The nice thing about salads is that there are so many ways to make them you never have to have the same one twice. And the same goes for broccoli salad! You know what the usual one is like – broccoli, raisins, bacon, and a mayo-based dressing – but this No-Mayo Broccoli Salad is anything but usual. It has some of those expected components, sure, but it ties them all together with a delicious dressing that leans sweet and tangy instead of creamy (and that lack of mayo makes it ideal for sunny picnics and outdoor potlucks – no chilling needed).
Like I was saying, most of these ingredients will seem familiar – we’ve got broccoli florets, bacon, red onion, cheddar cheese, sunflower seeds, and dried cranberries. You’ve likely seen most (or all) of those in a broccoli salad before, but what sets this one apart is the dressing. There’s not a drop of mayo in it… instead, it relies on honey, dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, and a little thyme and it’s slightly sweet, just tangy enough, and so delicious that you’ll end up licking it off the spoon.
It keeps things a little lighter, but it keeps things fresher too. Since you don’t have the mayo weighing anything down, it can hang out a bit longer whether that’s in the fridge for meal prep or whether it’s out on the picnic table for serving. It gives you a broccoli salad that’s not quite as finicky but is still every bit as delicious as you could want it to be.
No-Mayo Broccoli Salad
Yield(s): Serves 6
10m prep time
Ingredients
- 6 cups broccoli florets
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 6 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- 1/3 cup white cheddar cheese, grated
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
For the dressing:
- 3 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preparation
- In a large bowl, arrange the broccoli, red onion, bacon, dried cranberries, cheddar cheese, and sunflower seeds.
- In a small bowl, combine dijon mustard, thyme, honey, salt and pepper and whisk to combine. Whisk in apple cider vinegar.
- Gradually whisk in olive oil until emulsified. (Alternatively you can just an immersion blender or add all ingredients to a closed jar and shake.)
- Pour over salad and toss to coat. Chill until ready to serve. Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from Le Creme de la Crumb.