Vegan Broccoli Salad made with a delicious blend of broccoli, red grapes, toasted slivered almonds and a tangy, creamy dressing. It's perfectly crunchy, creamy, sweet, and savoury and great for making ahead!
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FEATURED COMMENT:
"Quick, easy, and delicious. I am hooked...with the grapes it is a burst of freshness and sweetness that is joyfully unexpected. The toasted almonds flatten out the sweetness perfectly. I'll make it again, and again, and again!"- MaryEllen ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
Meet your new favourite summer side. Vegan Broccoli Salad, with a delicious combo of broccoli and red grapes tossed in a creamy, tangy dressing, then sprinkled with toasted flaked almonds.
It's quick, easy, big on flavour and full of delicious texture. The creamy and tangy mayo-based dressing with garlic, lemon, Dijon mustard, and lots of seasonings really makes it pop!
It's nice on its own for a light lunch or packed lunch, and perfect for serving up as a side alongside sandwiches, vegan quiche, baked tofu, nutritional yeast tempeh, or any of your favourite meals. Because it keeps so well it's also great for taking to picnics, potlucks, and BBQs.
Mel x
Let's Make Vegan Broccoli Salad!
Vegan Broccoli Salad is quick and easy, and is great for making ahead. Here's how it's done:
- Mix up the easy creamy dressing.
- Toss the broccoli florets in the dressing.
- Add the halved grapes and gently stir to combine them. If you can, leave the salad to sit (minus the almonds in the next step) for at least 30 minutes before serving to give the acidic dressing time to tenderize the broccoli and for the flavours to meld together.
- Sprinkle over the toasted slivered almonds just before serving to conserve their crunch.
Make It Your Own!
This is a really easy salad to customize. Additions that work particularly well include crumbles of vegan feta cheese, cubes of cheddar-style cheese, diced vegan bacon or smoky tempeh, shredded tofu, smoked tofu, dried fruits like raisins, cherries, dates or cranberries instead of the grapes or as well as the grapes, or walnuts or pecans instead of the almonds. A little curry powder in the salad dressing is wonderful too!
Recipe FAQs
No, the broccoli should be raw. It's crunchy, fresh texture works really nicely with the creamy dressing and juicy grapes. I do recommend letting the salad sit for 30 minutes before eating it though, because the acidic dressing tenderizes the broccoli just a little bit.
No. Frozen broccoli will not work well in this recipe. It needs to be fresh.
Recipe
Vegan Broccoli Salad
Author:Ingredients
- ½ cup (55 grams) slivered or flaked almonds , or pumpkin or sunflower seeds for nut-free
- 2 heads broccoli
- 2 heaping cups (about 340 grams) red grapes
For the dressing
- ¾ cup (150 grams) vegan mayonnaise
- 1½ tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar , or apple cider vinegar
- ¼ of a small clove garlic , finely grated/minced
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt , see recipe notes
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper , see recipe notes
- OPTIONAL 1 tablespoon maple syrup or 2 teaspoons white/cane sugar. (See recipe notes)
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
- Warm a small pan over a medium heat and add the slivered almonds. Keep them moving around the pan for a 2 to 3 minutes until they smell really nutty and toasty and are turning golden. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
- Cut the broccoli into bite sized florets. Cut the stalks into thin matchsticks too if you don't want to waste them. Wash thoroughly and shake dry or use a salad spinner. Put in a large salad bowl.
- Wash the grapes, dry them well and cut them all in half.
- In a small bowl mix up the dressing ingredients until well combined and smooth.
- Toss the dressing through the broccoli making sure to coat it all very well, then add the grapes and stir them through gently. Adding the grapes after the broccoli has been coated helps to keep them looking good and stop them from getting squashed.
- Leave the salad to sit for at least 30 minutes so the broccoli can tenderize a little in the acidic dressing andthe flavours can meld together.
- Sprinkle over the toasted almonds just before serving.
NOTES
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Barbara Kennelly says
Mel, we LOVE this broccoli-grape-almond salad, soooo much! 2 thumbs up from the whole family! Thank you so much for sharing this super yummy recipe. It will definitely be a "regular" in our house! (The timing of seeing this in my mailbox was perfect as I was able to find local BC broccoli yesterday at our newly opened Freshco, on sale even! Yay!)
Melanie McDonald says
Love to hear that, Barbara and thank you so much for your review!
GeneAnn says
Love this recipe
Pet says
My room mate is deathly allergic to grapes, and longingly looking at this recipe. Is there any substitutes you can think of for either this recipe or a similar one.
Melanie McDonald says
Fresh blueberries, dried cranberries or chopped apples would be good. Or a combination like apples and dried cranberries. If using apples I'd probably toss them in a little lemon juice before adding so they don’t turn brown. Hope your roommate enjoys it!
Morgan Holden-White says
DELICIOUS!!!! Oh my. I've made it twice this week and find that half the recipe makes a very generous salad for 2 people. The dressing is heavenly and I would definitely make it alone for use with other salads. I would be interested know how long you think the dressing might last in an airtight container in the fridge? At least 3-4 days, like the salad, but perhaps on its own a bit longer? Don't skip the almonds as they are the cherry on the top, so to speak. I took some into work yesterday with a separate pot of almonds and only remembered to add them a couple of mouthfuls from the end...gutted doesn't begin to describe it! Haha! Thoroughly recommend this yummy salad.
Melanie McDonald says
Thanks so much for leaving a review. I'm really pleased you're enjoying it!
I think the dressing should be ok in the fridge for about a week. Just give it a good whisk before using as it might separate a bit. It's very good in a potato salad ;O)
Morgan Holden-White says
Fabulous! Thanks so much :)
Shirley says
YUM! Love this salad.
Sally says
I’ve made this salad frequently since I discovered it. It is delicious, easy to make, and very Christmassy with the green broccoli and the red grapes. The toasted slivered almonds give it a pleasing crunch. I’m serving it again as a side for our Christmas dinner-I’m sure it’ll be a hit!
Karen says
This was so good! I made it with pistachios because that’s what I had. I think any nut or sunflower seeds would be good. The key to the recipe is the amazing dressing! I may try with dried cherries too, although the grapes were perfect! Really good days later too! Thanks again for another great recipe!
John says
Do you drain and rinse the black beans, or just drain? The picture in step one looks like they were also rinsed.
Melanie McDonald says
This recipe doesn't contain beans.
Natalie Weekes says
This was delicious. I was a little sceptical about not steaming the broccoli and the addition of maple syrup but I went with the recipe and I am so glad I did. I thinly sliced the broccoli and I just loved this. I have made it three times since!
MaryEllen Ruddell says
Quick, easy, and delicious. I am hooked. It is reminiscent of the classic broccoli salad that had cheese and bacon in it but with the grapes it is a burst of freshness and sweetness that is joyfully unexpected. The toasted almonds flatten out the sweetness perfectly. I'll make it again, and again, and again!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm really pleased you enjoyed it MaryEllen! Thanks so much for topping by to leave a review/rating. It's much appreciated!
Mari says
This looks like a winner, and I can’t wait to make it. It has my favorite vegetable, and grapes, as a bonus. Thank you for all the yummy recipes. Eating healthy has never tasted this good before. Since subscribing, I have been eating Vegan more frequently. You make it so easy. Thank you Mel.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you so much Mari. I'm really pleased my recipes are helping. I hope you enjoy this salad when you get a chance to make it!