Healthy Plant Based Broccoli Salad

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Creamy, flavorful, and loaded with nutrients, this Healthy Plant Based Broccoli Salad is a delicious lunch, dinner, or side dish. You’ll love contrast between crunchy veggies and the sweet grapes, and you’ll also love the creamy and slightly sweet oil-free dressing. This broccoli salad without mayo is also perfect to take to a potluck, barbecue, or picnic!

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Raw broccoli is one of those things I thought I never liked. I had really only encountered it on vegetable trays. I was meant to dip huge florets in some kind of dip (usually ranch, which I don’t eat). But I tried dipping (admittedly large) florets of broccoli into my own delicious hummus recipes like my butter bean hummus, beet hummus, spinach artichoke hummus, and classic creamy hummus. Still, a no go. It was just too much crunch?

But I really wanted to try making a classic like broccoli salad in a healthy way.

Traditional broccoli salad, if you’re not aware, usually includes grapes, bacon, cheese, a mayo dressing, and sometimes nuts and dried cranberries. Not exactly a whole food plant based salad.

But this plant based broccoli salad has an incredible creamy, mayo-free dressing (made from tofu! Substitutions provided below if you can’t have soy) and honestly you really don’t need any of that other stuff. I LOVE the grapes in this salad, and I’ve tried it with apples too and both are delicious.

By the way, you can totally add unsweetened dried cranberries and raw pumpkin seeds if you want a little extra something in this salad. No-salt-added garbanzo beans (AKA chickpeas) would also be a great option and offer more protein and satiety.

But earlier I was saying I wasn’t a fan of raw broccoli. I discovered the secret though!

Well, there’s two.

One, you need an amazing dressing, check.

And two, you need to chop the broccoli small enough! I used just the florets of the broccoli in this recipe (coming out with a cool way to use the broccoli stems soon, but I usually chop them up and stir fry them) and I cut them really small, like the size of a penny or dime.

And it worked! I’m sure the grapes and the onions help too.

But this plant based broccoli salad is incredibly delicious. I hope that you’ll try it even if you’re a bit skeptical like I was.

Ingredients

See the recipe card below for the full ingredients list (with amounts) and instructions.

For the Broccoli Salad

• Fresh Broccoli: I used just the tops of the broccoli for this recipe (I throw the stems in a stir fry or soup, and I’m working on a broccoli stem dip too!).
• Red Onion: Thinly sliced red onion is perfect this plant based broccoli salad recipe because it provides just the right “bite” of flavor. It’s definitely not overpowering, especially in the amount I use. But other onions will work too.
• Celery: I really love the contrast of flavors and celery has a naturally slightly salty flavor so that’s why I chose it for this recipe. It’s also very hardy and will hold up in the fridge.
• Grapes: I use red seedless grapes for this dish and they are the perfect texture and pop of sweetness. If your grapes are very large, you can halve or quarter them, but this will make them go a bit softer in the fridge if you plan to store this salad for a few days. If you won’t eat the whole salad the first day, either find smaller grapes you don’t have to slice, or halve the recipe.

For the Dressing

• Silken Tofu: This recipe calls for 16 ounces silken tofu. You can find 16-ounce packages of silken tofu in the refrigerator section at your local grocery store, that’s where I buy mine even in my little town that has almost nothing. But if you can only buy your silken tofu in the shelf-stable 12-ounce aseptic containers, you can either use 1 + ¼ of those, or just use one pack and add 2-4 tablespoons of soaked raw cashews, soaked raw sunflower seeds, cooked white beans, or dehydrated potato flakes.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: This adds a really nice lightly sweet flavor to the dressing.
• Medjool Date: I add just one pitted Medjool date which adds a bit of sweetness to this dressing, mimicking traditional broccoli salad. If you don’t want to add it, you don’t have to.
• White or Yellow Miso Paste: This is to replace the salt in the recipe, but I also love the little hint of umami flavors. Per Dr. Michael Greger of NutritionFacts.org, the soy in miso has a protective effect so the sodium in miso paste will not affect us negatively. Please feel free to omit or use a pinch of salt if that is what you prefer.
• Granulated Onion and Granulated Garlic: For flavor!

