This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
I am on a mission to learn to like broccoli.
And I’d say that I’m about 47% of the way there.
I spent a childhood pushing it around on my plate with a fork, pretending like those “little trees” were part of some enchanted forest that could come to life on my plate instead of in my stomach. But a few years ago, I discovered that I actually liked broccoli cheese soup (ok, really, who doesn’t?). And I have been using that recipe as my gateway into broccoli ever since.
I still would never just choose broccoli off a menu. But if it’s roasted, stir-fried, or souped up, I’m in. And this week, when I needed an extra side dish to go with my favorite slow cooker teriyaki chicken and rice, I discovered a new way that broccoli and I can be friends: with peanut sauce.
Oh my goodness. This might be the first time I have ever gone back for broccoli seconds.
Speaking of not liking your vegetables, one of my blogging friends is famous for not liking her veggies — Jessica from How Sweet Eats. Some of you may have read all about her in my post featuring her new cookbook. But if you are new to her blog, you will soon find out that Jessica is getting ready to welcome a How Sweet Baby into her world this fall! I can already envision the nursery now, decorated with her favorite sprinkles and neon and bacon (eh?) galore. :)
Seriously, though, it’s so fun to see friends walk into this new stage of life. And this sweet new baby will be lucky to have such a cool, talented, thoughtful, fun, and fiercely-original mama cheering them on.
So today, a group of talented food bloggers are throwing Jessica a surprise virtual baby shower, full of the “trashed up” recipes that she loves. And my contribution is this Asian Broccoli Salad.
If we must eat our broccoli — and word has it that we must — I’m pretty sure that this salad is the way to go. It is made with 6 simple ingredients, including an easy peanut sauce that is guaranteed to turn just about anything it touches into delicious gold.
PLUS, it can be made in about 15 minutes, or however long it takes your pot of water to boil.
Just chop up your broccoli, blanch it, and then toss it with edamame, peanuts, green onions, and a generous drizzle of peanut sauce.
And then — Jessica-style — top it with some “sprinkles”. In this case, sesame seeds. :)
The result is a simple salad that makes the perfect side dish. Or you can even add in some cooked chicken or beef or tofu to turn it into a main dish, and serve it over rice or quinoa. Easy peasy. Or more accurately, easy broccoli-y. ;)
1–2 tablespoons hot water, as needed to thin the sauce
Instructions
To Make The Broccoli Salad:
Heat a large pot of water until it is boiling. Add in the broccoli florets and boil for 30 seconds. Use a mesh strainer to transfer them into a bowl of ice water, which will immediately halt the cooking process. Drain. Then add the remaining ingredients and toss until combined. Serve immediately, garnished with sesame seeds if desired.
To Make The Peanut Sauce:
Whisk all ingredients together until combined. If the dressing is too thick, whisk in hot water a tablespoon at a time until it reaches the consistency you desire.
My kids were anti-broccoli unless if was covered in cheese sauce. Then I discovered this trick – we do a steamed bag in the microwave. When it’s cooked, I squeeze done lemon juice on it, add a little butter and some seasoned salt and mix it all together. They love it!
April —
Barely cooked the broccoli at all, more like splashed it with hot water until the color changed and then rinsed it to cool it down, also cooked it a day in advance.
The sauce was good but I added a chunk of fresh ginger and a splash of Sriracha & a sprinkle of fresh cilantro and it was delightful. I’ll definitely use this again and my future husband actually asked me for the recipe so he could save it for later! A big deal since he hates cooking!!
Do you think this would be okay made a day in advance? Maybe keep sauce and salad separate in fridge until just before serving? I thought it would be fine and then noticed you do mention “serve immediately”…
I just made this! I’m trying to cut back on eating so many carbs, and I actually just ate this for dinner and it’s delicious! I’m a broccoli fan so it wasn’t a huge stretch for me, but I get tired of it plain. I love peanut sauce, too. This was so easy, thanks for the great recipe! :)
I have been making salads in mason jars for the week and always looking for new ideas. I just made this salad and divided it evenly into 6 jars (I give one to my boyfriend). Then layered in shaved Parmesan cheese and a mix of kale and spinach. I’m very excited to try these out!
Hey-just a quick note to say this is DELICIOUS! Admittedly, I love broccoli, which means I’ve tried a lot of different recipes and ways of preparing it and this s hands down one of my favorites. I’ve made it multiple times since you posted it and it vanishes quickly every time! Thanks for a great recipe!
