This classic broccoli salad will delight you time and again! It’s the tastiest mix of crunchy broccoli, crispy bacon, red onion, cranberries, sunflower seeds, goat cheese, and a creamy mayo-yogurt dressing.
Why You’ll Love This Broccoli Salad
When it comes to the perfect year-round salad recipe, this broccoli salad reigns supreme! It’s great for holidays, potlucks, picnics, barbecues, and even weekly meal prep. Needless to say, it’s a classic for good reason, with its simultaneously crispy, creamy, sweet, and savory flavor. That’s why folks always go back for seconds! And did I mention bacon is involved? Here’s a few more reasons why you’ll love my broccoli salad recipe:
- It’s easily customizable. Swap out any of the add-ins with your favorite dried fruit, seeds, nuts, or cheese.
- It only takes 20 minutes. My favorite thing about this!
- It’s super durable. That means it’ll hold up for several days in the fridge.
- It’s always a holiday party hit. Whether that’s Easter, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, or Christmas.
Broccoli Salad Ingredients
- Broccoli: Chop the raw broccoli florets into bite-sized pieces.
- Red onion: I love diced red onion for a punch of flavor, but green onion works too.
- Bacon: Crispy bacon adds protein and that irresistible savory bite. Want another protein-packed broccoli salad? Try my broccoli tuna salad.
- Dried Cranberries: I use unsweetened dried cranberries, but raisins or dried cherries are great alternatives.
- Sunflower Seeds: For a little crunch, sunflower seeds are my go-to. But slivered almonds or your favorite nuts or seeds also work great.
- Goat Cheese: Just a sprinkle adds amazing creaminess. Crumbled feta or shredded cheddar are also delicious options.
- Broccoli Salad Dressing: This creamy mayonnaise-based dressing gets an upgrade with a bit of homemade yogurt. I skip the added sugar since yogurt adds just the right hint of sweetness and tang.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below
How to Make The Best Broccoli Salad
Step one: Cook the bacon in the oven (it’s way easier), and when that’s done, blot it dry with a paper towel.
Step two: While the bacon is cooking, slice the broccoli florets and red onion, and add them to the bowl along with the sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, and goat cheese. Once the bacon is cooked and cooled, crumble the bacon in the bowl and mix it together.
Step three: In a separate small bowl, make the dressing by stirring together the mayonnaise and yogurt. Add that to the salad and stir everything together until it’s well combined. Voila, your broccoli salad is done!
Common Questions
Most traditional broccoli salads use raw broccoli for its crunchy texture. But if you can’t digest raw broccoli or don’t love the texture, you can blanch the florets for a few minutes. This will slightly soften them while retaining their bright green color and crispness.
Absolutely! Just omit the goat cheese or use a dairy-free alternative, and swap in dairy-free yogurt for the dressing. It’ll still be creamy and delicious.
Yes, you can! Simply leave out the bacon or use a plant-based bacon alternative. For the dressing, opt for vegan mayonnaise.
More Salad Recipes
- Chicken Salad: A spring/summertime classic.
- Tuna Salad: Perfect for a speedy lunch.
- Waldorf Salad: Another holiday favorite.
- Cobb Salad: The perfect high-protein salad.
- Greek Salad: The best Mediterranean salad.
- Or browse through my list of salad recipes and summer salads for more ideas!
If you make this broccoli salad recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below! Your review will help other readers in the community. And if you’re hungry for more healthy food inspiration and exclusive content, join my free newsletter here.
Description
Video
Equipment
- Glass Mixing Bowls Perfect for prepping and mixing all the components.
- Heavy Duty Sheet Pans My favorite sheet pans!
Ingredients
Broccoli Salad
- 8 slices bacon
- 5 cups broccoli florets (from 1 large head of broccoli)
- ⅓ cup diced red onion
- ½ cup dried unsweetened cranberries
- ½ cup sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup crumbled goat cheese
Broccoli Salad Dressing
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup plain yogurt
Instructions
- Cook the bacon. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Add the bacon slices to a parchment-lined baking tray and cook for 15 to 18 minutes, or until crispy. Remove the bacon from the oven and transfer it to a paper towel-lined plate to dry and cool.
- Add everything to a mixing bowl. Add the broccoli, red onion, cranberries, sunflower seeds, and goat cheese to a large mixing bowl. When the bacon is cool to the touch, crumble it on top.
- Make the dressing. Add the mayonnaise and yogurt to a small bowl and stir together.
- Toss to combine. Pour the dressing on top of the broccoli salad and toss to combine.
Lisa’s Tips
- Storage tip: Broccoli salad will stay fresh for 4 to 5 days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge. If you’re making it for a holiday party or gathering, you can prep it the day before, either with or without the dressing.
- Make sure you’ve sliced the broccoli florets into small, bite-sized pieces. It makes it far easier to eat that way.
- If you’re wondering what to do with the broccoli stem, spiralize it! Yes, you can totally spiralize a broccoli stem, just as you would a zucchini. It’s delicious! And while I don’t show you how to spiralize a broccoli stem in my Spiralizer Beginner’s Guide video, you can still get a little inspiration from the video.
Nutrition
©Downshiftology. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
Recipe originally posted June 2018, but updated to include new information and information for your benefit.
