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Free Printable: Low Carb & Keto Food List
Get It NowThis low carb keto broccoli salad with bacon is the perfect salad to make ahead or take to parties! It’s one of my favorites in the summer months while it’s hot, but it’s also great for potlucks, meal prep, or weeknight meals all year long. It comes together quickly and can be made ahead… because it gets even better with time! But beyond the convenience, this hearty broccoli bacon salad also has incredible flavor.
Why You’ll Love This Keto Broccoli Salad Recipe
- Fresh, smoky, summery flavor
- Crunchy, creamy textures
- Easy ingredients
- 10 minutes prep
- 5g net carbs per serving
- Naturally gluten-free, low carb, nut-free, and keto friendly
- Easy low carb side dish to make in advance — that everyone will love even if they aren’t keto!
Ingredients & Substitutions
This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for keto broccoli and bacon salad, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
Keto Broccoli Salad:
- Fresh Broccoli Florets – Chop them yourself from a fresh head of broccoli, or buy the bagged kind for convenience. Make sure the pieces are small enough for individual bite sized pieces. If you don’t have enough broccoli on hand, you could also make a broccoli cauliflower salad.
- Red Onion – Adds crunch and light sweetness. You can substitute white or yellow onion if needed, but red has more flavor for this dish.
- Crumbled Bacon – Broccoli salad with bacon is the best kind! You can get pre-cooked bacon bits, or make your own bacon in the oven, air fryer bacon, or microwave bacon, and chop it up.
- Cheddar Cheese – Shred it fresh off the block, cut into small cubes for a different texture, or get pre-shredded cheese to save time. For a dairy-free or paleo variation, you can substitute shredded carrots (keep in mind the carb count will be higher).
- Sunflower Seeds – Use shelled seeds, either raw or roasted depending on your preference. If you tolerate nuts, you can also substitute chopped walnuts, pecans, almonds, or really any keto nuts you like.
- Avocado – Adds extra healthy fats, which is great for a keto broccoli salad! Make sure your avocado is ripe and soft.
Some traditional broccoli salad recipes include high-carb ingredients like raisins or dried cranberries, but we’re keeping it just as flavorful without them! (You can add sugar-free dried cranberries if you like, though, like I do for broccoli cranberry salad.)
Creamy Dressing:
- Mayonnaise – I like to use homemade avocado oil mayo, but any kind you prefer will work. You can also lighten it up by replacing some of the mayo with sour cream. If you want extra creamy dressing, increase the mayo amount to 1 cup.
- Olive Oil – Use extra virgin olive oil for flavor, or any neutral oil you like, such as avocado oil.
- White Vinegar – Makes the dressing a little tangy. Apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar will also work.
- Besti Powdered Monk Fruit Allulose Blend – Makes the dressing lightly sweet with 0g net carbs, and dissolves to be completely smooth. You can also use powdered erythritol or a different sugar substitute, as long as it is powdered. Honey is also a good option if you don’t need the salad to be sugar-free (or use keto honey instead!). Technically you could also omit the sweetener altogether, but I think the best broccoli salad recipes have a little sweetness in the dressing.
- Seasonings – Including black pepper (optional) and garlic salt.
VARIATION: Try another dressing!
This keto broccoli salad would be delicious with Japanese ginger dressing or sweet honey sugar free salad dressing as well.
How To Make Keto Broccoli Salad
This section shows how to make keto broccoli salad with bacon, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique, to help you visualize it. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.
- Mix salad. In a large bowl, combine the salad ingredients.
- Whisk dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the broccoli bacon salad dressing ingredients.
TIP: Want softer broccoli?
If you prefer softer or crisp-tender broccoli rather than the raw broccoli in this recipe, you can blanch it first (cook briefly in boiling water) and let it cool before making broccoli salad.
- Combine. Pour the dressing over the broccoli mixture and stir until well incorporated.
- Finish. Fold in avocado just before serving.
Storage Instructions
The best part about this keto broccoli salad recipe with bacon? You can make it ahead! Simply store leftovers covered in the refrigerator (without the avocado, if possible).
How Long Does Broccoli Salad Last?
When stored in an airtight container in the fridge, a broccoli bacon salad recipe will keep for up to 7 days. The avocado will brown by that point, so wait to add the avocado until just before you plan to serve it.
Can You Freeze Broccoli Salad?
No, avoid freezing broccoli salad recipes, as the dressing will separate and the textures will change too much.
What To Serve With Keto Broccoli Salad
- Grilled Meats & Seafood – Pair low carb broccoli salad with grilled shrimp skewers, grilled steak, bruschetta chicken, or other healthy grilling recipes.
- Burgers – Try this salad with traditional juicy burgers or keto turkey burgers.
- Sandwiches – Plate this bacon broccoli salad recipe with a keto BLT, keto grilled cheese, or chicken bacon ranch wraps for a simple lunch.
- Easy Mains – Like pan seared pork chops, air fryer chicken legs, or bacon wrapped hot dogs.
More Low Carb Salad Recipes To Make Ahead
Love the easy prep in this keto broccoli salad with bacon? You’ll like these other make-ahead salads as well. (Try more low carb salads here!)
