This broccoli salad is a crowd-pleaser, perfect salad for any party or potluck. It’s a mouthwatering combination of fresh broccoli, crispy bacon, cheddar cheese, toasted almonds, red onion, and a creamy homemade mayonnaise dressing. It’s the best broccoli salad recipe that’s ready in less than 15 minutes.
Broccoli Salad is the star at BBQ and potlucks. It’s extremely easy to whip up, pairs perfectly with baked chicken thighs, or as a side to lemon garlic chicken.
Loaded with tons of flavor this salad it’s delicious served on its own.
Broccoli Salad Ingredients
The beauty of this broccoli salad recipe is how a few ingredients are combined into a flavorful meal. Imagine raw broccoli florets, crispy bacon, crispy almond flakes, all coated in a super creamy mayonnaise dressing.
For a hint of sweetness, you can add dried cranberries. Here are the ingredients needed for my favorite broccoli salad:
- Broccoli – I used fresh broccoli chopped into bite-sized pieces. I don’t use to blanch my broccoli for this salad recipe. To blanch broccoli bring a pot of water to aboil. Blanch the broccoli for about 60 seconds, then rinse in cold water.
- Crispy Bacon– oven-baked bacon is my favorite. So crispy.
- Cheddar Cheese – extra sharp cheddar is my favorite. You can also shred cheese at home.
- Toasted Almonds – for flavor and crispy texture.
- Red Onion
- Dried Cranberries
How To Make Broccoli Salad
Making this cold broccoli salad is extremely easy. In fact, there’s no cooking involved except the bacon. You can cook the bacon in advance and have it ready to add to this 5-minute salad.
- Take a big head of broccoli, wash and chop into small florets using a sharp knife.
- Once, you’re done with the broccoli chop a medium red onion and make some cheddar cheese cubes.
- Throw all these into a big bowl along with almond flakes and cranberries.
- It’s time to make the flavorful, creamy, and tangy dressing by simply combining the mayonnaise, yogurt, vinegar, sweetener, salt, and pepper.
- Pour the dressing over the broccoli salad ingredients and toss them well to coat evenly.
Make sure bacon bits and cheese cubes are well distributed through the salad.
Tips for Making The Best Broccoli Salad
- For a keto broccoli salad leave out dried cranberries since they are usually high in carbs and have tons of added sugars.
- Use sunflower seeds or toasted hazelnuts instead of almond flakes. Cheese is mandatory, so add your favorite! I prefer adding aged cheddar cheese.
- Goat cheese or feta is a perfect addition for even more creaminess.
- To lighten up broccoli salad use light mayonnaise or replace it with greek yogurt.
To Cook or Not to Cook Broccoli
I prefer raw broccoli and that’s recommended in most broccoli salads. Just make sure to cut it into small florets to make it easier to chew.
The Broccoli salad dressing is made with apple cider vinegar that slightly softens the broccoli. Uncooked broccoli provides more nutrients and it is super crunchy.
I suggest steaming it for a few minutes if you don’t like eating raw broccoli. Let it completely cool down before making this insanely delicious salad.
Is Broccoli Keto?
Yes, broccoli is a low carb vegetable that’s keto-friendly. According to the USDA website, 1 cup of chopped broccoli provides 3.67g of net carbs, 30.9 calories, and 2.37g of fiber.
Other Broccoli Recipes You Might Like
- Air Fryer Pork Chops and Crispy Garlic Broccoli
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole
- 20 Minute Creamy and Cheesy Broccoli with Bacon
- Easy Keto Broccoli Cheese Soup
- 15 Minute Oven Roasted Healthy Chicken and Vegetables
Easy Broccoli Salad
Description
Ingredients
- 5 cups broccoli cut into small florets
- ⅓ cup red onion diced
- ¼ cup sunflower seeds or almonds flakes toasted
- ½ cup bacon cooked and chopped
- 1 cup cheddar cheese cubed
- ¼ cup cranberries*
Broccoli Salad Dressing
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp sweetener
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp full-fat Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1-2 tbsp water
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl add 5 cups of broccoli, bacon, red onion, cranberries*, and cheddar cheese.
- To make the dressing combine mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, apple cider vinegar, sweetener, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.
- Pour the prepared dressing over and toss to coat thoroughly.
- Refrigerate broccoli salad for at least one hour before serving. Stir it well again. Enjoy!
Notes
How do we calculate the nutrition info?
These nutrition facts listed are determined using nutrition information from the USDA Food Database. Our nutrition facts are accurate, but if you are using different products, please make your calculations. Net carb count is calculated by subtracting both fiber and sugar alcohols because they don’t raise blood sugar.
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