This easy-to-make simple broccoli salad is loaded with everything good - bacon, apples, cheese, onion, carrots, craisins, walnuts, and of course fresh broccoli. Toss it with the homemade dressing and it will be a delicious side dish for all your summer BBQ's.
This Loaded Broccoli Salad is a favorite all year round, but goes great with your summer BBQ’s. I have tried a lot of different broccoli salads and I took all my favorite parts of each salad and combined them.
Summer potlucks and parties are all about the food and I love that broccoli salad is a delicious alternative to the potato salads and jello salads that are served at BBQs.
I love broccoli salad because it’s loaded with nutrients and vitamins (it’s the only way I will eat fresh broccoli!) and the added flavor of the dressing makes this a crowd favorite!
I wanted to make a dish that could be thrown together in the shortest amount of time possible, so I am going to share some short cuts with you that make this such an easy dish!
My first time-saving tip is to use the fresh broccoli florets that you can purchase from the produce section at your local Kroger. This not only saves me time, but also the mess that happens when you are chopping up broccoli!
If you want, you can chop up the broccoli into even smaller pieces, but it is completely up to you.
Some broccoli salads will have you blanch the broccoli before making the salad (which means to cook it for a short time in boiling water and then cool it down in an ice bath), but that is not needed for this recipe.
I feel that raw, fresh broccoli is the best in this dish and with all the other ingredients that are added to compliment the broccoli, blanching is not a necessary step. Toss that broccoli in a bowl and move on to the next step!
My next time-saving tip is using these Kroger shredded carrots – all you have to do is dump them in! No peeling, no cutting, no dicing . . . using shredded carrots from the produce section at Kroger makes this salad so easy to throw together.
“I have so much time!” -No mom ever
Let us give you your time back. With the Six Sisters’ Meal Plans, we do the dinner planning, grocery ordering, and then all you have to do is decide whether to pick them up or have them delivered.
Make sure you have these ingredients to make this easy loaded broccoli salad recipe:
Loaded Broccoli Salad ingredients:
- Red Onion
- Gala Apple
- Craisins
- Chopped Walnuts
- Sharp Cheddar Cheese (cubed)
- Bacon
- Mayonnaise
- Plain Greek Yogurt
- Red Wine Vinegar
- Lemon Juice
- Sugar
Don’t forget these items too:
How to make loaded broccoli salad:
Combine the chopped apple, onion, cheese, and bacon into a large bowl. This salad will feed the masses, so you want to make sure you have a bowl big enough to hold all of it!
Now mix together the dressing ingredients.The dressing for this salad is simple – only 5 ingredients needed.
After trying a lot of different broccoli salad recipes over the years, I decided to mix it up by using equal parts mayonnaise and Greek yogurt.
I feel that the Greek yogurt makes the dressing a little tangier and not so mayonnaise-heavy.
I also added a little bit of red wine vinegar, fresh lemon juice, and a tiny bit of sugar.
Some broccoli salads use TONS of sugar in their dressing (up to 3/4 cup!), but it is just not necessary with the flavors that we have from the other ingredients.
Mix the dressing ingredients together and gently fold it into the broccoli salad. You can serve immediately, but I actually prefer to let it sit in the fridge for 1-2 hours before serving to really let the flavors meld together.
This salad will stay fresh 1-2 days in the fridge and I personally feel that the flavors get better after each day! If you have a favorite way to make Broccoli Salad, please share in the comments below!
Want even more broccoli? Try our Air Fryer Parmesan Broccoli Recipe!
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Looking for more salad recipes? Watch how we make some of our favorites!
Did you know we have aYoutube Channel? We created it just for you and wanted to show you how simple and delicious our recipes are.
Let us take you through each recipe, step by step, and show you exactly how to make it. We answer all your questions, and help you get the recipe, perfect, each and every time you make it.
If you are looking for more simple and delicious recipes, head over to our channel and check them out.
This Loaded Broccoli Salad is so easy. Get your kids involved in the kitchen. They’ll love it!
