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It’s nearly grilling season, and I need a reliable side dish to bring to parties, family reunions, and barbecues. This easy Bacon Broccoli Salad is the perfect creamy, crunchy, rich, and flavorful side to go with any meal. It has a great balance of sweet and tangy flavors, and the texture is unbeatable. It’s a fact that if you add bacon to any vegetable dish, even the most discerning meat eaters will give it a try. Baby steps, right?! I love making sure my loved ones eat their vegetables!
“AMAZING!!!! Let it sit in the fridge overnight to soak up all the good flavors! I think fresh made bacon is the key to add that punch of flavor. Careful it’s very addictive. My wife even loved it and she hates broccoli!”
Tucker
Cold and Crunchy BACON Broccoli Salad
This salad recipe is a classic side dish made from broccoli florets tossed with cheddar cheese, raisins, bacon, walnuts, and red onion, coated in a creamy and tangy dressing. Unlike leafy green salads that wilt quickly, this cold broccoli salad holds up very well in the fridge, making it perfect for parties, potlucks, or meal prep. The raw broccoli gives it a fresh crunch, while the sweet and savory mix-ins keep every bite interesting!
Recipe Tips & Suggestions
- To keep your broccoli salad from turning out watery, make sure to thoroughly dry the florets. The salt in the dressing will naturally draw out some of the moisture from the veggies, so making sure they are dry after washing them is an important step! I like to spread them out on a clean kitchen towel and gently pat them dry with another towel laid on top while I prep the rest of my ingredients.
- In testing, I preferred the final texture of raw broccoli over blanched, but you certainly can blanch the broccoli if you prefer. The blanching process takes out some of the natural bitter flavor from the broccoli; simply drop the florets in a large pot of salted boiling water for 1 minute, then quickly shock in a bowl of ice water. Instead, I opted to simply rinse my broccoli florets in hot water to make them extra bright green and make sure they were nice and clean.
Broccoli Salad with Bacon
Cost $7.13 recipe / $1.18 serving
Ingredients
Broccoli Salad
- 1 large broccoli crown (separated into florets, (about 4 cups) $1.83)
- 1 cup cheddar cheese (shredded, $0.93)
- ¼ cup raisins ($0.39)
- 6 strips bacon ($1.81*)
- ¼ cup walnuts (crushed, $0.80)
- ¼ red onion (diced into small pieces, $0.22)
Broccoli Salad Dressing
- ½ cup mayonnaise ($0.75)
- 2 Tbsp Greek yogurt ($0.21**)
- 1 Tbsp white vinegar ($0.04)
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar ($0.05)
- ¼ teaspoon salt ($0.05)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper (freshly cracked, $0.05)
Instructions
- Cook the bacon until crispy. Let it cool on a clean paper towel-lined plate. Chop into bite-sized bits and set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine mayo, Greek yogurt, white vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Whisk together and set aside.
- Cut broccoli into florets, shred the cheddar cheese, gather raisins, crumble the bacon, crush walnuts, and dice red onion.
- Combine salad ingredients in a large mixing bowl and toss to combine.
- Pour the dressing over the broccoli salad and toss together until completely coated. Serve immediately, or let it marinate and get extra yummy in the fridge for up to 5 days!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Small Mixing Bowl
- Large Mixing Bowl
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!how to make Broccoli BACON Salad step-by-step photos
Make the dressing: Add 1/2 cup mayo, 2 Tbsp Greek yogurt, 1 Tbsp white vinegar, 1 Tbsp sugar, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper to a small mixing bowl.
Whisk the dressing ingredients together to combine and set aside.
Prep the salad ingredients: Slice 1 large crown of broccoli into florets, shred 1 cup of cheddar cheese, gather 1/4 cup of raisins, crumble 6 strips of crispy bacon, crush 1/4 cup walnuts, and dice 1/4 of a red onion.
Add all the salad ingredients to a large mixing bowl and toss to combine.
Finish the salad: Now pour the dressing over your broccoli raisin salad and toss until everything is coated in the creamy dressing. You can serve this immediately, or let it marinate and get extra yummy in the fridge. It’ll be good stored in the fridge for up to 5 days!
Substitutions & Variations
- Don’t eat mayo? You can use the Greek yogurt to dress your salad, or use an egg-free mayo if you can’t eat eggs. Alternatively, you can use one of your favorite salad dressings to make this recipe. Try a honey mustard dressing, like we use in our honey mustard broccoli salad (use Greek yogurt in place of the mayo), or go for something totally different, like a budget-friendly pesto.
- Add cooked chicken if you prefer your salads on the meatier side! Our broccoli cheddar chicken recipe is a great example of how versatile this dish can be.
- Try a different cheese. Go for feta, halloumi (as one reader suggested in the comments below!), Monterey Jack, or your favorite non-dairy cheese. Use what you’ve got!
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
This recipe is such a fresh and crunchy dish with a ton of flavor, so I suggest pairing it with simple proteins, like air fryer chicken breast or glazed pork chops! It would also go great with chicken burgers and other cookout favorites like smoky mushroom kebabs, corn on the cob, a fresh fruit salad, and grilled steak tenders.
AMAZING!!!! let it sit in the fridge overnight to soak up all the good flavors! I think fresh made bacon is the key to add that punch of flavor. Careful it’s very addictive. My wife even loved it and she hates broccoli!
Does this cost money?
We have made this numerous times, always a hit! We don’t eat bacon and don’t miss it in this. Have also used halloumi instead of cheddar, works great. Super tasty and filling!
Really tasty and easy to make. I am always looking for interesting side dishes that don’t have to be cooked in the summertime. Let it sit in the fridge for a bit, for sure, to let the flavors blend. YUM.
Anyone have a good suggestion for an egg-free mayo? Or a good substitution for the mayo this calls for?
I love broccoli salad. This one is so good because it would be great as is, and also worked with the ingredients I had on hand. Since I didn’t have bacon on hand , I used dairy free feta cheese instead of dairy free cheddar shreds for the salty flavor. Dried cranberries instead of raisins. Apple cider vinegar instead of white vinegar. And added chickpeas.
Even with the changes I made, it’s basically this recipe, and I’ll keep this one as my “go to” for sure!!
I love that you made this dairy free. (That’s what I do at home when I’m preparing this just for myself!) Awesome substitutions. Thanks for sharing!