Every potluck needs a good Broccoli Salad–and this one is the BEST. With cheddar cheese, red onion, bacon and a sweet tangy dressing, this is the perfect easy summertime side dish.
This broccoli salad pairs beautifully with other potluck favorites like Chick-fil-A Cole Slaw and Slow Cooker BBQ Brisket.
Why this Recipe is Best
There are a million and one broccoli salad recipes out there. But none quite so perfect as this one!
- This broccoli salad recipe has crispy bacon and sunflower seeds! You’ll love the added salty savory flavor they add to the vegetables.
- It’s easy to make with fresh, simply ingredients.
- Broccoli is par boiled then quickly cooled so it’s tender but not mushy.
- The dressing is the perfect blend of creamy, tangy and sweet!
This salad can be made in advance and refrigerated for easy party prep!
Ingredient Notes
- Sunflower seeds. Make sure to remove the shells, or buy them already with the shells removed.
- Raisins. Dried cranberries would make a delicious substitute if you prefer.
- Cheddar cheese. Mild, sharp and extra sharp cheddar are all tasty in broccoli salad. You choose!
- Bacon. Cook it extra crispy! Make the bacon in the oven for easy clean up.
- Broccoli. I prefer using fresh broccoli and blanching it for broccoli salad. To do this, just place in a pot of boiling water for one minute. Remove and rinse with cold water (to prevent it from cooking further). I should add that many people have made this without cooking the broccoli and love it that way too!
Broccoli Salad Dressing
What really ties together all the ingredients in this Broccoli Salad recipe is the sweet and tangy dressing.
Broccoli Salad dressing is made with just three ingredients:
- Mayonnaise
- Apple cider vinegar
- Sugar
Tips and Tricks
There are two ways you can dress this salad: right before serving or a few hours in advance.
If you add the dressing ahead of time, it “softens” the veggies and gets a bit absorbed into the crevices of the broccoli florets. I love it this way!
For a crunchier broccoli salad, toss the salad with the dressing right before you’re ready to eat. It’s delicious no matter what.
Chill. For best results I love keeping this chilled for at least an hour before serving.
Lighten it up. Use half the amount of sugar, or substitute it with stevia. You can also use a low fat mayo or an olive oil mayo! Skipping the bacon is also an option, although I never do that, haha!
Recipe FAQs
You can substitute miracle whip or another low fat mayo if preferred, but I prefer the creamier taste of real mayonnaise here.
This salad should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Enjoy within 3 days.
This side dish can safely be out at room temperature for about 2 hours. After 2 hours, you should transfer it to the refrigerator to keep the mayonnaise and cheese from spoiling.
If you’re serving this outdoors in the summer, it may spoil more quickly. When in doubt, wait to place it on the table until right before meal time!
More Potluck Recipes
- Caramel Apple Snicker Salad recipe
- Pistachio Fluff Salad
- Strawberry Pretzel Bars
- Cucumber Tomato Salad
- Chinese Coleslaw
- 7 Layer Salad
- Sloppy Joes
- MORE Salads and Side Dishes!
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Broccoli Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound broccoli florets cut bite size
- ⅓ cup red onion cut in strips
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ pound bacon cooked and crumbled
- ½ cup raisins
- ⅓ cup sunflower seeds no shells
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- In a pot of boiling water, drop broccoli and cook for about 1 minute. Remove immediately and rinse with cold water. Place in a large bowl.
- Add onion, cheese, bacon, raisins, and sunflower seeds to broccoli.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the mayo, vinegar and sugar. Pour over salad right before serving.
Notes
- If you add the dressing ahead of time, it “softens” the veggies and gets a bit absorbed into the crevices of the broccoli florets. I love it this way!
- For a crunchier broccoli salad, toss the salad with the dressing right before you’re ready to eat. It’s delicious no matter what.
- Chill. For best results I love keeping this chilled for at least an hour before serving.
- Lighten it up. Use half the amount of sugar, or substitute it with stevia. You can also use a low fat mayo or an olive oil mayo! Skipping the bacon is also an option, although I never do that, haha!
Video
Nutrition
Fresh, colorful and delicious Broccoli Salad is an ideal side dish for any meal! With just a few minutes of prep time and easy to find ingredients, this is a recipe you’ll want to make over and over again.
The BEST Broccol Salad recipe is packed with broccoli, cheese, onions, and more! Perfect potluck recipe.
Love the sauce. I use the sauce recipe but for my salad I use broccoli cheese onion bacon and noodles. It’s a big hit. Thanks for recipe
How many servings does the Broccoli Salad make? I can’ t find that number anywhere and I plan to make this as a side dish for a bridal shower! Help! Lol
Wow awesome recipe, just tried this one last nigh for the family and they loved it. The only thing I skipped was the sugar but it still turned out great!!
My son loves this dish and is strange because he dosen`t eat broccoli when I put them next to a stake 🙂 Thank you for sharing this amazing and healthy dish.
This broccoli salad is good for health. I usually cook it at weekends
This broccoli salad is amazing. With it, I manage to make my kids eat broccoli! Thanks
That’s a great way to include broccoli into our meals – it turns out its both healthy and delicious. Thanks for sharing!
I make this with dried cranberries. I’m going to try it with cheese and bacon for a switch up. Also I use any kind of onion I have. Green, yellow, Vidalia, whatever… I do love red too! I too like it to sit for a few hours before serving. My husband loves this and is always a hit at family dinners or potlucks. Yum!
LOVE your suggestions 🙂 Thanks for sharing!!
This recipe was great!! I trimmed back on some of the mayo and sugar, no cheese. Added half a bag of the cranberries w/ glazed walnuts. I had to threaten my sons life that if I woke up in the morning and none was left he was dead meat!! LMAO!!!
Ooh, I love your changes!!!
Unfortunately cannot use sugar in the dressing (diabetic). Any suggestions for a good alternate dressing? Just omit or cut back the sugar?
Sugar isn’t really the enemy for diabetics, carbs are. Moderation is always key. As far as the recipe just swap honey for the sugar, or even your favorite sugar substitute. Hope this helps.
Sugar is a carbohydrate.
Love broccoli salad. I always add a handful of craisins to mine.
Thank you 🙂
I could eat the entire bowl myself. Not kidding, brock salad is my #1 fave salad, EVER!. Like…if I see it at a party or event, that’s all I need 🙂 I challenge you to a broccoli salad eating contest the next time I see you. Yours looks fab!!
Haha, OMG you crack me up!!
This sound amazing, I love broccoli and red onion, what do you think Aimee if I add some white or red garlic to this recipe?
I say go for it, you can’t go wrong 🙂
This looks so yummy!
I always love a good broccoli salad and yours looks fantastic! Yum!!
I know, seriously where has the summer gone? We have 3 weeks until school starts and I am so not ready, but I am. Does that make sense. I’ve never actually made a broccoli salad before, but that because I didn’t like broccoli before. Now I love it, so I’m thinking I need to make this asap! Pinned!
I love broccoli salad and am always look for a good recipe! And yes, I do think the days go faster as we get older. I can’t believe summer vacation is almost over!
This broccoli salad looks so delicious, it would disappear so fast!
lol @ #helpme This post made me giggle Aimee… and then it made me hungry. Yum. I love summer salads and I always am looking for an awesome broccoli salad. Thanks for the recipe!! Oh, and thanks for sharing my cucumber tomato salad!! xxoo