Here are some more great salad recipes for your parties and BBQ’s:
- The Best Creamy Pasta Salad
- Orange Fluff Jello Salad
- Barbecue Chicken Salad
- Spaghetti Salad
- Creamy Grape Salad
- Cucumber Dill Salad
- Santa Barbara Cobb Salad
Serves: 12
Loaded Broccoli Salad Recipe
This easy-to-make simple broccoli salad is loaded with everything good – bacon, apples, cheese, onion, carrots, craisins, walnuts, and of course fresh broccoli.
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Total Time 15 minutes mins
PrintPin
Ingredients
- 4 cups broccoli florets chopped
- ⅔ cup shredded carrots
- ⅓ cup diced red onion
- 1 gala apple diced
- ½ cup Craisins
- ⅓ cup chopped walnuts
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese 1 block, cubed
- 8 bacon strips cooked and crumbled
Dressing Ingredients
- ½ cup light mayonnaise
- ½ cup plain greek yogurt
- 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice (fresh is best)
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
Instructions
In a large bowl, mix together broccoli, carrots, onion, apple, Craisins, walnuts, cheese, and bacon.
In a smaller bowl, combine dressing ingredients.
Gently fold the dressing into the broccoli bowl until all ingredients are coated with dressing.
Cover and chill in the fridge for 2 hours before serving.
Salad will remain fresh for up to 2 days covered in the fridge.
Video
Notes
- To save time buy shredded carrots and chopped broccoli florets
Nutrition
Calories: 189 kcal · Carbohydrates: 13 g · Protein: 8 g · Fat: 13 g · Saturated Fat: 4 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 5 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 3 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 21 mg · Sodium: 361 mg · Potassium: 224 mg · Fiber: 2 g · Sugar: 8 g · Vitamin A: 1493 IU · Vitamin C: 29 mg · Calcium: 106 mg · Iron: 1 mg
Equipment
Large Mixing Bowl
Small Mixing Bowl
Whisk
Recipe Details
Course: Salad
Cuisine: American
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Amanda Marton says:
Love your recipes! Do you offer nutrition information?
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Larry says:
The second clue for the MyRecipeMagic Treasure Hunt is "FOR". Enter this word to get the extra entries.
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Rachel says:
I made this tonight because I wanted to try it! I have made a broccoli salad before that had grapes in it. I was excited to try the craisins! This was delicious, although nobody else in my house wanted to try it so guess that means more for me! My friend was over and she tried it and loved it too. This is a nice change from regular salad and would be great to take to a barbeque. I didn't have low fat mayo so I just used regular and I am not a fan of greek yogurt but I used it. I will definitely make this again! Thank you for the recipe! I might try it with pecans next time!
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Marilyn Kemp says:
The second clue for the MyRecipeMagic TreasureHunt is "FOR".
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Ali says:
Sunflower seeds for the walnuts
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Jenni says:
Love love love! It was addicting! Shared some with a friend tonight. My oldest daughter will be eating some tomorrow and have some to give my in laws! Looking like this is gonna be a regular for me for awhile! Only thing I changed was skipping the mayo, just used double Greek yogurt.
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Jeanne Morton says:
I took this to a potluck lunch today and it was well received by all. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. This doesn't taste like "diet food" at all, but I am following Weight Watchers and this is 6 Smart Points per serving and is delicious. I can stay true to the WW program if I eat yummy food along the way. (BTW, I cooked the bacon and set it aside in the fridge since one of the girls is a vegetarian, and I thought I could serve it separately. Left it at home. Dang! But it was still great.)
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Cyd says:
Hi Jeanne, So good to hear from you and thanks for leaving such a nice comment on our loaded broccoli salad. We appreciate you stopping by our site for recipes. And way to go for being to good with Weight Watchers. Glad the broccoli salad helped keep you on track! :) Have a terrific weekend.
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Mandy says:
What would you use instead of mayo. I’m not a fan of mayo and wondering if using all Greek yogurt would work.
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Kara James says:
Would the dressing be ok without the red wine vinegar?
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Cyd says:
If you don't like Red Wine Vinegar then you could surely leave it out. We love the taste it gives the Loaded Broccoli Salad.
About The Author:
Camille Beckstrand
Camille Beckstrand is married to Jared and they have 4 kids. She loves a good true crime podcast, a big plate of cheesy loaded nachos, and going on adventures with her family.
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