Hey Allison! I’m not sure, but since it’s only a TBS, I don’t think it will be a huge deal if you omit it. You could try a natural sugar substitute, like Stevia, but I haven’t tried that, and don’t have much experience with it. I hope this helps!
I just made this substituting your fresh ingredients with a bag of pre-sliced “broccoli slaw” that I had on hand. (Microwaved in a glass container with 1T of water for 2 minutes then ran under cold water in a strainer to keep stop cooking.) I added the rest of your ingredients and your amazing sauce, stirred in shredded leftover rotisserie chicken and it was a fantastic change of pace for lunch. Thank you!
I’ll add a bunch of asparagus to this recipe….love them!!!
I’m actually not a big fan of broccoli, but it’s sooooo healthy (belongs to the selected elite of cruciferous veggies) that I buy it from time to time. Thx for sharing this recipe, looks tasty!!!
This sounds delicious! My younger son and I do Blood Type/Genotype Teacher diet and we love broccoli. To make it Genotype Teacher friendly, I’m going to replace the vinegar with lime juice. In fact, I’m going to make this for dinner along with herbed noodles.
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thanks, Lauren! We are kind of obsessed with broccoli, and we think you’ll love this dish! The herbed noodles sound delicious. We hope you enjoy!
Woukd love to try this! Do you know approximate calories?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hey! Unfortunately we don’t. The nutrition calculators available are not 100% accurate, and we never want to publish anything that might be misleading. However, a lot of our readers love the My Fitness Pal nutrition calculator, so feel free to try that for an estimate. We hope that helps!
To Lori who commented on July 1: cilantro would be a tasty and appropriate addition to this dish. The Thai people definitely use cilantro in their cooking. I could see it working well.
It holds up pretty well the next day! Just be sure to refrigerate it in a sealed container, and then give it another good toss before serving, but it should be good. Enjoy!
Sounds yummy — Is natural peanut butter necessary for the sauce? I have just regular old Jif (and lots of it) so hoping it will work just the same and not mess up the sauce:)
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thanks Diane! And no, you can totally use a different type of peanut butter! We hope you enjoy. :)
Do you think I could use almond butter for the sauce? I know I can use almonds vs. peanuts, just not sure about the sauce part. Hubs and I would love this, but my adult daughter is allergic to peanuts. Thanks!
I just made this and added spaghetti noodles and pan fried tofu to make it a meal. It was great! I also doubled the sauce in order to make sure it would cover the extra ingredients.
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thanks for sharing Katie, we’re happy you enjoyed it! :)
I made this tonight and my husband said it was his new favourite salad. We paired it with a spicy dish and this was so perfect since it was cool and mild. Seriously love it. Making it again later this week!!
Oh, I love this! The sauce is great and I can imgagine to mix this with lettuce and chicken, too. But for today, I’ll stick to the broccoli…and add some chilli to it. Thank you for the recipe!
This is now my go-to potluck salad. Everyone loves it and everyone wants the recipe. I add a chopped up red bell pepper for color and have started added a little Sriracha sauce to the dressing. Delicious!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
We’re so glad to hear that Kim and we think the bell pepper and Sriracha sound like amazing additions! :D
This is utterly delicious. Both my teenagers want this all the time. (Result!) It is so delicious and super quick and super easy to make. Its something to roll out with guests if you look like you have amazing culinary skills! Thanks so much for posting.
This is utterly delicious. Both my teenagers want this all the time. (Result!) It is so delicious and super quick and super easy to make. Its something to roll out with guests if you want to look like you have amazing culinary skills! Thanks so much for posting.
Very yummy! I sampled it, and couldnt stop eating it! I need to make more! I thought I had some frozen edemame, but they were not happy, so I used peas instead.Thank you for the great recipe!
Hi there!
Do you think this would taste okay with slivered almonds & almond butter sauce instead of peanuts?
Sure thing! It’ll be a little different, but probably very good. :)
My kids were anti-broccoli unless if was covered in cheese sauce. Then I discovered this trick – we do a steamed bag in the microwave. When it’s cooked, I squeeze done lemon juice on it, add a little butter and some seasoned salt and mix it all together. They love it!
Barely cooked the broccoli at all, more like splashed it with hot water until the color changed and then rinsed it to cool it down, also cooked it a day in advance.
