Broccoli salad is an all-time favorite side at potlucks, picnics, and backyard barbecues. Whether you get it from the deli case or make it yourself, you know that it’s heartier than delicate lettuce-based salads and will hold up well throughout your gathering. Even folks who typically pass on traditional salads will load up their plates with broccoli salad. It’s fantastically crunchy and hefty, and is often the first side to go on a buffet.
For this recipe showdown, I made 6 vastly different takes on broccoli salad from celebrity chefs and bloggers in an effort to discover which one is the best. There’s a vegan version, a vegetarian twist, and some bacon-loaded riffs featuring either creamy or vinaigrette-style dressings. Read on to learn which recipes delivered and which ones ultimately fell short.
So, What’s the Best Broccoli Salad Recipe?
For a creamy — and not gloppy — broccoli salad, Spend with Pennies’ classic Southern-style recipe takes top honors. It’s sweet and tangy with plenty of crunchy broccoli.
Meet Our 6 Broccoli Salad Contenders
The recipes we chose to include in this recipe showdown are all highly rated and vary vastly in their approaches. Some blanch the broccoli, while most leave it raw. Some use a creamy dressing, though others go with a vinaigrette-style dressing. And while some include a meaty component, others make it vegetarian or vegan.
- Kardea Brown: The only recipe to feature roasted broccoli, this one coats it in a warm bacon-onion vinaigrette reminiscent of the kind used for German potato salad.
- Hetty Lui McKinnon: This recipe is the only vegan one in the bunch, featuring quick-pickled onions and raisins, cubed apple, and a tangy sesame dressing.
- Giada De Laurentiis: This Italian-inspired twist features mascarpone cheese, pancetta, toasted walnuts, and aged gorgonzola cheese tossed with lightly blanched broccoli and dried cranberries.
- Spend with Pennies: A classic Southern-style interpretation, this recipe coats broccoli, red onion, dried cranberries, and bacon with a mayonnaise-based dressing.
- The Neelys: Sour cream, mayonnaise, and a hint of celery seed form the dressing for this salad. It’s tossed with blanched broccoli florets, sliced onion, and grated cheddar.
How I Tested the Broccoli Salad Recipes
- I tested all of the recipes on the same day. I timed everything so that I could taste them all together, making those that should be chilled on the front end to allow them time in the fridge.
- I used whole broccoli heads for all of the recipes. No pre-packaged florets here. I cut them according to each recipe’s specifications.
- I used the same brand of common ingredients. Most notably, I used Bragg’s apple cider vinegar, Duke’s mayonnaise, and Hormel Black Label bacon.
Why You Should Trust Me as a Tester
I have spent the last 26 years in food media — 20 as a magazine editor, 6 as a freelance recipe developer and food writer. Over the course of my career, I have written, tested, and developed literally thousands of recipes. I know how to evaluate a recipe for flavor, texture, and clarity and success (or failure) of the process.
1. The Most Unconventional Broccoli Salad: Giada De Laurentiis’s Sweet and Crunchy Broccoli Salad
Overall rating: 6/10
Get the recipe: Giada De Laurentiis’s Sweet and Crunchy Broccoli Salad
To make this recipe, start by blanching chopped broccoli in boiling salted water just until bright green, then shock it in a bowl of ice water. Cook diced pancetta until crisp, reserving a tablespoon of the fat. Then make the dressing with mascarpone cheese, mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, and a little salt. Finish by tossing the drained broccoli, cooked pancetta and reserved fat, dried cranberries, toasted walnuts, and aged gorgonzola cheese with the dressing.
This broccoli salad was full of strong flavors — pancetta, blue cheese, toasted walnuts — that completely overwhelmed the broccoli. I love crisped bits of pork as much as anyone else, but there was simply too much of it for the amount of broccoli in the salad. And the pungent blue cheese threw the flavor out of balance. Lastly, while the mascarpone was wonderfully rich, it made the dressing a bit too thick and gloppy.
2. The Too-Heavy Broccoli Salad: The Neelys’ Broccoli Salad
Overall rating: 6.5/10
Get the recipe: The Neelys’ Broccoli Salad
This salad was different from the rest in that it started with broccoli florets instead of smaller cuts (and the accompanying video shows what looks more like broccoli spears). It’s very briefly blanched in boiling water before being shocked in ice water and drained. While the broccoli drains, the dressing comes together: a combo of shredded sharp cheddar cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, and celery seed. Then the broccoli, thinly sliced red onion, and chopped cooked bacon are tossed with the dressing.
The dressing was creamy, but like the recipe above, it seemed gloppy and heavy on the broccoli. Plus, the small amount of celery seed (just 1/4 teaspoon) was lost in the salad. Overall, everything tasted a bit bland. I yearned for more tang, more zip. A little vinegar or lemon juice would’ve worked wonders for both the flavor and the texture, as it would’ve perked up the taste and loosened up the dressing.
