Broccoli Slaw with Ramen Noodles - Perfect Potluck Salad

Broccoli Slaw with Ramen Noodles Salad

When that sign up sheet for the office potluck goes around, put "Broccoli Slaw with Ramen Noodle Salad" next to your name. My colleague brought salad to our potluck and I ate many portions. It's a perfect potluck or Superbowl Party salad! And it's so easy to make!


Trader Joe's sells this broccoli slaw mix in the veggie section. Buy it. Your work is almost done.


Broccoli slaw is great because 90% of the work is done for you! You simply add some nuts and ramen noodles (I would eat these dry all the time in college...who hasn't?) A simple salad dressing tops the whole thing.


This was a second batch I made...this time without the green onions because I didn't have any. Still delicious!


This is a great potluck salad because it keeps, but it is also yummy for lunch or with dinner. You can add some pieces of rotisserie chicken if you wish too.

Recipe:
Broccoli Slaw with Ramen Noodle Salad

1 cup sliced almonds (it's best if you toast the almonds. I've made it both raw and toasted)
12 or 16 oz package broccoli slaw (Trader Joe's package is 12 ounces, I use 1 1/2 packages)
1 bunch green onions, sliced
2 packages "oriental" flavor ramen noodles, uncooked, broken up (seasoning packets reserved for the dressing)
1 cup sunflower seeds

Dressing:
½ cup sugar
1/3 cup white vinegar
2 packages of ramen noodle seasoning packets
½ cup vegetable oil

In a large bowl, toss almonds, broccoli slaw, green onions, noodles, and sunflower seeds to combine.

In a bowl or mason jar, whisk together the sugar and vinegar until sugar is dissolved (the original recipe said to heat the sugar and vinegar together to dissolve. I did that once and your whole kitchen smells like vinegar so I didn't the second time and it all worked out.) Add oriental flavor seasoning packets. Whisk oil into vinegar mixture.

Pour dressing over slaw mixture; toss well. Chill at least 1-2 hours or overnight.  Toss before serving.

Napa Cabbage, Asian Pear and Carrot Salad

I'm guest blogging over at Kitchen Corners blog. Damaris is one of my favorite bloggers and she started off 2012 with 31 days of salads!

I made a Napa Cabbage, Asian Pear and Carrot Salad. Check it out on Kitchen Corners! ;) - mary

Broccoli Salad

Broccoli Salad

The water heater died and needs a new part. I wash my hands about 100 times while baking/cooking so that  is out for a bit. (I've been visiting my folks for the shower :).  I made this broccoli salad last month and am finally posting it. Do you have a lot of "draft" posts as well? I really need to have a bit of spring cleaning in my queue and post 'em!

I'm making this salad "with Pam and Toby". My friend Pam lives in Berkeley and I'm sharing a few recipes with her and her cute son, Toby. This salad is really easy, keeps for a day or so and you can mix and match lots of toppings.

Raw broccoli, salted & roasted sunflower seeds, chopped red onions, golden raisins, dried cranberries, turkey bacon and mayo-based dressing. I also added fresh mandarin oranges to a batch of the salad and loved it.

I used turkey bacon. Um...turkey bacon is no regular bacon. It is way salty and just isn't the same. Next time, I'm going back to regular bacon, or just make it vegetarian.

Broccoli Salad

Adapted from Modern California Cookbook by the Los Angeles Times and appears in "The Best of Lucks" article by Jennifer Lowe, Los Angeles Times, December 08, 1999

Printable Recipe

Dressing:
Mix together and refrigerate for at least 2 hours:
1 cup mayonnaise (I used "Light" mayo)
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar

Salad:
1 1/2 to 2 pounds raw broccoli florets, cut into bite-size pieces (broccoli crowns are perfect for this)
1/2 cup golden raisins (or regular raisins)
1/2 cup dried cranberries (original recipe only has raisins)
1 cup salted sunflower seeds
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1 fresh tangerine, peeled and sectioned or can of mandarin oranges, drained (optional) (I added this, not in the original recipe)
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Combine the salad ingredients. Dress with chilled dressing right before serving.

Somen Noodle Salad in Inarizushi - Fried Soybean Skins/Pockets

Making salads "to go" is hard. Remember when McDonald's came out with the Salad McShaker in the 90's? I saw people eating that in cars...before cell phones took over as major distractions.

Put the plastic container and long fork away. Try this summer somen salad to go!

