Asian Coleslaw

At Food Blogger Connect a couple of weeks ago I learned so much from Meeta about taking better food photos. Well, even though I am still using my point-and-shoot camera, this is by far the best photo I have yet taken. Thanks, Meeta!

I used a stack of thick cookbooks as a tripod, draped a tablecloth over the microwave as a backdrop, and used a desk lamp and a bounce board for lighting. I took heed of the advice to use a smaller portion for photos. I used a (smaller) dessert fork in this picture. My brother helpfully pointed out that even a point-and-shoot camera has a white balance setting. This has made a huge difference to my pictures. I always set it to indoor light now and all the orangey colours are gone! What a relief.

I am slowly using up all the veg before we head off on our Christmas holiday. Lots of cabbage to get through means lots of stews and coleslaws. This coleslaw uses two types of cabbage, and some baby salad leaves as well. We have been eating a lot of heavy food recently (and I'm sure there is more to come) so the heat and Asian flavours here were a welcome relief. This was a light side dish for pan-fried salmon.

Asian Coleslaw Salad
Serves 2 as a side dish

1/4 head savoy cabbage
1/4 head of white cabbage
1/2 c mixed salad leaves
1/3 c (a handful) of chopped walnuts, toasted
2 T toasted sesame oil
3 T soy sauce
1 T lemon juice
1/2 t garam masala or hot chilli powder
salt and pepper

Finely chop, shred, or process the cabbage. Finely chop the salad leaves. Mix with the toasted walnuts in a bowl.
Make the dressing by whisking the oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, garam masala, salt, and pepper. Pour over the cabbage mixture and toss gently.