So good. Even my picky veggie eater are it
Glad this satisfies even the picky eaters, Katie!
Made this for our annual Labor Day celebration. No leftovers to bring home and you may have so
E new followers as I shared the recipe with some friends
Thanks for spreading the word, Terri! Glad everyone enjoyed this broccoli salad.
The Broccoli Salad was very easy to assemble! The combination of flavors made the taste amazing. The only change I had to make was that I couldn’t find unsweetened cranberries anywhere and my husband has Type 1 Diabetes, so we opted to go without them. We didn’t miss them, but if I can find them in the future I will be sure to make this again with them.
Great to hear this broccoli salad was easy to make, Amy!
Best summer salad ever! We make this on repeat and everyone loves it. This week we served it with grilled chicken and fresh corn on the cob. The best part is if there’s any leftovers we fight over it for lunch the next day!
Leftovers of this broccoli salad are the best! Glad you’re loving this recipe, Kari.
This is such an amazingly good salad!! I brought this to a 4th of July potluck and it was gone in no time! I have never gone wrong with one of Lisa’s delicious recipes!
Thrilled this broccoli salad was such a hit for your party, Christine!
I’ve tried a few broccoli salad recipes but this is the best one I’ve found! The combination of flavors checks all the boxes!! Always a party favorite!
Happy to hear you’ve found the perfect broccoli salad to love, Marianne!
I make this salad on the regular. It’s my family’s absolute favorite salad.
Happy to hear this broccoli salad has become a regular. Enjoy, Silvia!
This broccoli salad is one of my favorite things to make for a crowd. It’s super easy and always a big hit!!
Happy to hear this broccoli salad is always a hit, Jenn!
Still needs s&p
And ofc vinegar. Cruciferous vegetables demand vinegar lol
I love this broccoli salad recipe. I start eating it and can hardly stop. Thanks so much for this because I am not a fan of the traditional broccoli salad recipes. They are too sweet for my palate. This one is just the right amount of sweetness with the dried cranberries
Hi Lisa – I’m happy you love this version of broccoli salad. I agree, I don’t think any added sugar is needed. The dried fruit adds the perfect touch of sweetness. Enjoy!
Happy to hear you found the perfect broccoli salad you can enjoy, Lisa!
I love your broccoli salad. I tried it once and I had to make it again. It was so good! Thank you for great recipes!
You’re more than welcome, Ramona! So glad you enjoyed it!
This was fantastic! I had to do a few swaps- I had pumpkin seeds so I used them instead of sunflower, and I couldn’t find unsweetened cranberries so I used gold raisins. The feta made it soooo creamy. I also added a tbs or so of apple cider vinegar to the mayo and yogurt. I am looking forward to making this again and again!
All those swaps are perfect. So happy you enjoyed it, Heather!
We loved this salad! It was easy and quick to make. It keeps well too as it makes a generous amount for the two of us.
Next time I make it I will add a bit of apple cider vinegar to the dressing, and possibly include some pepitas with the sunflower seeds and maybe some toasted pecans.
Thrilled you’re loving this broccoli salad, Carol!
I have made this salad several times for my family and guests & love it!
A funny story anout it: Most recently, I served it to my parents, mother-in-law, adult son and daughter and my husband last Sunday as part of a going away meal for our daughter who is moving to Spain. The grocery store did not have a smaller box of the organic sunflower seeds that day, so I bought a bag of sunflower seeds. I did not pay attention to the fact that they were whole seeds -the kind that you chew at a baseball game and spit out the shell. As my family was eating it, my mother-in-law said.”Kemper, I think there are some kind of bones in this salad.” Then it dawned on me what I had done!! My son then proceeded to demonstrate how those seeds are supposed to be eaten. We all had quite a laugh over this!!!
How funny! It’s always a good idea to double-check the ingredients you buy, lol. But, glad the whole family loved it anyways, Kemper.
This is a great salad. I cut back on the mayo a little and added some Sicilian Lemon Balsamic Vinegar
The balsamic vinegar sounds amazing! Glad you enjoyed this salad, Diane.
Mmm that sounds amazing where did you purchase the Sicilian lemon balsamic vinegar?
This was easy to make and was delicious. My picky hubby said it was a keeper😊
Glad you both enjoyed this broccoli salad, Janie!
It was delicious. I love the tast of the bacon in that salad.
The bacon in this salad really makes all the difference! Glad you’re enjoying it, Mylene.
I LOVE a broccoli salad in the summer instead of a hot broccoli side with dinner. Adding the goat cheese seems like something I should have thought of years ago but didn’t! It’s sooooo tasty! This has become a staple in our house!
The goat cheese definitely adds a delicious touch! Glad you’re enjoying this broccoli salad, Leslie.
Absolutely the best recipe, always a crowd favorite anytime we have a party or attend one. I also make it as a lunchbox favorite for my husband.
It really is the perfect party go-to recipe, isn’t it? So happy you love it as well, Sarah!
Simple but very delicious! Provides a variation of tastes and textures and make this craveable!
Can’t beat all the delicious textures in this salad. Enjoy, Candace!
Nutritious and delicious! Super easy to make too.
Glad you’re loving this broccoli salad, Jennifer!