We enjoy this broccoli salad year round, but it’s especially great in summer for cookouts and BBQs. With tender cooked broccoli florets, plump raisins, salty bacon and crunchy pumpkin seeds, it’s a flavor and texture explosion you’ll love. A creamy but lightened up dressing features Dijon mustard and just a hint of sweetness that results in something so much more delicious than any store-bought option.
I grew eight broccoli plants this year. EIGHT. It was one of the first starter plants available in the nurseries around here and since I didn’t grow anything from seed while I was hiding out in Florida over the winter, I got overly ambitious and bought enough to take up an entire raised bed planter.
This was all well and good until every single plant was ready to eat at the same time and it was a mad rush to harvest the broccoli and eat it before it turned to seed. However, there’s only two of us in this house so it took some ingenuity and dedication to get through it all.
This broccoli raisin salad was one of the recipe highlights from the broccoli extravaganza of 2024 and I’m excited to share it with you.
A Broccoli Raisin Salad You’ll Love
I do not enjoy raw broccoli at all. It’s just too much in every way possible. Too crunchy, too much of a jaw workout, too “cruciferciousy” and too harsh on my stomach.
This broccoli salad cooks the florets (check out our how to easily cut broccoli guide for the best tips) until just tender then plunges them into an ice bath with the raisins. This simultaneously stops the cooking process of the broccoli while also plumping up the raisins — something most broccoli raisin salad recipes don’t do. Plumped up, reconstituted raisins are so much more enjoyable in the salad.
The recipe also includes cooked crumbled bacon and toasted pumpkin seeds for both taste and texture. The dressing is light and creamy with just a hint of sweetness. It’s broccoli salad perfection in every way and puts to shame any premade, store-bought options I’ve ever seen.
The Ingredients You’ll Need
Broccoli — When you’re roasting or air frying broccoli, you can always use frozen florets. However, fresh is best for this salad for texture purposes.
Raisins — I know raisins are polarizing so you can always swap them out for dried cranberries or cherries in this broccoli salad if you prefer.
Bacon — The cooked bacon crumbles into the salad offering a salty, satisfying bite in contrast with the vegetables and sweet flavor from the raisins. If you’re vegetarian, feel free to leave it out.
Pumpkin seeds — Toasted pepitas are a wonderful crunchy contrast to all the other salad ingredients. Pine nuts or another nut can also be used.
The Dressing
We’ve all eaten a lot of bad premade dressings on prepared salads before. This is not one of them. I love the creaminess that comes from the combination of mayonnaise and Greek yogurt in this recipe without overpowering the broccoli and other main ingredients. It uses a touch of maple syrup or honey for sweetness and Dijon mustard for extra flavor.
My Pro Tips
Recipe Tips
- Don’t skip the ice bath step. Plunging the cooked broccoli into the cold water halts the cooking process and will keep the vegetable nice and bright in color instead of letting it yellow.
- Similarly, reconstituting the raisins in water is a simple tip that brings big reward. They’re just so much more enjoyable as a plump bite rather than in their hard, dried and crystallized state.
Substitutions and Variations
I gave some ideas above in the ingredients section but other options include:
- Add your favorite protein such as cooked shredded or chopped chicken to the broccoli raisin salad to make it a full meal. This would be great for a packed lunch.
- If you do raw onion, thinly sliced red onions would add nice flavor. Pickled red onions would also go well.
- As the recipe card below offers, toasted panko breadcrumbs are a nice crunchy topping option, especially if you’re not using the pumpkin seeds or another nut.
Making in Advance
Not all salads are good when prepped in advance, but this broccoli salad is one of the few that does well with that. There are two options for making this ahead of time:
- Make the entire salad and let it sit in the fridge for a day or so before serving. Much like chili, the flavors will meld together with time and the salad actually tastes a bit better.
- Prep the salad ingredients and keep them covered and refrigerated in a bowl. Prep the dressing in a separate bowl and store in the refrigerator as well. Toss everything together before serving.
More Vegetable Salads To Try
Our creamy cucumber salad is a summer-time staple and like this broccoli raisin salad, it’s a healthier, lighter and refreshing take on the classic recipe.
If you love crunch, this kohlrabi noodle salad has plenty of it! It’s another great summer-time option for something a little more non-traditional.
Mediterranean carrot salad is another creamy vegetable salad option. Using tahini and yogurt for the dressing gives it a surprising taste anyone who loves Mediterranean flavors will enjoy. It also features plump raisins like this broccoli salad as one of the star ingredients.