Tools For This Recipe
- Glass Nesting Bowls – With plenty of sizes to mix components for this salad.
- Avocado Saver – Keeps avocados fresh!
- Glass Storage Containers – Store any extra broccoli salad recipe with bacon in these airtight containers.
Keto Bacon Broccoli Salad Recipe
Keto Broccoli Salad With Bacon (10 Minutes!)
Broccoli bacon salad bursts with flavor and crunch! This keto broccoli salad with bacon, cheese, and creamy dressing takes just 10 minutes.
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Ingredients
Tap underlined ingredients to see where to get them. Please turn Safari reader mode OFF to view ingredients.
Broccoli Salad:
Broccoli Salad Dressing:
Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.
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In a large bowl, combine the broccoli, red onion, bacon bits, sunflower seeds, and cheddar cheese.
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In a small bowl, whisk mayonnaise, olive oil, white vinegar, garlic salt, powdered Besti, and pepper, until smooth. Stir the dressing into the vegetable mixture until well incorporated.
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Fold in the avocado right before serving.
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Recipe Notes
Serving size: 3/4 cup
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.
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21 Comments
Rachel
0I absolutely love this salad! I’ve made it twice the past two weeks! Love the addition of sunflower seeds. I didn’t have avocado, so omitted. Super crunchy, refreshing, & flavorful!
Kerry
0Love this salad. It’s so easy and quick to make. Plus it travels well in my lunch bag. My boyfriend hasn’t been too sold on some of the keto recipes I’ve tried but this one he asks me to make. You would never know it’s keto low carb. It’s even better the second day but we usually don’t have much leftover. I’m going to try it with vegan mayo and vegan cheese shreds and carrots for my niece. I’ll report back after I make it that way. Thanks for such a great recipe.
Sue
0I have made this 4 times and it has become my go to recipe for all dinner guests. You can keep it overnight for lunch the next day, it thickens and gets even yummier. Any berries are great.
Lee
0I haven’t made this yet, but know I’m going to love it! It reminds me of one I guiltily buy sometimes but this is much healthier. I have two questions….
Can you tell me approximately how much broccoli you used? It looks like about 1 1/2 to 2 cups but I don’t know how much 1 bunch of broccoli really is. I’ll be cutting it in half since I cook for just myself right now.
I don’t use mayonnaise much. Do you think it will work to replace some of it with yogurt? I’ve seen that in other recipes but have never tried it.
Thanks for this great recipe.
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Lee, A medium bunch of broccoli is about 3 – 3 1/2 cups of chopped florets and stem. To half the recipe you’ll want approximately 1 1/2 cups of chopped broccoli. Yogurt is higher in carbs, so if you are wanting to keep this recipe lower carb, I would use sour cream in place of the mayonnaise. Enjoy your salad!
Donna C
0You would not even know this is a keto, low carb recipe. Had friends over and they ate it up! So good.
TC
0I just made this and loved it so much!!
Ly Nguyen
0I just tried this recipe, I didn’t put the onion because I don’t eat raw onion. It’s turn out really good, thanks for sharing this. I will probably make it more later.
Lisa
0Some amazing recipes can not wait to try them
Jenn
0Flipping over the avocado in here – such an awesome recipe and I love that it’s keto!
Shanika
0This is such a unique way to enjoy a salad! I love the idea of using Broccoli! Plus, it’s healthy so that’s a win, win!
Kelly
0This is the only way I can get one of my girls to eat broccoli! Bacon and cheese make everything better!
Heidy L. McCallum
0This bacon avocado and broccoli salad was awesome. I’m not following Keto but seriously considering doing it if I had more fabulous flavorful recipes to eat like yours. It was amazing!!!!
Sara
0This is awesome! I love that it doesn’t have sugar. I’m not Keto but I do like to avoid adding sugar to recipes whenever possible.
Adriana
0I enjoy broccoli a lot love the idea of making t a keto side dish for my guests this Thanksgiving.
Dannii
0I love broccoli in a salad. It adds so much crunch.
Kate
0The “print recipe” link on this page takes you to the Wholesome Yum homepage. Please fix. I am making a healthy recipe binder and would love to add this yummy recipe! 🙂
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Kate, Oh no, sorry to hear you’re having issues with it. It’s working for me but please contact me here if it isn’t for you so that I can help troubleshoot. I’m glad you think the recipe is yummy. 🙂
Kim Haas
0Made this last weekend, best broccoli salad I have ever eaten! Even my 6 year old son liked it. I do not care for the recipes that contain sugar, way too sweet for my taste, and my family. I am so happy to have found this recipe, thank you Maya. Only thing I did differently was blanch the broccoli for a minute or two because my son prefers his broccoli cooked. By the way, I don’t normally write reviews for recipes, this is probably my second one in 15 years, but I was so impressed I wanted you to know.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you and your son liked the salad, Kim! Have a great day!
Kim
0I love that you added cheddar cheese and avocado to this broccoli salad. It somehow made it seem new! Thanks for a great recipe.