The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe
The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe – This spin on classic southern broccoli salad is bursting with color and surprise ingredients.
Broccoli Salad
Broccoli Salad is a classic side dish that is a true crowd-pleaser all year long.
However, I find we eat it most often in the summer when we are planning picnics and outdoor parties.
Broccoli Salad Recipe
The traditional southern blend of tiny broccoli florets, bacon pieces, and dried fruit kissed with a creamy slaw-style dressing has been around for decades.
Some cooks add in seeds, nuts, onions, and other ingredients to provide additional flavor and crunch.
I have a few other ingredients I like to throw in to create the perkiest, most intriguing, ahem… The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe, my family has ever eaten.
More Broccoli Salad Ingredients
In addition to…
- Broccoli
- Dried cherries
- Bacon
- Red onion
- And sunflower kernels,
The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe also contains…
- Diced apple
- Shredded carrots
- Finely chopped kale
- And crushed red pepper to perfectly balance the sweet and heat.
It offers endless crunch, sweet bites of fruit, rich salty bacon and sunflower seeds, and a touch of spice!
Healthy Broccoli Salad with Kale
Why add kale to broccoli salad, one might ask?
I find that finely chopped kale blends perfectly into the broccoli creating little pockets to hold the dressing and other tasty tidbits.
It offers more nutritional value to the salad, than just broccoli alone. Yet friends and family members resistant to kale, won’t even know it’s there!
I’m tricky like that.
Meal Prep: Make Ahead and Enjoy All Week
The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe is a fabulous make-ahead and leftover.
The ingredients all hold their texture for up to a week in the fridge.
I have been known to stand with the refrigerator door open and eat it straight out of the storage container… For breakfast.
There’s no shame in loving this salad.
See The Recipe Card Below For How To Make The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe.Â
Other recipes you might like:
- Grilled Maple Mustard Chicken
- Provincial Style Red Potato Salad
- Chipotle BBQ Chicken Skewers
- Pimento Cheese Deviled Eggs
- Hawaiian Tuna Burgers
The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 cups broccoli florets
- 3 cups kale finely chopped
- 1 cup red onion chopped
- 1 cup shredded carrots roughly chopped
- 1 apple chopped
- 3/4 cup dried cherries
- 3/4 cup cooked bacon chopped
- 3/4 cup sunflower seed kernels
- 1 cup mayonnaise could be low fat
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1/2-1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Chop and prep all the ingredients. In a large bowl add the broccoli florets, chopped kale, red onion, shredded carrots, chopped apple, dried cherries, chopped bacon, and sunflower kernels.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, honey, crushed red pepper, and salt, until smooth.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and toss until thoroughly coated. Then cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. *Can be made up to 3 days ahead.
Video
Nutrition
Making this recipe? Follow us on Instagram and tag @ASpicyPerspective so we can share what you’re cooking!
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this broccoli salad recipe. Even my broccoli-hating brother asked me for the recipe after eating it. So delicious. I don’t change anything and it’s perfect – especially after it’s chilled over night.
This was very good; I loved the color and the fact that it is another great way to sneak kale into my hubby (much like your amazing macaroni salad!)… but next time I will leave out the crushed red pepper.
This salad is amazing. I followed it directly, and it didn’t disappoint. The sweet and salty flavors, mixed with fresh veggies, made everyone happy at my table.
This is delish!  I had opposite quantities of kale and broccoli so mine was heavy on kale and still just great. I left out the bacon because I couldn’t be bothered to make it. So good news is that it doesn’t need it to be fabulous for anyone wondering.Â
Writing this one down.Â
Definitely a keeper. Thanks!!
This is a winner! I am a culinary instructor and we used this recipe as a guide in a Summer Salad class, we modified it just a little and made homemade mayo for the dressing. It was sensational. I am making it this weekend for a small patio party. It will go great with the bbq ribs.
A healthy, easy but simple dish to make. I will learn to make this dish.
This salad was so good! I’ve made it twice in one week! I used fresh corn and homegrown cherry tomatoes. So much flavor for so few ingredients. Thank you for sharing this recipe as it’s now one of my favorites!
Thank you for this post i like it
Thanx this recipe has everything thats good in it.
I love broccoli!
I would like to make this recipe but it lists 12 servings. How many cups, etc is a serving. I am diabetic and would appreciate this information.
Hi Dian,
Each serving is approximately one cup.
WHERE IS THE VIDEO??????????????????????????????????
Hi Marie,
Our videos are always embedded in the recipe form. Let me know if you can’t find it.
I made this tonight for my family and it was major home run! I left out the carrots. Â
I substituted Monkfruit for honey and cranberries for cherries.Â
I also didn’t add bacon for my vegetarian.  It was still the best broccoli salad ever.Â
Do you cook the broccoli at all or is the broccoli raw?
Hi Cristina,
Use raw broccoli! :)
Love this! Made this to take to a baby shower brunch and I received so many compliments on how delicious it was! And it was super easy to make!
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Love this salad! I make it all the time and bring it for my lunches during the week and it’s always a hit at BBQs!Â
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I made this salad for the first time the other day for a birthday party and it was a big hit. I thought it had a great taste and I will be making this again for sure
Is there a vinaigrette dressing recipe you think would work well with this recipe? Mayo is a no-go for me.
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I didn’t have kale or carrots, dried cherries and don’t eat pork. So substituted a head of cauliflower and dried cranberries and its Delish too. Thanks for the recipe.Â
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We are all broccoli lovers in our house!
This salad really does look the BEST!
This looks so tasty and healthy too!
Iam very love brocolli
This looks fabulous. I actually just BOUGHT something similar at the grocery store. It was so tasty but I know the homemade version would be even better. Definitely making this soon.