Name: Healthy Broccoli Salad
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 3 medium broccoli crowns, washed & dried, chopped (about 6 cups); 1 cup matchstick carrots; 1/2 cup diced red onion; 1/3 cup slivered almonds; 1/3 cup sunflower seeds; 1 cup dried cherries or dried cranberries; 1/3 cup chopped vidalia onion (about 1/2 small onion); 1/4 cup olive oil; 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar; 3 Tbsp maple syrup; 1/2 Tbsp stone ground mustard; 2 tsp coconut aminos; 1/2 tsp salt & pepper, to taste

This Healthy Broccoli Salad recipe is a colorful, crunchy and crisp vegetable side dish tossed in a simple sweet onion dressing – no mayo in sight! Make ahead and vegan friendly, serve it throughout the week or bring to all your potluck parties with friends.

broccoli salad with onions, carrots, cherries, almonds, and sunflower seeds on gray plate on marble board

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

A lighter version of the classic broccoli salad – think low calorie, low fat, super healthy!
Jazzed up way to enjoy raw broccoli – and your kids will love it, too!
Super convenient make ahead recipe that tastes better as the days go by!
Incredibly dietary friendly, as it is vegan, gluten free and paleo.

Is Broccoli Salad Healthy?

It sure is! Especially when you make it with fresh ingredients and from scratch.

Broccoli is an underrated superfood, in my opinion. It is a great source of fiber, folate, vitamin K1, vitamin C (yes! Vitamin C!), iron, and more.

If you aren’t a fan of plain broccoli but love having it dressed up, then this healthy cold broccoli salad is perfect.

Do You Cook Broccoli for Broccoli Salad?

Nope! You start off with raw broccoli and the vinegar in the dressing naturally breaks down the tough fibers in the broccoli to make it texturally appealing! I love it because this is a no-cook recipe.

TIP: If you prefer the texture of cooked broccoli, blanch it for 1 minute in salted boiling water, then shock it in a large bowl of ice water. Drain and proceed with the recipe.

healthy broccoli salad on gray plate with dressing cup in background

Ingredients You Will Need:

Broccoli salad is a classic side dish to bring to any and all types of gatherings. We’re leaving out the cheddar cheese and bacon bits you’d find in traditional broccoli salad to make this recipe vegan friendly. We will need:

Broccoli Salad

broccoli heads – you will need about 3 small broccoli heads, or 6 cups broccoli florets. Just make sure to wash and dry the broccoli before chopping.
carrots – you can either buy prepped and ready matchstick carrots at the grocery store or julienne whole carrots at home.
red onion – diced red onion adds crunch and nice savory bite.
almonds – slivered or sliced almonds will both work. Buy them toasted or toast them at home to bring out their natural oils. If you’d like to keep this recipe nut free, you could use all sunflower seeds or use pepitas in place of the almonds.
sunflower seeds – for even more crunch. Look for roasted and unsalted.
dried cherries – for the dried fruit, dried cherries will give you a more tart bite, whereas dried cranberries will give you a sweeter one. You could also do a blend! There’s a variety mix that includes blueberries, too.

red onion, carrots, broccoli, sunflower seeds, almonds and dried cherries on marble board, text labeled next to each ingredient

Dressing

Vidalia onion – we’re using a sweet onion to make a creamy sweet onion vinaigrette. If you’re not a big fan of onion dressing, check the recipe card for an alternative dressing recipe.
olive oil – we’re making a mayo free dressing so this broccoli salad is egg free and vegan friendly. Olive oil adds a nice, fruity richness.
apple cider vinegar – for pop and sweet acidity.
maple syrup – to add a touch of robust sweetness.
mustard – to add spice and balance the sweetness level. I love a stone ground Dijon mustard.
coconut aminos – for umami and savory flavor.
salt + pepper – to enhance all those sweet onion flavors.

Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below, at the end of this post.

ingredients in bowls with text above; maple syrup, sweet onion, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, mustard, coconut aminos, salt & pepper

Broccoli Salad Prep Tips

Most of the prep time in this recipe comes from cutting the vegetables. You can reduce the amount of time by buying pre-cut broccoli crowns and matchstick carrots.

