Vinegar Slaw

Method

1. slice12 min
   core removed, cut against the grain as fine as you can
   cabbage shredded thin, + carrot grated, + onion sliced. Fine and even is the whole texture — thick shreds stay tough and never take up the dressing, and a slaw is one of the few dishes where knife work alone determines whether it is good
2. season40 min
   1 tsp of the salt, in a colander over a bowl, weighted if possible
   the cabbage salted and left to drain at least forty minutes. Salt pulls water through the cell walls by osmosis; expect a quarter of a cup or more to come out. This both concentrates the cabbage and stops it flooding the dressing later. Do not rinse it — you would put the water straight back
3. whisk4 min
   small pan, warmed only until the sugar dissolves
   vinegar + sugar + mustard + celery seed + remaining salt + pepper, warmed and stirred until clear, then + oil whisked in. Mustard emulsifies this the same way it does a vinaigrette; warming is only to dissolve the sugar, and boiling would drive off the vinegar's aroma and leave it flatly sour
4. fold4 min
   drained cabbage in a bowl, warm dressing poured over, tossed thoroughly
   drained cabbage + carrot + onion (+ red cabbage, + bell pepper, + chilli flakes) + warm dressing, turned until everything is coated. Warm dressing on cold cabbage is absorbed noticeably faster — the cell walls are more permeable and the sugar and acid get inside rather than sitting on the surface
5. rest10 min
   covered, refrigerated at least 1 hour, ideally 4
   before serving, and taste again cold. This slaw genuinely improves overnight as the acid works into the cabbage, which is the opposite of a mayonnaise slaw — the creamy kind is best within a couple of hours and weeps after that. Correct the sweet-sour balance cold, since cold suppresses sweetness far more than acid