Broccoli Wedge Salad

This Broccoli Wedge Salad is made big wedges of broccoli instead of the usual florets, with a fresh basil vinaigrette and showered with crispy bacon and parmesan. Simple ingredients, but put together like this, it’s a broccoli salad that gets noticed!

Broccoli Wedge Salad

After the Tartiflette from last week, I think it’s time for something a little lighter and simpler! At the end of each week we do a fridge clean-out at RTE, and everyone takes home fresh produce that would otherwise wouldn’t last over the weekend. Last Friday, I left with bags of broccoli, and happened to have a basil pot plant sitting at home too, and today’s recipe is what I made with it.

What makes this salad a bit different is how I cut the broccoli – into big wedges rather than florets which I then roast until it is tender crisp. It is satisfying to eat and looks striking on the plate. The large flat surface areas are ideal for dolloping with any thick, clingy dressing or sauce. Here I made a Basil Vinaigrette – the fresh and vibrant flavour goes really well with the lightly roasted broccoli. But I could see this dish with a creamy dressing too, like the one I use in my Baby Gem Lettuce Salad or even a Caesar Salad Dressing.

I finished it with a sprinkle of crispy bacon and parmesan. Using both is great but you could just use one or the other.

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Ingredients in Broccoli Wedge Salad

Choose broccoli with a firm, tightly packed head and a fresh green colour. Avoid broccoli with yellowing florets or a soft, bendy stem – these are signs it has been sitting around for a while.

1. THE BROCCOLI WEDGE SALAD

• Broccoli – Cut into wedges rather than florets so it holds onto the dressing properly. Peeling the stem means nothing goes to waste.

• Bacon – Streaky bacon is best here, it has enough fat to render down and turn beautifully crispy on its own, no extra oil needed.

• Parmesan – Finely grated over the top for a salty, savoury finish.

• Olive oil – Use extra virgin for better flavour.

• Salt – Cooking salt / kosher salt.

2. basil vinaigrette

• Basil – The main flavour in the dressing, blitzed fresh so it’s bright, herby and vibrant green.

• Extra virgin olive oil – Worth using a decent one here, it brings its own fruitiness that pairs beautifully with the basil.

• Garlic – You only need a small clove otherwise the raw garlic flavour is too harsh in this dressing.

• Apple cider vinegar – This is the vinegar in this dressing. If you don’t have it, you can use lemon juice or any clear vinegar like white wine vinegar.

• Dijon mustard – This keeps the dressing from splitting and adds some flavour.

• Salt and pepper – For seasoning.

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How To Make Broccoli Salad

This is a very simple recipe. The dressing is made just by blitzing everything together with a stick blender. And the broccoli head is just cut into 8 wedges then roasted at a low temperature until it is just cooked through. I prefer roasting to boiling because no matter how long you steam dry, there is always water left in the florets which dilutes the flavour.

1. Make the Basil Vinaigrette

1. Place all the dressing ingredients into a tall and narrow container that would fit a stick blender all the way to the base.

2. Blitz into a thin puree, it shouldn’t take longer than 10 seconds. It’s ready! Note that the ice cube is doing double duty here, loosening the dressing to the right consistency while keeping everything cold so you end up with a beautiful, bright green dressing. Actually this trick works so well that your dressing will stay green for 2 days.

2. Make the salad

1. Cut Broccoli – Chop the base off the broccoli and using a small knife, remove the though outer skin of the stem. Cut the broccoli in half, then each half into 4 equal wedges.

2. Place them onto a large baking tray, season each wedge with salt and olive oil and roast in the oven at 160°C / 320°F (140°C fan-forced) for 20 – 25 minutes so the thick wedges cook through evenly without the florets burning and losing colour – I want to keep as much fresh green colour as I can. Let it cool to room temperature on the tray – it only takes about 10 minutes. You want to avoid pouring the delicate basil vinaigrette over hot broccoli.

3. Bacon – Cook the bacon until crispy in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, stirring regularly. No oil needed because of all the fat that renders out on its own. Drain it well so you get that satisfying crunch rather than anything greasy.

4. Plate – Build it in two layers on a large serving plate. Put half the broccoli on a large plate, then dollop half the dressing over (put most on the florets) and sprinkle with half the bacon and parmesan. Repeat for the second layer. Then enjoy!

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How To Serve Broccoli Salad

This is best eaten fresh as a side, at room temperature. Fantastic alongside poulet rôti, tomahawk steak or pork schnitzels. But honestly, with the bacon and parmesan, there’s enough going on that it can easily become a proper meal for two on its own. It also travels well if you’re bringing something to a dinner party, though I would assemble it just before serving.

And for something a little different, try it on a piece of toasted sourdough spread with fresh ricotta and topped with one of the broccoli wedges, just like in the photo below. This is actually what I had for lunch today.

Bon appétit! – JB

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Watch How To Make It

Life Of Jaffle

Wrap on the broccoli salad shoot, and the HQ team looking pretty pleased about it. Nagi, Jaffle and me, all smiles in the shoot room. Jaffle, ever patient, sat there with an unimpressed look on his face every time a broccoli was passing by. I think that just like Dozer, he has a strong opinions about vegetables 😅.