Easy Broccoli Salad with Bacon

Broccoli, crumbled bacon, sesame seeds, and cheese tossed with seasoned mayonnaise make this broccoli salad with bacon the absolute best side dish!

Easy Broccoli Salad with Bacon

Ohhhh my gosh, you guys! This recipe is creamy, dreamy, and so dang good served with any meal! We love making this easy broccoli salad with bacon for barbecues, mannn this dish tastes so dang good with the best barbecue ribs ever!!

Easy Broccoli Salad with Bacon Recipe

Fresh broccoli once summer rolls around tastes so ridiculously amazing, doesn’t it? Not only is it super tasty, broccoli is a good source of both fiber and protein! It contains iron, calcium, potassium, selenium, and magnesium too, as well as the vitamins A, C, E, K! It also has a good array of B vitamins including folic acid, too. That’s why we prefer eating fresh broccoli in our home and in this broccoli salad recipe!

Easy Broccoli Salad with Bacon Side Dish

If you’re looking for a fantastic side dish for a barbecue or get-together, this one fits the bill and then-some! Crunchy sesame seeds paired with crisply chopped bacon pieces give it an even bigger crunch! I really love how the flavors combine in this dish, and I believe you will too! I love easy side dish recipes like this one, don’t you?

Best Broccoli Salad with Bacon Recipe

Some broccoli salad recipes don’t include bacon, but for me, with these particular flavors? Fresh cooked bacon chopped and/or crumbled into this salad really accentuate and make this dish! It’s like the bacon is the “cherry” on top!

Tips to Make Broccoli Salad with Bacon Easily

I like chopping the broccoli into bite-sized pieces to make it easier to eat when served, you know? Raw broccoli doesn’t cut well with a fork, you know? Do your best not to sing the “Chopping Broccoli” song from the SNL skit by Dana Carvey when cutting the broccoli, haha! (Who remembers this skit from the 80s? Did I just date myself?)

All kidding aside, be sure to make this broccoli side dish recipe well enough ahead of time to allow it ample time to chill in the fridge so that it’s served perfectly cold. Have it chilled in the fridge for at least an hour if not more (I recommend more, but sometimes, it’s gotta get done in a pinch).

Cheese cheese and more cheese. Yes, please. This dish tastes best with liberal usage of shredded cheddar cheese. You could easily do a cheddar blend, if you wanted to. Or kick things up a notch spice-wise with a pepperjack blend.

How to Make Broccoli Salad with Bacon

To make this broccoli salad recipe, you will need the following:

• Fresh broccoli, chopped
• Cooked and chopped bacon (any variety, but we looove using Applewood Smoked for this!)
• Sesame seeds
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Mayonnaise
• Sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Optional additions: Red onion

As this is an uncomplicated recipe, you will only need to ready a few tools to make this broccoli salad side dish recipe a success:

• Frying pan (for preparing the bacon)
• Cutting board with sharp knife
• Large bowl
• Rubber spatula or wooden spoon to mix

Break out your large cutting board and sharp knife; chop your broccoli into bite-sized pieces and place it into a large bowl.

Prepare your bacon in the frying pan, let it cool to the touch, and then dice it into small pieces.

Place the chopped bacon to the broccoli bowl.

Add the shredded cheddar cheese to the bowl.

Drop in your sesame seeds (try not to snack on any as they are delicious). If you are adding the optional red onions to this dish, you can add them into the bowl here!

Add your mayo to the broccoli bowl (but don’t stir anything just yet, I know you’re tempted to)!

From here, it’s seasoning time! First on deck is the sugar – add it to the broccoli bowl.

Next up is the salt and pepper to taste. I use fresh-ground because it tastes amazing! We use this grinder set and love it so much!

Now, stir (but gently)! From here, taste the dressing and see if it needs more salt and pepper. You can also opt to use additional seasonings here if you’d like too, depending on your own personal preference. Onion and garlic powder might work well!

Once it’s seasoned appropriately according to your taste, and all ingredients are well-blended and coating everything evenly, refrigerate for at least an hour. I prefer more than that to ensure it’s completely chilled thoroughly in time to serve.

Gah, the blending of sweet and savory and creamy with crunchy, gahhh! I can taste it and I’m so sad I don’t have any left to snack on right now! Full recipe and instructions with measurements are located below. I hope you love this dish as our family has, and I hope you save it, bookmark it for later, and decide to share it! Our family would greatly appreciate your support!

More Side Dish Ideas

Looking for additional side dish recipes? Check out my side dish category, including the following awesome recipes!

• Jalapeño Corn Casserole
• Italian Herb Roasted Potatoes
• Jalapeño Popper Macaroni and Cheese
• Easy Garlic Pull Apart Bread
• Spinach Balls

Also check out my friend Rini’s spicy cucumber salad recipe, too!

Dinner Ideas for Easy Broccoli Salad with Bacon

Maybe you’re interested in some easy dinner ideas to go with this Easy Broccoli Salad with Bacon?

• The BEST Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes Recipe
• Instant Pot Lemon Butter Chicken Recipe
• Instant Pot Pulled Barbecue Chicken Recipe
• The BEST Barbecue Ribs Recipe EVER!
• Chicken Bacon Ranch Cheddar Wreath
• Chicken Broccoli Spinach Artichoke Wreath
• Slow Cooker Barbecue Pulled Pork Sandwiches
• Slow Cooker Herbed Barbecue Chicken Legs
• Slow Cooker Meatloaf Recipe
• Tex-Mex Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches

Also check out my friend Catherine’s Cheddar Bacon Chicken Tenders recipe!