Broccoli Salad with Bacon

Be the hero of summer gatherings, potlucks or weeknight dinners with this delectable Broccoli Salad with Bacon! This addictive broccoli salad is easy to make and will convert even the most stubborn of broccoli haters. A refreshing side salad recipe ideal for Canada Day, 4th of July and Labor Day barbecues or simply a warm summer lunch or dinner, this broccoli salad with bacon is Paleo, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free, with low FODMAP (see note below), Whole30 and Keto/low carb options.

For another refreshing side salad recipe, try my carrot and raisin salad or Mexican pasta salad.

Please note: this broccoli recipe was previously classified as low FODMAP as written with grapes, but due to recent testing of grapes by Monash University, who found them to be even higher in fructose than in previous tests, it is now too high in fructose to be considered low FODMAP. If you've never had problems with grapes or this salad in the past, this may not be an issue for you. Alternatively, you can substitute blueberries for the grapes to keep it low FODMAP. Additionally, the fat in bacon can be an additional symptom trigger for some people with IBS.

A True Story about Broccoli Salad

Jeff: spoons a massive amount of broccoli salad onto his plate

Me: "That's an awfully big spoonful of broccoli salad for someone who hates broccoli."

Jeff: "Don't question my journey."

Me: *rolls eyes*

True story.

My husband, Jeff, used to hate broccoli. Then this broccoli salad with bacon happened, and BOOM: broccoli lover. He cannot get enough of this salad, and honestly, neither can I.

This broccoli salad with bacon is my go-to side dish for summer gatherings, potlucks, BBQs, and basically any occasion where I want people to "just try a little" and then watch them go back for seconds. It has the perfect balance of sweet, savory, tangy, and crunchy, which is exactly what broccoli needs to stop acting like it's only here for obligation.

Necessary Equipment

No fancy equipment required! The equipment I use to make this broccoli salad includes:

• Chopping board
• Chopping knife
• Citrus juicer
• Large bowl
• Large spoon
• Small bowl
• Whisk
• Spatula

Broccoli Salad with Bacon: Ingredients & Tips for Success

Broccoli

As I mentioned in my Chimichurri Shrimp and Broccoli Skillet post last week, Monash University's Low FODMAP Diet App lists broccoli heads as tolerable for most people with IBS in quantities of up to ¾ cup per serving. This recipe calls for 4 cups of broccoli heads total, which comes to about ⅓ cup per serving.

When everything is put together, this broccoli salad comes to about 6 cups in its entirety, so if you cannot tolerate the FODMAP fructose, you'll want to keep your serving size to about ½ cup (good luck), which is about 1/12 of the total salad. I rarely manage to keep to one serving because it's sooo good, and while it rarely upsets my stomach, everyone is different.

I chop the broccoli heads into bite sized florets. For low FODMAP, I try remove as much of the stem as possible without making the floret fall apart too much.

Red grapes

Update 7/14/24: this recipe was originally written before grapes were retested for FODMAPs. Now that they've been retested, red grapes apparently contain the FODMAP fructose and are low FODMAP in servings of up to only 2 grapes or 10 grams per serving. To keep this salad low FODMAP, you can substitute blueberries for the grapes as I do with the Keto/low carb option below.

Update 6/23/23: for Keto/low carb, you can substitute the same amount of whole blueberries for the grapes. Does this salad taste as great with blueberries? Not quite, but it's still pretty delicious and is way more blood sugar-friendly.

Scallions (Green Tops Only)

For the oniony element, I use ½ cup of the chopped green tops of scallions (a.k.a. green onions). If you aren't concerned with FODMAPs, you can use ⅓ cup of chopped red onion instead if you prefer.

Pecans

To add some crunch and protein to the salad, I add ½ cup of finely chopped, raw pecans. You can chop them with a sharp knife or use a food chopper like a Slap Chop, which makes things a bit easier. Yet, be careful not to chop them too finely - you don't want to chop them into dust as they'll just disappear into the salad.

Bacon

Bacon adds so much yummy flavor to this an pretty much any dish. If you have bacon leftover from breakfast, you can easy add it here; otherwise, I cook my bacon in a large skillet while I chop all the produce. It's usually cool enough by the time I get done chopping and mixing to crumble and add to the salad.

Dressing Ingredients

It only takes four ingredients to make the tastiest dressing for this salad: dairy-free mayo (which I have linked here for reference but buy cheaper at Costco), freshly squeezed lemon juice, pure maple syrup (which we affectionately call "Canada" around here - see my Instant Pot Chili con Canada post to find out why) or coconut aminos if on a Whole30 or eating Keto or low carb, and sea salt. I highly recommend the pure maple syrup option as it goes sooo well with the bacon, but if you're on a Whole30 or eating strict Keto / low carb, coconut aminos adds some sweetness as well as some umami flavor. It's still incredibly yummy. A Keto / low carb friendly maple syrup alternative is also a possibility, but the quantity and FODMAPs vary by brand.

I use a low sodium bacon as that's the only type I can find without sugar or additives, so so if you are using non-low sodium bacon, you may not need to add as much salt. I typically add ½ teaspoon of salt to the dressing before mixing everything together. If you are making this for the first time, I suggest waiting to add the salt until after the produce and dressing are mixed together and you can taste the salad to see how salty the bacon you use makes it.

Serving Options

Ideally this broccoli salad should be served after having some time to chill in the refrigerator, but I typically don't chill it before and don't notice a huge difference. If you prefer it chilled, cover and chill in the refrigerator for a half hour before serving.