This Irresistible Mandarin Broccoli Salad is not only the best broccoli salad ever, but I’ll go so far as to call this my favorite salad ever. I’m not exaggerating; this salad is beyond delicious and without a doubt the best broccoli salad I’ve ever had.

With crisp lightly roasted broccoli and savory bacon pieces, sweet oranges and tangy onion tossed in the slightly sweet dressing, this salad will be on my favorites list for a long time.

Mandarin Broccoli Salad - 1

Best Broccoli Salad

I cook with broccoli often. It makes an appearance in everything from soups , to stir-frys to coleslaws in my kitchen.

Salads are one of my favorite ways to serve broccoli as a side dish. I’ve been making Broccoli Salad with Grapes as a staple accompaniment to all kinds of meals for several years. The crisp broccoli, sweet grapes and tangy dressing in that recipe have always been a hit.

As much as I adore that recipe, I have to say that this Mandarin Broccoli Salad is even better. I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to share it with you!

Irresistible Mandarin Broccoli Salad - get the recipe at barefeetinthekitchen.com - 2

Irresistible Broccoli Salad

Ingredients

  • SALAD DRESSING:
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/3 cup honey or white sugar both work well
  • 1 teaspoon arrowroot powder cornstarch is fine as well
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise I made this both with and without the mayo and both versions were good. The final verdict was in favor of the mayo. It adds a tangy element to the dressing and we liked that.
  • SALAD:
  • 6 cups broccoli florets cut slightly smaller than bite size
  • 2 cups approximately 5 oz mushrooms, sliced thin and then cut in half, about 10-12 pieces per small button mushroom
  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 10 slices bacon cooked and chopped small (I cook the bacon in the oven at the same time as the broccoli)
  • 4 mandarin oranges peeled and separated
  • 1/2 small red onion very thinly sliced

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. If you are cooking the bacon in the oven with the broccoli, now is the time to start it. You can spread it out on a large baking tray covered in foil and place it in the cold oven as you preheat it. 18-22 minutes later it should be done. Keep a close eye on the bacon towards the end of the cooking time.
  • In a large bowl, drizzle olive oil lightly over the broccoli. Toss with your hands to coat. Spread out the broccoli in a single layer across a lightly greased or silpat lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Roast in the oven for 10-12 minutes, or until barely beginning to brown on the edges. The broccoli should be a bright green with a bit of crunch remaining. Let the broccoli cool completely before combining with the other salad ingredients.
  • Make the dressing next, it will need to cool before tossing with the rest of the salad. In a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk eggs, honey (or sugar), arrowroot and mustard. Add the vinegar and water and whisk again. Cook until slightly thickened, stirring almost constantly. Remove from the heat and add the mayonnaise. Cool.
  • In a large bowl, combine the cooled salad ingredients and then toss with the cooled dressing. This is delicious immediately, however it is even better after 3 or more hours rest in the refrigerator. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Irresistible Broccoli Salad https://barefeetinthekitchen.com/irresistible-mandarin-roasted-broccoli/