The sauce was good but I added a chunk of fresh ginger and a splash of Sriracha & a sprinkle of fresh cilantro and it was delightful. I’ll definitely use this again and my future husband actually asked me for the recipe so he could save it for later! A big deal since he hates cooking!!
Ok has anyone actually TRIED this yet?
Yes it’s delicious
Do you think this would be okay made a day in advance? Maybe keep sauce and salad separate in fridge until just before serving? I thought it would be fine and then noticed you do mention “serve immediately”…
Sure, I would recommend keeping the sauce and salad separate until serving.
I’d love to try this recipe. I’m trying to eat healthier. Does anyone know the nutritional values of this dish? Calories, fat, protein, etc?
I love broccoli, so this one won’t be a stretch for me at all! Thanks for the recipe
I have a lonely head of broccoli sitting the fridge so I will make this salad for the coming week!
I just made this! I’m trying to cut back on eating so many carbs, and I actually just ate this for dinner and it’s delicious! I’m a broccoli fan so it wasn’t a huge stretch for me, but I get tired of it plain. I love peanut sauce, too. This was so easy, thanks for the great recipe! :)
Thank you Renee, I’m glad you gave it a try and that it worked out for you! Cheers!
I have been making salads in mason jars for the week and always looking for new ideas. I just made this salad and divided it evenly into 6 jars (I give one to my boyfriend). Then layered in shaved Parmesan cheese and a mix of kale and spinach. I’m very excited to try these out!
Michelle, I love mason jar salads, what a great idea! I hope you and your boyfriend enjoyed these!
This salad looks so yummy, thanks kindly♡
Thanks for making it Mary, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Do you eat this warm or cold?
I think it’s great at room temp right after you make it, but then I refrigerate it, and I think it’s delicious cold as well!
Hey-just a quick note to say this is DELICIOUS! Admittedly, I love broccoli, which means I’ve tried a lot of different recipes and ways of preparing it and this s hands down one of my favorites. I’ve made it multiple times since you posted it and it vanishes quickly every time! Thanks for a great recipe!
Thanks Melinda! I’m so happy you like it! I could pretty much eat it every day, and I adore broccoli as well! Definitely an underrated veggie. ; )
This looks SO GOOD! Will definitely be going on my meal plan here ASAP!
Thanks Dana, I hope you enjoy!
this looks great! How do you think the sauce would be without honey? I’m doing a sugar free diet.
Hey Allison! I’m not sure, but since it’s only a TBS, I don’t think it will be a huge deal if you omit it. You could try a natural sugar substitute, like Stevia, but I haven’t tried that, and don’t have much experience with it. I hope this helps!
Made as described.
Used Certified GF Soy Sauce and Certified GF Edamame.
Tasted awesome.
Then added chicken seasoned with Flavor God “Everything Spicy” Seasoning and Flavor God Himalayan Salt & Pink Peppercorn.
Awesome, thanks for sharing Cassandra! Glad you liked it. : )
How about not cooking the broccoli at all and using cold, raw broccoli. Any thoughts? I would imagine it would still be delicious.
I think this would be delicious with raw broccoli! Definitely crunchier, and healthier too. : )
I think it would still be great! Definitely a raw take on the recipe, but it would be tasty.
I just made this substituting your fresh ingredients with a bag of pre-sliced “broccoli slaw” that I had on hand. (Microwaved in a glass container with 1T of water for 2 minutes then ran under cold water in a strainer to keep stop cooking.) I added the rest of your ingredients and your amazing sauce, stirred in shredded leftover rotisserie chicken and it was a fantastic change of pace for lunch. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing, Daphne, I’m so glad you liked it! : )
I’ll add a bunch of asparagus to this recipe….love them!!!
I’m actually not a big fan of broccoli, but it’s sooooo healthy (belongs to the selected elite of cruciferous veggies) that I buy it from time to time. Thx for sharing this recipe, looks tasty!!!
You’re welcome, Andrea, and I bet asparagus would be delicious in this!
This sounds delicious! My younger son and I do Blood Type/Genotype Teacher diet and we love broccoli. To make it Genotype Teacher friendly, I’m going to replace the vinegar with lime juice. In fact, I’m going to make this for dinner along with herbed noodles.
Thanks, Lauren! We are kind of obsessed with broccoli, and we think you’ll love this dish! The herbed noodles sound delicious. We hope you enjoy!
Please send me in spsnish asian broccoli salad with peanut sauce.
Thanks
Hi Kary, sorry, but we’re not sure what you’re asking exactly?
