Our broccoli cauliflower salad is a crisp and creamy recipe that is excellent as a refreshing side dish for a special holiday meal, potlucks, and get-togethers.

You’ll love the combination of textures and flavors. The crispy veggies meet a velvety, smooth, and tangy dressing with mayo and yogurt.

The salad is enriched with crunchy almonds, dried cranberries, tangy red onion, and savory sun-dried tomatoes.

cauliflower broccoli salad with sundried tomato

Dietary Note: this recipe is suitable for a vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free diet.

Broccoli cauliflower salad is easy to make with a few ingredients, and you don’t even need to cook the veggies.

We think you’ll love the taste and texture of raw broccoli and cauliflower florets marinated in our finger-licking dressing with mayonnaise (we use our vegan mayo recipe), Greek-style yogurt, a hint of sugar, and apple cider vinegar.

The acidity in the dressing is enough to marinate and slightly “cook” the vegetables, packing them with flavor.

And the added ingredients – especially the sun-dried tomatoes – do the rest to transform boring broccoli and cauliflower into one of the most flavor-packed salads.

broccoli cauliflower salad after mixing with sundried tomatoes

Broccoli cauliflower salad video

Ingredients & Substitutions

Cauliflower broccoli salad ingredients

Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

Broccoli & Cauliflower

Use fresh broccoli and cauliflower, preferably the florets and only part of the stems.

Cut them into small pieces to become more flavorful and less intimidating for people not used to eating raw vegetables.

You can make a delicious broccoli soup or cauliflower mashed potatoes with the leftover stems.

Sun-dried tomatoes

Sun-dried tomatoes in oil (not the dry ones) are crucial because they have a bold, savory flavor that adds richness and umami to every bite.

We use them to replace bacon bits, and we think you’ll love them.

Almonds & seeds

Go for a mix of almonds and sunflower seeds. Toast them on a pan for a couple of minutes before chopping them and adding them to the broccoli cauliflower salad.

Substitute walnuts, hazelnuts, cashew nuts, or pecans for almonds. Substitute pumpkin seeds for sunflower seeds.

Red onion

Red onion adds a tangy and sharp flavor that’s delicious with the creamy dressing and the crunchy veggies.

Substitute spring onions for red onion.

Dried cranberries

Dried cranberries add some sweetness.

Substitute raisins or other dried fruit (like chopped dates or dried apricots) for dried cranberries.

Dressing

  • Mayonnaise: you can use regular store-bought mayonnaise or our quick and delicious vegan mayo. That’s what we use here and in all our recipes that call for mayo. It’s thick, light, and easy to make.
  • Yogurt: your recommendation is to use either plain Greek yogurt or an unsweetened non-dairy yogurt. You can substitute yogurt with sour cream or vegan sour cream.
  • Apple cider vinegar: substitute white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, or lemon juice for apple cider vinegar.
  • Sugar: you can use white or brown sugar or replace it with maple syrup, agave syrup, or honey.
  • Salt and black pepper.
broccoli cauliflower salad and how to store it

How to make broccoli cauliflower salad

US cups + grams measurements in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

1. Make the dressing

Here’s the recipe for vegan mayo if you are interested.

immersion blender and jar

In a small bowl, whisk 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon of sugar, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 of a teaspoon of black pepper. Set aside.

mayo yogurt dressing with hands and a whisk

2. Prep the veggies

You’ll need a small broccoli head and a small cauliflower head to make the salad.

In total, they should weigh about 1.4 pounds.

Rinse, dry, and cut the broccoli and cauliflower into small florets.

Toast 1/4 cup of almonds and 2 tablespoons of sunflower seeds in a small pan for a few minutes, then chop them into smaller pieces.

Chop 3/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes into small bits, and finely chop a small red onion.

Tip: You can use some of the stem, but I wouldn’t use all of it. With the leftovers, you can make broccoli soup or cauliflower mashed potatoes.

broccoli and cauliflower florets in a steamer basket

3. Mix the salad

To a large bowl, add raw broccoli florets and raw cauliflower florets, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, chopped onion, almonds and seeds, and dried cranberries.

Pour in the dressing and toss until well combined.

broccoli cauliflower, dressing, nuts, and red onions in a glass bowl

You can serve the salad immediately, but we recommend letting it sit in the fridge for at least one hour for the best result.

broccoli cauliflower salad after mixing with sundried tomatoes

Serving suggestions

Broccoli cauliflower salad is excellent as a side, for example, for Thanksgiving or Christmas. Try it next to:

It’s also perfect to bring to picnics, potlucks, and cookouts. For example, you can pair it with:

Variations

Blanched broccoli cauliflower salad

Not a big fan of raw veggies? While we assure you that this salad is delicious raw (the crunch is out of this world), you can definitely blanch the veggies if you prefer.

