Broccoli Crunch Salad is probably one of the most popular classic salad recipes. Broccoli, dried cranberries, bacon, sunflower seeds (but I also add pepitas!) and finely diced red onion is tossed in a simple, 3-ingredient dressing. Not only is this salad colorful and crunchy, but delicious too!
Pulled from the three-ring binder my mom gave me of “our family’s treasured recipes” I’ve been wanting to make this broccoli crunch salad for forever now.
It just took me a bit because the recipe had zero measurements and I needed to figure that part out. But alas it’s done and oh is it delicious. Because a) broccoli! You know how I love my broccoli. And b) bacon. For the same exact reasons as a). Throw in all the other crunchy things like roasted sunflower seeds, pepitas and red onion. And let’s not forget the slightly sweet dried cranberries and a 3-ingredient poppyseed salad dressing. And just like that, you’ve got yourself the best broccoli crunch salad EVER.
This is a great picnic salad. It’s also great to serve at a barbecue or as a side dish for dinner. Wednesday night I served this broccoli crunch salad as a side with grilled chicken breasts and corn and man, it was so delicious. In fact, Pat and came back for seconds and then thirds. I blame the bacon. And the crunchy! All the ingredients tie in so well with one another and I loved how the dressing softened the broccoli a bit so it gets a little tender than straight up raw broccoli.
To Make This Broccoli Crunch Salad You Will Need:
- a large head of broccoli, trimmed and cut into bitesize florets
- bacon
- red onion
- pipitas
- sunflower seeds
- mayo
- cider vinegar
- poppy seeds
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
In a small bowl combine 2/3 cup mayonnaise, 1-1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 2 teaspoons poppy seeds and pinches of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to your preferred taste.
Whisk until combined.
Prep, measure and add the broccoli florets from a large head of broccoli, 4 strips of cooked bacon that have been, 1/2 cup dried cranberries, 1/3 cup pepitas, 1/4 cup (unsalted) roasted sunflower seeds and 1/3 cup diced red onion.
Pour in all of the dressing.
Then simply toss to coat.
You could of course could serve this right away, but it really benefits from time in the fridge. At least an hour or more.
Serve wherever, whenever.
Enjoy! And if you give this Broccoli Crunch Salad recipe a try, let me know! Snap a photo and tag me on twitter or instagram!
Broccoli Crunch Salad
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup mayonnaise, homemade or store-bought
- 1½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
- kosher salt, to taste
- freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 4 slices thick-cut applewood bacon, cooked and finely chopped
- 1 large head broccoli, cut into bite-size pieces
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/3 cup pepitas
- 1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
- 1/4 cup unsalted roasted sunflower seeds, shelled
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the mayo, cider vinegar and poppy seeds. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- In a large bowl combine crumbled bacon with the broccoli florets, cranberries, pepitas, onion and sunflower seeds.
- Pour in the dressing an toss to combine.
- Cover and chill for 1 hour or longer, or until ready to serve.
Buy the Cookbook: Simply Scratch : 120 Wholesome Homemade Recipes Made Easy Now available on Amazon »
THANK YOU in advance for your support!
(You forgot to mention the apple cider vinegar in the dressing narrative part, but it’s in the recipe at the bottom.) I’ll be making this asap because your kale chopped salad (with a bottle of honey poppyseed dressing) lives in our fridge, nearly year round – but especially in the summertime!
Thank for catching that, Danielle! Enjoy!
I have a bbq coming up this weekend! This will definitely be on the menu! Thanks, Laurie!
Just added to my shopping list! Sounds delicious.
I hope you enjoyed it, Nichole!
You can make it with marzettis slaw dressing really easy