Woukd love to try this! Do you know approximate calories?
Hey! Unfortunately we don’t. The nutrition calculators available are not 100% accurate, and we never want to publish anything that might be misleading. However, a lot of our readers love the My Fitness Pal nutrition calculator, so feel free to try that for an estimate. We hope that helps!
Do you think cilantro would be a good addition?
Personally I don’t (but that’s only because I have a serious aversion to cilantro), but Ali says, “YES!!” ; )
Can I use almond butter instead of peanut butter?
Sure! It will have a slightly different flavor, but we think it would still be yummy!
This sounds absolutely delectable. Definitely want to make it.
Thank you Susan, we hope you enjoy!
To Lori who commented on July 1: cilantro would be a tasty and appropriate addition to this dish. The Thai people definitely use cilantro in their cooking. I could see it working well.
Great recipe…looks delicious.i”m new to being a vegetarian so I’d love to experimenting with new recipes!
Thanks Lia, we hope you enjoy!
Sounds tasty. How does it hold up next day?
It holds up pretty well the next day! Just be sure to refrigerate it in a sealed container, and then give it another good toss before serving, but it should be good. Enjoy!
Sounds yummy — Is natural peanut butter necessary for the sauce? I have just regular old Jif (and lots of it) so hoping it will work just the same and not mess up the sauce:)
Thanks Diane! And no, you can totally use a different type of peanut butter! We hope you enjoy. :)
Do you think I could use almond butter for the sauce? I know I can use almonds vs. peanuts, just not sure about the sauce part. Hubs and I would love this, but my adult daughter is allergic to peanuts. Thanks!
Looks Delish! Just wondering, is this dish served warm or cooled? Thanks!
We like it best at room temp Tina, but it’s totally up to you! :)
would this work with broccoli slaw?
We think it would Mollie! We hope you enjoy!
I just made this and added spaghetti noodles and pan fried tofu to make it a meal. It was great! I also doubled the sauce in order to make sure it would cover the extra ingredients.
Thanks for sharing Katie, we’re happy you enjoyed it! :)
Can I make the peanut sauce ahead of time, like 3 days in advance?
We don’t see why not! We hope you enjoy! :)
I made this today and absolutely love it – so simple and so, so good! It’s going into my regular rotation. Thank you for this recipe!
Thanks Liz, we’re happy you enjoyed it! :)
I made this tonight and my husband said it was his new favourite salad. We paired it with a spicy dish and this was so perfect since it was cool and mild. Seriously love it. Making it again later this week!!
We’re so glad to hear that Cassie! :D
Oh, I love this! The sauce is great and I can imgagine to mix this with lettuce and chicken, too. But for today, I’ll stick to the broccoli…and add some chilli to it. Thank you for the recipe!
Thanks Dana — we’re glad you enjoyed it! :)
Made this for lunch today and it was sooooo good! This is going to be one of my go-to recipes for my meal preps
We’re so glad you enjoy it Eline! :D
OMG just tried this and it’s amazing, one of my new favorite sides!!
Thank you Ashley — we’re so happy you’re a fan! :)
This is now my go-to potluck salad. Everyone loves it and everyone wants the recipe. I add a chopped up red bell pepper for color and have started added a little Sriracha sauce to the dressing. Delicious!
We’re so glad to hear that Kim and we think the bell pepper and Sriracha sound like amazing additions! :D
YU M!!!!
We had this last night and found the dressing far too sweet and not nearly peanutty enough ☹️
Hi Hilary! We’re sorry you didn’t care for this — we appreciate your feedback!
We really liked it and will make it again!
Yum, making this for dinner right now! So excited to try it!
Awesome, hope you enjoyed it!
Love this dish! I’ve made it numerous times ?
Yum!!
Thank you for this recipe! I omitted the honey from the dressing recipe and replaced the edamame with baby peas and it was divine ?
Delicious!
This is utterly delicious. Both my teenagers want this all the time. (Result!) It is so delicious and super quick and super easy to make. Its something to roll out with guests if you look like you have amazing culinary skills! Thanks so much for posting.
This is utterly delicious. Both my teenagers want this all the time. (Result!) It is so delicious and super quick and super easy to make. Its something to roll out with guests if you want to look like you have amazing culinary skills! Thanks so much for posting.
Very yummy! I sampled it, and couldnt stop eating it! I need to make more! I thought I had some frozen edemame, but they were not happy, so I used peas instead.Thank you for the great recipe!