Substitutions

• Fresh Broccoli: Baby broccoli would be a nice spin on this salad. Cauliflower should also work well here.
• Red Onion: You can use sweet or yellow onion for a more mellow flavor (or white onion for a stronger flavor). The mildest onion would be green onion (AKA spring onion or scallion).
• Celery: You can swap this out for chopped carrots for an equally hardy veggie (that will last well in the fridge) or a more delicate one like bell peppers or cucumbers. Note that these will not last as long in the fridge but are less dense and therefore may be more palatable for some folks.
• Grapes: Green grapes would work as well as red, the red ones were just prettier (depending on the grapes available to you, red grapes may also be sweeter). If you don’t want to use grapes, try apples. I used a sweet apple variety the first time I tested this salad and it was quite good. Note that if you’re storing this in the fridge, the apples will oxidize (you could soak them in lemon juice to help prevent this, but I’m not sure how long it’s effective).
• Silken Tofu: If you can only find soft or regular tofu (don’t use firm), you can use this and just add a little plain unsweetened non-dairy milk (just enough to blend). If you don’t want to use tofu at all, you can do 1+½ cups drained and rinsed canned (or cooked from dried) white beans, or 1 cup of either soaked raw cashews or soaked raw sunflower seeds (and you will need water or plain unsweetened non-dairy milk to blend, and how much depends on how long you soaked them so start with equal parts nuts/seeds and liquid and adjust from there.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: Rice vinegar or lemon juice would also work well here.
• Medjool Date: You can try another natural sweetener such date syrup or pure maple syrup if you still want a little sweetness (I would start with half a tablespoon and add more if needed). Or if you don’t want it to be sweet at all, omit this ingredient.
• White or Yellow Miso Paste: Instead of miso you can use salt or a potassium chloride salt substitute. Or leave it out, and maybe add an additional tablespoon of vinegar and a little more of the spices.
• Granulated Onion and Granulated Garlic: If you can’t have one of these, substitute it for a spice you do like or try a little nutritional yeast. Or omit it.

How to Make Plant Based Broccoli Salad

• Make the dressing: Add the silken tofu, apple cider vinegar, pitted Medjool date, miso paste, granulated onion, and granulated garlic to your blender. Blend on high until fully combined. A little spice may get stuck on the side; just scrape it down with a spatula or spoon and blend for 10 more seconds.
• Taste test: Taste the sauce. Need more sweetness? Add another pitted date. More saltiness? Add a teaspoon of miso. More acidity? Add another tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Blend again and taste again. Repeat until you’re happy with it.
• Assemble the salad: Add your chopped broccoli, sliced celery, sliced red onions, and grapes to a large mixing bowl. Pour the sauce on top. You might want to start with half of it and add more if needed. Some people like it to be saucier than others. Mix well and taste. Adjust as needed.
• Storage: Refrigerate leftover plant based broccoli salad in an airtight container for up to 4 days. If you have leftover dressing, you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days and it’s great on cooked veggies and more.

Expert Tips

• Don’t love raw broccoli? Try blanching it! Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the broccoli and cook for one minute. Then immediately add the broccoli to a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. This will make the broccoli easier to chew and digest.
• About the stems: The stems are more hardy than the florets. If you don’t mind them, chop them into matchsticks or grate them. I find them to be sweeter than the florets. But if you don’t want that texture in the salad, save the stems for a stir-fry or steam them and blend them into a sauce or dip. I’m working on a broccoli dip recipe which should be ready soon!
• Add more protein: Want this to be a more satisfying main dish? Add cooked beans like no-salt-added garbanzo beans (AKA chickpeas) or another bean you like. Or try cubed baked tofu or tempeh!
• Top it: Many traditional broccoli salad recipes included dried cranberries. You could definitely buy unsweetened dried cranberries if you wanted to stay within Whole Food Plant Based guidelines! Raw pumpkin seeds, crushed walnuts, raw cashews, or raw sunflower seeds would also be a lovely topping.

Serving Suggestions

This plant based broccoli salad is a fantastic main dish (I especially love it for a super quick lunch) or side dish. If you are serving it as a main, you may want to add cooked chickpeas or another plant protein source to make it even more satisfying.

It would also work quite well as a side dish for mains like baked sweet potatoes, pasta, or cooked grains.

Or serve it alongside a soup like my potato and cauliflower soup or cabbage mushroom soup.

This broccoli salad with no mayo would also be great alongside a hummus veggie sandwich!

More Great Plant Based Recipes To Try

• Portobello Pizzas
• Kale Salad with Blueberries and Grapes with Sweet Lime Oil-Free Vinaigrette
• Creamy Mushroom Stroganoff
• Whole Food Plant Based Potato Salad
• Golden Beet Beans and Greens
• Kale Sweet Potato Salad
• Bell Pepper Nachos with Edamame Guacamole and Plant Based Nacho Cheese Sauce
• Chickpea Tuna Salad

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