Broccoli Raisin Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cups broccoli florets, about 1 large head of broccoli
- 1/3 cup raisins
- 5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
Dressing
- 1/3 cup Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon dijon
- 1 teaspoon maple or honey, optional
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- Generous pinch of salt
Instructions
- Place the broccoli florets in a steamer basket with a little water in the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer and steam for 4 – 5 minutes until al-dente. Add the dried raisins to the steamer pot with the broccoli during the last 1 minute of cooking to soften and make them nice and juicy.
- Plunge the broccoli and raisins in ice water to cool and stop the cooking process. Drain and pat dry with a kitchen towel. Make sure they are dry to avoid watering down the dressing.
- Chop broccoli into bite-sized pieces.
- Meanwhile, add the pumpkin seeds to a skillet and toast on a medium-low heat, tossing occasionally, until they are lightly toasted. Remove from the pan and allow to cool.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, dijon, optional honey or maple, salt and pepper.
- Add the chopped broccoli to a large mixing bowl with the raisins, bacon, toasted pumpkin seeds, dressing and toss to combine.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
Thank you so much for responding! I was so embarrassed when I realized this blog was from last October, so I really appreciate the prompt reply. And I’m so sorry, I misspelled “marketside” lol. Walmart carries it in the refridgerated section beside the packages of salad.
No need to be embarrassed! It’s good to know older posts get found every once and awhile :)
Oh, and also, I’ve used sesame ginger quite a few times as a dressing base for the broccoli salad and it’s quite good. The brand Markerside makes a nice, sweet type and it works really well.
Hi, so sorry to be off topic, but what kind of camera are you using to take such beautiful pictures? I, too, am sorry you had to endure the enchiladas. Looks like instant acid indigestion to me. I love making broccoli salad, though, and I experiment with different kinds all of the time. Oftentimes, I even substitute craisins for the raisins (just for a little bit of a different flavor) and it’s wonderful. Oh, and your dog is too cute! :)
Hi Bianca- I use a Canon T3 with the stock lens. Nothing too fancy, it’s the cheapest DSLR they make :) I’ll be on the lookout for that dressing you mentioned. Sounds delicious!
This recipe looks delicious! I’m planning to make it along with your tofu fried rice. One problem: I’m not really a fan of lemon (or raisins). Do you have any other suggestions for a dressing? How do you think it would taste with a tiny bit of maple syrup and/or soy sauce?
You could substitute any dried fruit for the raisins. They were good because they added some sweetness to it. I think dried cherries would be delicious if you like those. I’d probably go the maple syrup route rather than the soy sauce route on the salad. Let me know how it turns out if you do that!
I made the broccoli salad for a side dish, but ended up just eating it for a late lunch. Nom nom!
My dog used to go nuts for popcorn. She was a tiny mild-mannered shihtzu and would bark at me until I hurled a handful her way.
Our dog goes nuts for popcorn too. My husband started feeding that to her a few years ago and now when she hears the bag popping in the microwave she starts whining!
Next time your peaches are too under ripe, maybe try cooking them in with the hot oats. That softens them and sweetens them up a bit. That bowl of oats does look pretty fantastic, though. YUM!
Your broccoli salad looks perfect for a potluck, as well as anytime!
The only “human food” we give our kitty is just a bite of tuna or salmon if we have any we don’t want to eat. Served in his bowl, naturally. :)
Good idea! Don’t know why I didn’t think of that!
That looks like the most amazing bowl of oats I have ever seen. Pumpkin brownie sounds like the best way to end a day.
Yeah, I totally understand… bad meals really suck. But throwing away food always makes me feel guilty for wasting it :-(
On a lighter note, I love broccoli and this looks like a great way to eat it! :D
I ate expired, pre-cooked chicken breast. It had been expired for 8 days and I didn’t know- I was starving when I came home and just had some! Now I’m freaking out about it, and would love to know if I should be more worried about it- as in seeking medical advice.
Besides that though, great WIAW :) Sorry for being a Debbie Downer!
Ahh, hope it all turns out ok! If it makes you feel any better, I eat expired stuff all the time. Not necessarily chicken, but lots of other things :)
I’ve always thought about getting that enchilda, but now I’ll know to stay away from it. It’s too bad since most everything from TJ’s is stellar.
Love the idea of the salad. I’m also not crazy about broccoli raw (plus the little buds always get stuck in my teeth), but this is something I would definitely try. Pairing apples with broccoli? Genius!