The dressing is simple to make as well. Just roughly chop the onion before adding it and the rest of the ingredients into a small blender.

If doing some meal prep, you can store the cut vegetables, dried cherries, nuts and seeds in one large bowl, and make the dressing separately when you’re ready. Or make it all at once and allow the dressing to absorb into the salad ingredients (more on this below!).

knive next to cut broccoli crown, red onion, carrots, cherries, nuts and seeds surrounding broccoli and knife

How to Make

With all that being said, you can have this easy healthy broccoli salad recipe prepped and ready for the fridge in 10 minutes – and that’s good enough for me! Here’s how to do it:

Prep Vegetables

Wash and dry broccoli, then cut the broccoli crowns fairly small, so they’re easy to eat. Dice the red onion and prepare the carrots julienne style, if not using store-bought matchstick carrots.

Add all the vegetables to a large bowl, along with the almonds, sunflower seeds, and dried cherries.

Make Dressing

Add the onions, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, mustard, coconut aminos, salt and pepper to a blender (love the NutriBullet for this). Blend until smooth.

TIP: If you’d like a thinner dressing, add 1-2 tablespoons of water or non-dairy milk. For a creamy dressing, add 1 Tablespoon Greek yogurt (dairy-free yogurt to keep it vegan!).

pouring dressing into glass bowl of broccoli salad ingredients

Combine

Pour dressing over broccoli mixture and toss gently to coat.

Let It Soak

If you can, let the dressed broccoli salad rest for at least one hour in the fridge, or ideally overnight. Broccoli salad is best when the dressing has some time to absorb into the broccoli crowns and other ingredients.

broccoli salad with onions, carrots, cherries, almonds, and sunflower seeds on gray plate with silver spoon on marble board

Serving Suggestions

This healthy broccoli salad recipe can be served in a number of different fashions. You could try:

Side Dish: Enjoy as a side dish to dinner! It would be a great addition to Veggie Black Bean Burgers, BBQ Jackfruit Sandwiches (vegan pulled pork) or even this Spaghetti Squash Frittata.
Meal Prep Recipe: Since the dressing can really soak into the broccoli and absorb all of the flavors overnight, I love to make this on a casual Sunday evening to enjoy as a meal prep lunch, snack or side throughout the week. Broccoli salad gets better the next day, in my opinion!
Potluck Parties: This broccoli salad, no mayo is a hit at potluck parties and BBQs because it satisfies so many dietary needs. Make it the night before or morning of the big day!

How to Store

Store fully prepared broccoli salad in a storage bowl with a lid or an airtight container in the fridge. Enjoy within 3-4 days for the best flavor.

Meal Prep Storage: Prep all the veggies, and mix in a large bowl with the nuts, seeds, and dried fruit. Cover and store in the fridge. Prep the salad dressing and store in a separate airtight container in the fridge. When ready, toss with the dressing at least an hour before serving time.

broccoli salad on plates with silver spoon, dressing and slivered almonds in cups in top corner

More Broccoli Recipes You’ll Love:

If you make this Healthy Broccoli Salad recipe, be sure to leave a comment and review on the blog! I love hearing from you, and it helps others learn more about the recipe too! Xx Ashley

Amelie Emond says

8/14/2021 at 2:09 pm

Loved it! I changed a few things (raisins instead, no sunflower seeds, no coconut aminos and added bacon) and it was so good!

★★★★★

- Ashley says
  
  8/23/2021 at 9:16 am
  
  Thank you for leaving your feedback and subs! So glad you enjoyed 😀
  
  - Sandy says
    
    6/27/2023 at 6:49 pm
    
    What is coconut aminos
    
    - Ashley says
      
      7/24/2023 at 8:33 am
      
      It’s a gluten free soy free substitute to soy sauce (or tamari sauce). You can use any of those three things.
      
Melody says

8/25/2021 at 9:12 pm

This was tasty refreshing.Loved it will make again

Healthy Broccoli Salad

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Is Broccoli Salad Healthy?

Do You Cook Broccoli for Broccoli Salad?