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Broccoli Salad

Posted by Elise on Jul 21, 2007

Filed under Gluten-Free, Salad, Seasonal Favorites: Summer, Vegetable

Broccoli Salad

The problem with most broccoli salads is the broccoli - the raw broccoli. Some people like raw broccoli, and actually, I love raw broccoli stems. They taste a lot like cabbage or cauliflower. But the florets? If they're raw, keep them away please. So, how to make a broccoli salad if you don't like raw broccoli? The solution - blanch the broccoli for 1 minute, or no more than two minutes. The broccoli will still be firm enough for the salad, the color will be even prettier, because blanching brings out the green, and the taste will be less raw and more cooked. In this recipe, the broccoli pairs wonderfully with the toasted almonds, bacon, peas, and onion. The honey and vinegar in the dressing adds some sweet and sour to the mix. Normally I cringe at the thought of broccoli salad, but honestly, this is one of the tastiest salads I've ever made, broccoli or not.

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Broccoli Salad Recipe

  • Prep time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 5-6 cups fresh broccoli florets (about 1 pound of florets)
  • 1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
  • 1/2 cup cooked, crumbled bacon
  • 1/4 cup of red onion, chopped
  • 1 cup of frozen peas, thawed (or fresh peas if you can get them)
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 cup honey

Method

1 Bring a large pot of water, salted with a teaspoon of salt, to a boil. Add the broccoli florets. Cook 1-2 minutes, depending on how crunchy you want the broccoli. 1 minute will turn the broccoli bright green, and leave it still pretty crunchy. 2 minutes will cook the broccoli through, but still firm. Set your timer and do not cook for more than 2 minutes, or the broccoli will get mushy. Drain the broccoli and immediately put into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Let cool and drain.

2 Combine broccoli florets, almonds, crumbled bacon, chopped onion, and peas in a large serving bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, cider vinegar and honey. Add dressing to the salad and toss to mix well. Chill thoroughly before serving.

Yield: Serves 4 to 6.

Indexed: Broccoli, Picnic Salad, Salad

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61 Comments

That looks tasty! And just in time for a BBQ I'm going to this weekend. Yumm... blanched broccoli and bacon, how can you go wrong? Thanks!

Posted by: Meilin on June 9, 2006 3:19 PM

Looks and sounds great. I just did a very similar one with cauliflower, which was also good.

Posted by: Ellen on June 9, 2006 7:27 PM

This sounds GREAT! Plus, I LOVE the taste of raw broccoli, which will save me time and dishes with this recipe! hee hee

Posted by: Kyleen on June 9, 2006 7:58 PM

I made brocolli salad before, but different from yours. I put in 'tuna in oil' and toss the boiled brocolli together with mayonnaise. Mine is a very simple version though. But it tastes nice because the tuna smells nice. And my friend who doesn't eat brocolli eats it because of the tuna! Haha.

Posted by: meikit on June 10, 2006 3:05 AM

This salad sounds incredible. It made my mouth water just reading about it. Then I read about the mayonnaise and my heart dropped. Does anyone have any suggestions for what could be used instead of mayonnaise? I hate the taste of it and of its brother, salad dressing. Would the vinegar and honey be fine together on this dish without the mayonnaise?

Posted by: Jessica on June 10, 2006 10:20 AM

Instead of peas, we use raisins. It adds a lovely sweet taste and even more fiber, iron and Vit B&A

Posted by: Karen on June 10, 2006 10:30 AM

I use raisins, dried cherries, or mandarin oranges instead of peas (I don't like peas). And sunflower kernels instead of almonds. Same salad, though. It's a REALLY GOOD salad that keeps well - second day is almost as good as the first.

Posted by: Gwen in Texas on June 10, 2006 12:02 PM

I like my crunchy things to be crunchy when I eat them (almonds, bacon), so I wouldn't add them to this salad until right before serving. I am definitely going to try this recipe very soon!

Posted by: Linda on June 10, 2006 3:30 PM

For the person who doesn't like mayo, how about sour cream or plain or vanilla yogurt?

This is a really good salad. I do think blanching would make it taste better. I've only had it with the raw broccoli and sometimes it doesn't taste quite right. I will try blanching the next time I make it.

