour and have antioxidant properties.

Red cabbage also tends to provide more vitamin C and vitamin K per comparable amount than green cabbage, although the exact amounts can vary depending on the variety, growing conditions and serving size.

Final Thoughts

I have to admit, I am really enjoying my current salad-trying spree.

It has made me realise that salads don’t have to be boring bowls of lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber.

They can be hearty, colourful, filling and full of personality.

More importantly, they can be inspired by the foods we already know and love.

This red cabbage kikalayi-inspired salad is a perfect example.

It takes the communal spirit and savoury character of kikalayi and combines it with the freshness and crunch of a raw vegetable salad.

And for me, the red cabbage is the star of the show.

It is funny to think that I once might have looked at this vegetable and assumed someone had simply dyed ordinary cabbage purple.

Now, I am deliberately putting it in my shopping basket.

Maybe that’s the fun of growing older and becoming more adventurous with food.

You start discovering that some of the things you didn’t understand or appreciate when you were younger can become some of your favourite ingredients later.

So, if you have never cooked with red cabbage before, consider this your sign to pick one up the next time you are grocery shopping.

And if you already have a red cabbage sitting in your fridge wondering what its purpose in life is…

Well, now you know.

Make yourself some kikalayi-inspired salad.

And if you’re anything like me, you might just find yourself starting a salad-trying spree of your own.