To do so, cut the broccoli and cauliflower into florets, then boil them in a large pot of salted boiling water for 4 to 5 minutes.

Drain them and put them in a bowl with iced water, or cool them down under cold running water, then use as per our recipe.

Broccoli salad

Broccoli Salad with extra mayonnaise dressing

This easy broccoli salad is similar to our broccoli and cauliflower salad but without the cauliflower.

This delicious side dish will make you fall in love with broccoli!

Check out our broccoli salad recipe.

Tips

Small florets

Cut the broccoli and the cauliflower into smaller-than-you-think florets so that each piece gets more flavorful and the salad is easier to eat.

Storage & Make Ahead

Make ahead: broccoli cauliflower salad is an excellent recipe for meal prep and for making up to 2 days ahead. The second day is even more flavorful as the dressing marinates the veggies.

Refrigerator: keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Take out of the refrigerator 15 minutes before eating.

Freezer: this recipe is not suitable for freezing.

More creamy salads

Love salads? We do, too, and we have many for you to choose from. Try:

More cauliflower ideas

If you love cooking with cauliflower, try these delicious and easy-to-make recipes:

For many more salad ideas, check out our salads category page.

cauliflower broccoli salad with sundried tomatoes and a silver spoon

Broccoli Cauliflower Salad

By: Nico Pallotta
5 from 4 votes
Our broccoli cauliflower salad is a crisp and creamy recipe that is excellent as a refreshing side dish for a special meal or potlucks and get-togethers.
You’ll love the combination of textures and flavors. The crisp veggies meet a velvety, smooth, and tangy dressing with mayo and yogurt.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 8 – 8 people
Course: Side dish
Cuisine: American

Ingredients 

  • 1 small broccoli about ¾ pound or 340 grams
  • 1 small cauliflower about ¾ pound or 340 grams
  • 1 small red onion finely chopped
  • ¾ cup sun-dried tomatoes drained from the oil and chopped
  • ½ cup dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup almonds toasted and chopped
  • 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds

FOR THE DRESSING

  • ½ cup vegan mayo or your favorite mayo
  • ½ cup Greek-style yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar or maple syrup
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • teaspoon black pepper

Instructions 

  • DRESSING: In a small bowl, whisk ½ cup vegan mayo, ½ cup Greek-style yogurt, 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon sugar, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper. Set aside.
    mayo yogurt dressing with hands and a whisk
  • NUTS & SEEDS: Toast ¼ cup almonds and 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds in a small skillet for a couple of minutes. Chop the almonds into smaller pieces.
    seeds and almonds in a pan
  • VEGGIES: Rinse, drain, and shake the water off 1 small broccoli and 1 small cauliflower, then cut them into small florets.
  • To a large mixing bowl, add broccoli and cauliflower florets, 1 small red onion (chopped), ¾ cup sun-dried tomatoes (chopped), ½ cup dried cranberries, the almonds and seeds.
    broccoli cauliflower, dressing, nuts, and red onions in a glass bowl
  • Pour the dressing over the salad then toss until well combined.
    Let it sit in the fridge for at least one hour for the best result.
    broccoli cauliflower salad with a silver spoon

Video

Creamy Broccoli Cauliflower Salad

Notes

Nutrition information is for 1 serving of broccoli cauliflower salad out of 8 servings.
STORAGE & MAKE AHEAD
Make ahead: broccoli cauliflower salad is an excellent recipe for meal prep and for making up to 2 days ahead. The second day is even more flavorful as the dressing marinates the veggies.
Refrigerator: keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Take out of the refrigerator 15 minutes before eating.
Freezer: this recipe is not suitable for freezing.
ALSO ON THIS PAGE

Nutrition

Calories: 238kcal, Carbohydrates: 22g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 1mg, Potassium: 722mg, Dietary Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 13g, Vitamin A: 374IU, Vitamin B6: 0.3mg, Vitamin C: 64mg, Vitamin E: 2mg, Vitamin K: 55µg, Calcium: 78mg, Folate: 69µg, Iron: 2mg, Manganese: 1mg, Magnesium: 59mg, Zinc: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below or mention @nicoandlouise on Instagram. We are also on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and TikTok.

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Nico and Louise in the kitchen

Hi! We are Nico & Louise

Welcome to The Plant-Based School, a food blog with easy, tasty, and wholesome recipes.

Our aim is to help you and your family eat more veggies through delicious recipes with simple ingredients.

Easy right?

5 from 4 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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