BROOMFIELD, Colo. — Summer is here and the temps are rising, offering this broccoli salad for your friends and family is a refreshing way to enjoy this bountiful crop. Served lightly charred on the grill, broccoli gets the star treatment for this crispy and hearty side dish.
Broccoli is in season and you can find it at your local farmers markets. Want to find a farmers market near you? Colorado Proud has you covered with our Farm Fresh Directory, which can help you find locations, markets, and farmers. Don’t forget we also have an interactive map to help find farmers markets at coloradoproud.com. And if you’re looking for a specific grower near you, check out this Produce Finder from the Colorado Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association.
Broccoli has been cultivated for more than 2,000 years in Europe and may have evolved from wild cabbage. This cool season vegetable crop that can yield over an extended period of time if properly grown and harvested. Like most fresh produce from the Brassicaceae family, broccoli florets are rich in vitamins C and K and are a good source of vitamin A, B6, and folate. Broccoli is also a good source of fiber and provides small amounts of calcium and iron (Colorado State University). One cup of cooked broccoli contains about 1 mg of iron, which is about 6% of the recommended daily intake.
Chef Jason says, “Broccoli is such a great nutritious vegetable. This refreshing salad offers a fun crunch on these warming summer days. Happy Cooking!”
Refreshing Colorado Broccoli Salad
Chef Jason K. Morse, C.E.C., 5280 Culinary, LLC and Ace Hardware Grill Expert
Yield: Serves 6-8
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15-20 minutes
Chill Time: 30-60 minutes
Ingredients:
- 4 heads broccoli, crowns, stem ends trimmed and cut into spears
- 2 small red onions, peeled of outer layers and cut into thick slices
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 12 slices of thick cut applewood bacon, cooked and chopped
- Your choice of dressing, such as balsamic vinaigrette, apple vinaigrette, ginger sesame or other
Cooking Instructions:
- Preheat the grill to 400 degrees and set up for direct grilling.
- Meanwhile, place broccoli onto a large pan, drizzle with olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Place red onions onto the pan, oil both sides and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Grill broccoli until desired char is reached, turning approximately every 4-5 minutes.
- While broccoli is grilling add the onions and grill for 4-5 minutes per side.
- When broccoli and onions are done, remove from the grill and cool.
- When cool, place in the fridge to chill completely.
- Roughly chop the broccoli and place into a bowl.
- Roughly cut the red onion slices in half and add to the broccoli.
- Add the cooked, chopped bacon to the bowl.
- Drizzle with your choice of dressing, mix well to combine and serve.
- Salad is best served chilled.
If you are of legal drinking age and would like to add a wine with your dessert, Carboy Blanc LaLaLa sparkling wine offers fresh aromas of green apple and Asian pear along with hints of apricot and baking spices. For a non-alcoholic option, check out Gruvi based in Denver. They have best-selling non-alcoholic beer, wine, mocktail recipes and more!
Visit ColoradoProud.org for more ideas and a complete list of recipes.
— Colorado Department of Agriculture
