This 10-Minute Nigerian Salad Deserves a Spot at Your Next Cookout

Why It Works

• Shredding the vegetables finely ensures the salad cream coats each piece evenly, creating a cohesive, flavorful mix.
• Adding beans after dressing creates an attractive final presentation.

In Nigeria, when we say “salad,” we’re not talking about a little pile of lettuce leaves. Think of it as our answer to coleslaw—creamy, colorful, hearty, and made for sharing—but with far more variety and possibility. Nigerian salad is a dish I grew up seeing on tables at birthdays, weddings, and Sunday lunches. This dish is made to be shared and proudly set in the middle of the table, and watch it disappear as everyone helps themselves.

Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

At its heart, this salad is a mix of fresh, crunchy vegetables—cabbage, carrots, lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, and bell peppers—tossed with a tangy salad cream that is the foundation. From there, you can make it your own. Add boiled potatoes or pasta for something more filling. Toss in cooked green beans, sweet corn, or peas for extra pops of flavor and texture. For protein, hard-boiled eggs are the classic choice and what I’ve included in my recipe below, but corned beef, sardines, grilled fish, and steamed tofu are other popular options that work well too. You can simplify the recipe even further by starting with store-bought shredded coleslaw cabbage mix instead of shredding your own cabbage.

Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

Beans are one of my favorite additions to this salad. In Nigeria, canned baked beans—yes, the kind in tomato sauce—are a traditional and beloved ingredient. If I’m using them, I don’t drain them; The sauce mingles with the salad cream in the loveliest way. But I also love this salad with other beans and have included black-eyed peas as an option. When I use those, I make sure to drain them well (and rinse, if they’re especially starchy) so the salad stays fresh and bright.

Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

The dressing—what Nigerians call salad cream—is creamy, tangy, a little sweet, and perfect for pulling all of the salad’s textures together. I make mine from scratch with mayonnaise, lime juice and zest, mustard, and a touch of vinegar and sugar. The salad cream keeps in the fridge for a week, so you can prepare it in advance.

The salad itself can also be assembled ahead—up to a day before—and chilled until it’s time to serve. It’s a simple, refreshing dish that’s endlessly adaptable, and one I return to again and again.

Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

Move Over Coleslaw: This 10-Minute Nigerian Salad Deserves a Spot at Your Next Cookout

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For the Salad Cream:

• 1 tablespoon wine or sherry vinegar

• 1 tablespoon confectioners sugar’ sugar, plus more to taste

• 1 teaspoon Dijon or whole grain mustard

• 1 cup (230 g) store-bought mayonnaise

• Zest and juice of 1 lime, plus more juice if you like

• Kosher salt to taste

For the Salad:

• 1 cup (100 g) shredded white or green cabbage (about 1/4 of 1 small cabbage head) (see notes)

• 1 cup (100 g) shredded carrots (about 2 medium carrots)

• 1 cup (75 g) shredded romaine or iceberg lettuce (about 1/4 head)

• 2 firm plum or Roma tomatoes, 1 chopped (about 1/2 cup; 90 g) and 1 sliced 1/4-inch thick 

• 1/2 cup (65 g) chopped peeled cucumber (seeded if you like), plus 1/2 medium cucumber, sliced 1/4 inch thick

• 1/2 medium green bell pepper (about 2.5 ounces; 70 g), trimmed and sliced into thin strips

• 2 scallions, sliced thin (about 1/4 cup)

• 1 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems (1 ounce; 28 g), washed, trimmed, and finely chopped

• 3 tablespoons Homemade Salad Cream (from recipe above), plus more for serving

• 1/2 cup (125 g) drained canned black-eyed peas or canned vegetarian baked beans, preferably Heinz Original

• 2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and cut into quarters, wedges, or slices

1. For the Salad Cream: In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, confectioners’ sugar, and mustard until combined. Add mayonnaise, lime zest, and juice, and whisk until combined.

   Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

2. Season to taste with salt or lime juice, if desired. Set aside until ready to use or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 7 days.

   Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

3. For the Salad: In a large bowl, combine cabbage, carrots, lettuce, chopped tomatoes, chopped cucumber, bell pepper, scallions, and cilantro. Drizzle 3 tablespoons prepared salad cream over vegetables and toss to combine.

   Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

4. Transfer dressed vegetables to a large serving platter in an even layer. Spoon the baked beans over the top. Garnish with small piles of the tomato slices, cucumber slices, and hard-boiled eggs. Serve right away or cover and refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour. Serve with extra salad cream.

   Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

Notes

Store-bough shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix may be substituted for the freshly shredded cabbage.

Make-Ahead and Storage

The salad cream can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 7 days.

The salad can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.