3. The Broccoli Salad That Lacked Crunch: Kardea Brown’s Roasted Broccoli Salad with Bacon Dressing
Overall rating: 7/10
Get the recipe: Kardea Brown’s Roasted Broccoli Salad with Bacon Dressing
This was the only recipe that called to full-on cook the broccoli. Instead of lightly blanching it, you roast it until lightly charred and crisp-tender. While it’s roasting, you cook chopped bacon in a skillet until crisp, then add diced red onion and cook until softened. You then stir in apple cider vinegar and sugar to complete the dressing. Once the broccoli is done, toss it with the warm bacon dressing and top it with toasted walnuts. The recipe gives you the option of serving the salad warm or at room temperature.
This version of broccoli salad, with its warm bacon vinaigrette, reminded me of German potato salad. The flavors were tangy, sweet, and meaty-salty. It felt much more like a nice side dish for roast chicken or steak and not so much like a salad. I know, I know: You can have warm vegetable salads, and this is one example. As for broccoli salad, though, I feel that crunchy broccoli (either raw or blanched) is much better. When you roast the broccoli, it becomes sweeter and milder — which is tasty, for sure, but the vegetable loses the punch that I feel works better in a salad.
4. The Broccoli Salad That Fell Short: Cookie and Kate’s Favorite Broccoli Salad
Overall rating: 8/10
Get the recipe: Cookie and Kate’s Favorite Broccoli Salad
Here, you start by toasting some nuts — either sunflower seeds or slivered almonds (I went with the almonds). Combine them with chopped raw broccoli, chopped red onion, grated sharp cheddar, and dried fruit (I chose the tart cherry option). Next, whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, garlic, and salt for the dressing. Everything gets tossed together and marinates in the fridge for a minimum of 20 minutes (I went for 1 1/2 hours).
I enjoyed the mix of ingredients here, particularly the combo of cheese, nuts, and dried fruit with the broccoli. The tart cherries were especially delightful, adding their perky, fruity punch to each bite. The salad did seem just the teensiest bit dry, though, after its marinating time. I made sure to stir everything and bring the bottom bits up to the top, but the salad felt a little short on dressing. I would have appreciated more acidity and would use more vinegar (probably double) if I were to make this again.
5. The Super Fresh Broccoli Salad: Hetty Lui McKinnon’s Broccoli Salad
Overall rating: 9.5/10
Get the recipe: Hetty Lui McKinnon’s Broccoli Salad
This recipe begins by having you soak raisins (I chose golden ones) and thinly sliced red onion in apple cider vinegar for 10 minutes to quickly pickle them. After that time, stir in olive and sesame oil to complete the dressing. Then peel and chop broccoli stalks and florets and combine them with a chopped apple (I went with Gala), scallions, nuts/seeds of choice (I chose pepitas), and halved grapes. The salad gets tossed with the dressing, and you serve it at room temperature.
I absolutely loved this salad — everything from the hint of nutty richness from the sesame oil to the fruit trifecta of raisins, apple, and grapes. I also appreciated that this was the only recipe that had you include the broccoli stalks (peeled and chopped). The quick-pickling step at the beginning not only plumps and flavors the raisins, but it softens the allium bite of the onion as well.
The flavors here are super fresh and deeply flavorful, and the textures are a delightful mix of hearty-crunchy, light-crispy, and soft-juicy. Bonus: The salad holds up beautifully for a couple of days, and the apple never discolors. The only reason this recipe isn’t my winner is that, well, the winning recipe was just a bit more flavorful.
6. The Most Irresistible Broccoli Salad: Spend with Pennies’ The Best Broccoli Salad
Overall rating: 10/10
Get the recipe: Spend with Pennies’ The Best Broccoli Salad
For this recipe, you whisk together mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. You then toss the dressing with chopped broccoli florets, diced red onion, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, and “bacon bits” (I used cooked, crumbled bacon, which the author notes as an option). Chill the salad for a minimum of one hour before serving (I went for two).
I have to admit that I was concerned about the cup of mayo in the dressing, worried that it would be too much. But it absolutely wasn’t! Once everything is combined and chilled, the dressing seems slightly thinned and somehow juicy. I tasted the salad immediately after combining everything, and the flavors weren’t nearly as well integrated — the onion was harsh and everything felt disparate. But after chilling? The flavors were all wonderfully balanced.
This simple salad has everything I love in a broccoli salad: tons of flavor, creamy without being gloppy, and plenty of crunch, along with chewy bits from the dried fruit and bacon. I loved that the broccoli remained the star and all the other elements were clearly in a supporting role. And I especially loved that the salad got better after chilling, making it the perfect make-ahead dish that stays delicious (I can confirm) for a few days after you make it — if it lasts that long.