Broccoli Slaw Salad has long been a family favorite and my go-to recipe for any “bring a dish to share” event. The original recipe was called Nutty Broccoli Salad (I never recall calling it anything but Broccoli Slaw Salad, though) My mom clipped this out of a magazine for an extra holiday side dish. I wasn’t too excited about it on paper, but she made it for Thanksgiving dinner anyway. I tried a little, and ended up going back for seconds and thirds.  I love this recipe because it’s pretty quick and easy, and it fits in at holidays, summer cook-outs and Tuesday night dinners.

Update: In 2017, our oldest son was officially diagnosed with food allergies to milk, eggs, tree nuts and peanuts, and life got a little bit more complicated.  This recipe, however, has been tweaked rather than abandoned.  See the substitutions suggestions below for tips to create the allergy friendly version!

Here’s the recipe as written in the clipping:

Nutty Broccoli Salad

1 pkg broccoli slaw
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 pkgs Ramen noodles, broken
1/2 cup butter
1 oz sesame seeds
1 cup slivered almonds

Dressing:

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup oil
1 Tbsp soy sauce

Saute noodles, butter, sesame seeds and almonds until light brown. Boil dressing ingredients for 1 minute. Cool. Mix all together just before serving.

Each component before assembly.

Allergy-Friendly Substitutions:

To make this recipe safe for my son, I’ve omitted almonds entirely.  To replace some of the missing “crunch”, I add a diced apple. You’ll also have to be cautious with your ramen noodles, depending on your allergies and sensitivity to cross-contamination.  The brand I usually buy is labeled to contain milk, but it’s in the seasoning, which I discard.  We do not worry much about cross contamination as my son is not overly sensitive to very small quantities. Last, I always swore by real butter, but now use Earth Balance for most of my cooking, including this recipe.

Other Suggestions:

If you need a little bit more, but not a double recipe, adding another bunch of green onions sort of expands the salad, and it still tastes great! I often use a bunch and a half.  Also, (if you don’t have any allergy concerns), instead of using soy sauce, you can use one packet of seasoning from Oriental flavor ramen noodles for the dressing.  It’s good either way, and this makes use of the otherwise wasted ramen seasoning.

Final Pro Tip:

Really watch the ingredients you’re browning because they can burn quickly and easily.  I like to do too many things at once and make this mistake often.

Enjoy!