Thanks,

Rita Scott, Vancouver, WA

Posted by: Rita on June 10, 2006 8:44 PM

Since I discovered blanched broccoli maybe 10 or 12 years ago I've never been satisfied with raw crudites of broccoli. I'm quite happy with 25-45 seconds of boiling time for such applications, followed by the usual dunk in ice water. It concentrates the good flavors of broccoli, tames the rawness, and maintains the desirable crunchiness. Usually I just use raw ginger and good soy sauce as a garnish, much like I frequently do with spinach, which likes mercilessly brief blanching (5-10 seconds).

Posted by: Jason Truesdell on June 10, 2006 11:07 PM

Any ideas for a good bacon substitute?
I can't wait to try this salad out.

Posted by: Mike on June 12, 2006 6:01 AM

I make a broccoli salad that similar to this recipe. However, I do not cook or blanche the broccoli. I find that if you refrigerate the salad for 2 hours, the broccoli becomes more tender (chopping broccoli into small florets also helps). The only other differences are that I use crisp turkey bacon instead of regular, use sugar instead of honey, I add raisins and do not include almond or peas. It's always a crowd pleaser.

Posted by: Alyssa on June 12, 2006 11:36 AM

I made this this weekend with soy "bacon" bits and it came out great!

I had two minor issues. This first one was probably a newbie mistake and was that you need to drain the broccoli well after blanching. My dressing mixed with the extra water and it pooled at the bottom instead of sticking nicely like in Elise's photo. The second was that if you use fake bacon bits like I did, 1/2 cup is a bit on the heavy side. Maybe adding a weight limit on the bacon measurement would be good.

Thanks for a tasty BBQ side dish Elise!

Posted by: Meilin on June 12, 2006 2:15 PM

I tried this recipe today and it was delicious! The sauce was a little too watery (maybe I put in too much vinegar?) but otherwise quite tasty. My first broccoli blanch = a success. Thanks.

Posted by: Wendy on June 15, 2006 11:16 AM

My sister-in-law made a similar salad this weekend. I think she combined several recipes and maybe threw in everything else she liked. She did not put peas, but she did put bacon, sharp cheddar, broken pecans, sunflower seeds, raisins, craisins, and (by-the-way the broccoli) with the dressing mixture. My brother HATES mayonaise (won't come near it in anything!), but he laps this down like it is going out of style, as did the rest of my family. We made the dressing separately and poured it over the mixed salad, which had been in the refrigerator overnight and was still crunchy and good, at the last minute. We did not, however, use the entire dressing mixture on the salad. We used just enough to coat the salad lightly, so that may be better for mayo avoiders.

Posted by: Jan Marie on July 7, 2006 3:32 PM

Thank you for such a wonderful site! While I have yet to try every recipe I drool over, I'm always happy with the results. And, thanks to this recipe, I succeeded in my first ever attempt at blanching. I first came across a broccoli salad while at a gathering of my boyfriend's family. This recipe is an exact match to my memory of it. Thank you!

Posted by: Karen on August 6, 2006 7:41 AM

I made this salad yesterday and found it to have too much mayonaise. I followed all the measurements, but there was way too much dressing for the salad. If I make it again, I will certainly use less mayo.

Posted by: Leah on August 7, 2006 6:55 AM

I'm planning on making a broccoli salad for a prayer group tonight. I am going to take the suggestion of blanching. Sounds like a good one to me!

Posted by: Claire N on August 17, 2006 12:54 PM

I make a super easy version of this. I use bottled coleslaw dressing instead of the mayo, vinegar, and honey/sugar mixture. I use bacon bits (real not simulated). I don't blanche the brocolli, but I make the salad ahead of time so it has plenty of time to marinate. I use raisins instead of peas and sunflower seeds instead of almonds.

Posted by: Gail on August 24, 2006 10:54 AM

This recipe sounds yummy but gosh, all that mayo? What about a low fat yogurt version? Do you have a good recipe?

Posted by: Wendy on January 13, 2007 2:47 PM

This salad rocks! I HATE broccoli but I love this salad. I first tried this at a friend's house when I took a a small helping just to be polite. It was SO delicious I had a second helping and asked for the recipe.

I used only 1/2 a cup of light mayonnaise to cut back on the fat/calories. I blanched the veggies too, and used raisins instead of peas.

Posted by: Melissa on May 2, 2007 2:34 PM

I just made this. I will be eating it for lunch tomorrow. I had a little taste and it's yummy. Can't wait.