Kamaboko is steamed fish cake. It isn't too fishy, and adds pretty colors to the dish. I bought prepared "Inarizushi No Moto" pouches in a can, but you can also make them yourself. See links below for instructions from JustHungry.

Inarizushi pouches, abura-age, and inari age (lots of name for this...and "age" is not pronounced "what's your age in years?" but "ah-ge" (ge as is "get") is basically a fried tofu pouch that is seasoned...you can open the pouch and stuff it with yummy stuff. Most often it is used for inari sushi (or footballs as we called them as kids).

My salad contained: Somen noodles, eggs strips, kamaboko, frozen peas (thawed), green onions. See my earlier post about somen noodles.

You could add anything you want to this salad...edamame, fake crab, lettuce, cucumber, and other veggies. You can also top the salad with nori (seaweed).

I mixed up a quick dressing of: 1 T sesame seeds, dash of salt, 2 T sugar, 2 T sesame oil, 2 T veggie oil, 1/4 c rice wine vinegar, 2 T soy sauce...then stuffed the pouches with the salad!

Top each pocket with some sesame seeds!

Forget the Salad McShaker. Go for the Somen McSalad instead.

Additional Information and Recipes:
Cooking the somen noodles from Food Librarian's earlier post
Inarizushi: Sushi in a Bean Bag from Just Hungry
Making your own fried tofu skins from Just Hungry

Red and Golden Beet Salad with Goat Cheese

I love the concept of the CSA box. Pay your local farmer for a share of their harvest, and get fresh fruits and veggies throughout the year.

There aren't many in my area, and my local farmers market is so full of items that I haven't gotten one yet. Besides, I have my own CSA.

It's my Dad CSA.

My dad "farms" the entire backyard and side of my parent's house. My dad's family were farmers in the Imperial Valley and central California before they were sent to internment camps in Jerome, Arkansas and Gila River, Arizona during WWII. After the war, the family settled in Los Angeles and my grandfather was a gardener. There were lots of Japanese American gardeners back in the day, see this book: Green Makers: JA Gardeners in Southern California. Anyway, even though my dad became a mechanic, he always grew veggies in the backyard.

This season, he is growing lots of tomatoes, Japanese cucumbers, red beets, golden beets, string beans, lettuce, mustard greens, and shishito peppers.

My dad usually grows red beets, but I love the golden beet. I think they are sweeter and they don't stain your fingers!! So...I just happened to give my dad some golden beet seeds for his birthday! :) Thus, my own Dad CSA box of freshness!

I steamed the beets for 30 minutes, let cool completely and peeled. I stick my hand in a plastic baggie when peeling the red beets. I drizzled some olive oil and red wine vinegar on top along with goat cheese and pepita seeds. The beets are so sweet!

Thanks Dad!

Broccoli Salad

I'm a guest blogger on Natalie's Oven Love blog today! She's having fun on vacation and asked a few friends to fill in for her! Be sure to check out her fun blog and the other guest bloggers! :)

I'm cross-posting this yummy pot luck recipe. You know you are going to get invited to a zillion pot lucks this summer...and this dish is super easy and refreshing. (It does have mayo in it so I wouldn't bring it to the 100 degree 4th of July outdoor pool party.)

Broccoli Salad

This recipe is from an article in Los Angeles Times years ago and it never disappoints. It was submitted by reader, Lisa O’Kane of Toluca Lake and also appears in the great cookbook, Modern California Cookbook by the Los Angeles Times. ("The Best of Lucks" article by Jennifer Lowe, Los Angeles Times, December 08, 1999)

This salad is great with bacon or veggie style. If you get a vegan mayo, you can make it vegan as well. Regular or golden raisins can be used, and you can throw in a few dried cranberries as well. I've seen a version of this salad at Souplantation. It's yum.

Broccoli Salad
Notes:
1. Make dressing and let chill for 2 hours.
2. Cook up bacon. I do this in the oven and it works great! Just place on foil lined pan and bake at 375 degrees until yummy.
3. All ingredients can be prepped and placed in baggies until ready to eat (or transported to pot luck)
4. Dress salad right before eating.

Dressing: Mix together and refrigerate for at least 2 hours:
1 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar

Salad: Combine together:
1 1/2 to 2 pounds raw broccoli florets, cut into bite-size pieces (I buy the huge bag from Costco or purchase broccoli crowns)
1 cup golden raisins (or regular raisins)
1 cup salted sunflower seeds
1 small red onion, chopped
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Combine the salad ingredients. Dress with chilled dressing right before serving. Enjoy!!

Find other pot luck favorites in the Los Angeles Times article here.