Jicama Slaw with Carrots, Cucumbers, and Bell Peppers

This jicama slaw with carrots, cucumbers, and bell peppers is a refreshing, crunchy, and tangy salad you can serve as a side dish for meat, poultry, and seafood. 

With a fresh dressing made with lime, olive oil, and rice vinegar, and spiced up with chile powder, this jicama slaw goes great with juicy meats such as barbecued ribs or slow cooked brisket.  

This slaw is also tasty as a topping for grilled or baked fish such as cod, halibut, or salmon. It adds a ton of flavor and moisture. You can also add it to tacos for extra crunch. 

Even with lots of chopping and slicing, this slaw is easy to make, plus, it makes great leftovers. You can use leftovers as a topping for a green salad. 

Ingredients in this Slaw: 

Jicama: Whenever I eat something with jicama in it, I always wonder why I don't have it more often. It's actually a root vegetable and can be eaten raw or cooked (be sure to remove the peel either way). Jicama is crisp and juicy, kind of like an apple in texture but with a very mild, slightly sweet, flavor. You can peel it with a knife or simply cut it up and then remove the peel with a knife. It goes great in fruit salads, slaws like this one, and on crudité platters with various dips. 

Sometimes it's called the Mexican potato or the Mexican water chestnut. It's high in fiber and vitamin C too! I received these from Melissa's Produce in a fun produce box and am so happy for the reminder to use them more often, especially in summer salads, salsas, and appetizers. 

Carrots: Peeled and juilienned. I love using my julienne peeler for carrots. 

Napa Cabbage: You will need about a little less than half of a head of Napa cabbage. 

Red Onion: Thinly sliced. It will quickly marinate in the dressing, which will tame the strong onion flavor. 

Red Bell Pepper: Cut it into thin slices. 

Mini Cucumbers: Also known as Persian cucumbers. I love their thin skin that you don't need to peel and they are nearly seedless. 

Cilantro: For garnish. 

For the Dressing: Fresh lime juice, red pepper flakes, chili powder (I used Hatch chili pepper), rice vinegar, sugar, olive oil, and salt and pepper. 

To Make this Jicama Slaw:

First, prepare the dressing by mixing all of the ingredients and shaking them together. Set it aside. If you make it ahead of time, keep it in the refrigerator. 

After that, cut up all of the vegetables and toss them together in a large bowl. 

The hardest part is cutting up the jicama. You will need a very sharp but sturdy knife if your jicama is on the larger side. Rather than peeling it first, I cut it up and then cut off the peel with a knife. 

As you can see, I used a lot of different knives trying to find the right one for each task. The smaller pieces were easier but cutting into the larger whole jicama took a little practice. 

Finally, toss everything together with the dressing and let the slaw sit for 15 minutes for the flavors to come together. 

It's very hard for me to resist skipping my fork and eating the jicama with my fingers straight from this bowl. 

Storage:

Keep any leftovers in the refrigerator. They should be good for a couple of days. The vegetables might lose a bit of their crunch, but they will still be tasty and delicious added to a green salad later. 

"J" is for Jicama, Jalapeño, Jackfruit, Jasmine, Juniper, and More!

As part of the 2026 Alphabet Challenge, we are sharing recipes that begin with "J" or include ingredients or methods that that begin with "J”:

• Sneha’s Recipe: Aloo Tamatar Jhol - No Onion No Garlic
• Blogghetti: Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Cowboy Candy
• Mildly Indian: Jackfruit Seed Stirfry
• Food Lust People Love: Jãgersuppe - Hunter's Soup
• Jolene’s Recipe Journal: Coconut Cherry Jasmine Rice
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories: Jicama Slaw with Carrots, Cucumbers, and Bell Peppers
• A Messy Kitchen: Juniper Butter Cookies
• Mayuri’s Jikoni: Veg Jalfrezi
• Culinary Cam: Jasmine-Infused Tres Leches Bundt
• Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice: Jerk Seasoned Caribbean Honey Mustard Sauce

Last year (2025) for the letter "J," I made Thai-Style Turkey and Jasmine Rice Soup. So comforing. For 2024 I made Johnnycake Cobblers. They are a wonderful spring and summer dessert! 

Jícama Slaw with Carrots, Cucumbers, and Bell Peppers

Yield: 6 servings

Author: Karen Kerr

Prep time: 40 MinTotal time: 40 Min

This jicama slaw with carrots, cucumbers, and bell peppers is a refreshing, crunchy, and tangy salad you can serve as a side dish for meat, poultry, and seafood. 

Ingredients

For the Dressing

• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 6 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

For the Salad

• 1/2 medium jicama, cut into sticks, peel removed, about 3 cups
• 4 carrots, peeled and julienned
• 1/2 small Napa cabbage, shredded, about 2 cups
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 mini (or Persian) cucumbers, julienned
• 1 red bell pepper, julienned
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves

Instructions

1. Whisk together the dressing ingredients and set aside.
2. Combine all of the prepared vegetables in a large bowl, top with the dressing, and toss everything together.
3. Let rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

206

Fat (grams)

15 g

Sat. Fat (grams)

2 g

Carbs (grams)

18 g

Fiber (grams)

6 g

Net carbs

11 g

Sugar (grams)

8 g

Protein (grams)

3 g

Cholesterol (grams)

0 mg

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2026/05/jicama-slaw-with-carrots-cucumbers-and.html

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Recipe adapted from Food Network.