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Crisp Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad with Bacon
A sturdy, make-ahead vegetable salad that relies on a sharp cider vinegar dressing and rendered bacon fat to break down raw brassicas without turning them to mush.
- Prep
- 20 minutes
- Cook
- 10 minutes
- Total
- 30 minutes
- Yield
- 6 to 8 servings
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The common failure mode of raw brassica salads is a dressing that is either too sweet or too weak to penetrate the dense vegetables. When tossed in a standard mayonnaise dressing, raw broccoli and cauliflower remain tough and fibrous, while the dressing slides off the florets and pools at the bottom of the bowl. The solution is to blanch the vegetables briefly to set their color and slightly soften their structure, then dress them while they are still warm.
This approach allows the florets to absorb the dressing rather than merely being coated by it. The dressing itself uses a base of mayonnaise cut with sharp apple cider vinegar and a spoonful of the rendered bacon fat. The fat carries the smoky flavor throughout the salad, while the vinegar provides the necessary acid to balance the richness of the bacon and the sharp bite of the raw red onion.
Because the vegetables are sturdy, this salad improves after a few hours in the refrigerator, making it an ideal candidate for potlucks or advance meal preparation. It holds its texture for up to three days, though the sunflower seeds should be added just before serving to maintain their crunch.
What you need
Ingredients
Measurements
Metric converts only measures that are mathematically safe. Density-dependent cups stay as Nicole wrote them.
Scale the batch
6 to 8 servings
Salad Base
- 1 medium head broccoli (about 1 pound), cut into bite-sized florets
- 1 medium head cauliflower (about 1 pound), cut into bite-sized florets
- 6 slices thick-cut bacon
- 1/2 cup diced red onion
- 1/2 cup roasted, salted sunflower seeds
Dressing
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon reserved bacon fat, warm
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
How it goes
Method
Read the whole thing once before you start. Nothing here is difficult, but the timing is unforgiving at the end.
Render the bacon
Place the bacon in a large, cold skillet over medium-low heat. Cook slowly until the fat renders and the bacon is crisp, about 10 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the warm bacon fat for the dressing.
Blanch the vegetables
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare an ice bath in a large bowl. Drop the broccoli and cauliflower florets into the boiling water for exactly 60 seconds. Remove them with a slotted spoon and plunge them immediately into the ice bath to stop the cooking.
Dry the florets
Drain the chilled vegetables thoroughly. Spread them out on a clean kitchen towel and pat them completely dry. Any residual water will dilute the dressing and prevent it from clinging to the vegetables.
Whisk the dressing
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, sugar, warm bacon fat, kosher salt, and black pepper until smooth and emulsified. The warm bacon fat will incorporate smoothly into the room-temperature mayonnaise.
Toss the salad
Add the dried broccoli and cauliflower florets and the diced red onion to the bowl with the dressing. Toss thoroughly until every floret is evenly coated. The dressing will seem heavy at first but will thin slightly as the vegetables release moisture.
Chill and garnish
Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to allow the flavors to meld and the vegetables to soften slightly. Just before serving, crumble the reserved bacon and fold it into the salad along with the sunflower seeds to preserve their crunch.
On the bench
Equipment
All 2 of these change the result. Nothing here is a brand recommendation — the spec is what matters.
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Large heavy skillet
Rendering thick-cut bacon slowly requires an even-heating surface so the fat renders without burning the meat; a thin pan scorches the fat and leaves chewy bacon.
- What matters
- 10- to 12-inch heavy skillet (cast iron or heavy-gauge stainless) that conducts heat evenly over medium-low heat.
Large bowl for ice bath
An adequately sized ice bath immediately stops the residual cooking of blanched florets; without it the vegetables will overcook and lose their bright color and crispness.
- What matters
- Large mixing bowl or container that holds the florets and enough ice and water to fully submerge them.
- Search for
- “large bowl for ice bath” (paid link)
The list
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Cook's notes
What we would tell a friend
- Do not skip the blanching step. It removes the raw, sulfurous bite from the brassicas and sets their vibrant colors, preventing the broccoli from turning a dull olive green in the acidic dressing.
- If you prefer a sweeter dressing, you may increase the sugar to 2 tablespoons, but the sharper, more acidic profile better balances the rich bacon fat.
- The salad can be made up to 3 days in advance. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Wait to add the bacon and sunflower seeds until immediately before serving.
- For a sharper bite, substitute half of the mayonnaise with full-fat sour cream or plain whole-milk Greek yogurt.
From the kitchen
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