Quick Broccoli and Spinach Salad with Couscous

Sometimes we want a salad with a little more than just a lettuce base. This broccoli spinach salad is a quick salad to put together and has the perfect mix of flavors and textures. The couscous brings a heartiness to it with the cranberries and feta add bursts of flavor.

What type of couscous should I use?

Use a pearl couscous in this salad. You can use any color that you can find. I used a tri-colored pearl couscous in this recipe but really any will do.

If you don’t have couscous you can even swap this out for another grain like farro or quinoa.

Do you need to cook the broccoli?

Nope! One great part about this broccoli salad recipe is that you don’t need to cook the broccoli before hand. Just make sure to chop up the broccoli very finely. This makes it easy to eat raw. I try to avodi any large chunks and make sure to cut off the stems. Mostly use the broccoli florets to chop up since these are much easier to eat raw.

If you want a roasted broccoli in this salad you could chop it up, toss it wil some olive oil and salt and roast in the oven at 400°F for 15-20 minutes. Then you can add it to the salad.

Tips for Making a Broccoli Salad

• Cut up your broccoli pieces very small. Since you are eating the broccoli raw, make sure to chop it up finely. This actually makes adding the broccoli much easier because you don’t have to break off individual florets. Just cut off the stems and chop up the broccoli with you knife.
• Mix up the nuts. This recipe calls for sliced almonds but you could really use any type of nuts or seeds in this recipes. Pecan, pumpkin seeds, or sunflower seeds would be a great swap.

Can I make the ahead of time

If you want to make this salad in advance just pre-chop everything and add it to a bowl. I sould keep the couscous in a separate container and mix it in before serving. I would also keep the dressing in a separate container and add that before serving so your spinach doesn’t get soggy.

If you have already tossed everything together you can store it in the fridge in an airtight container but it will probably only be good for about a day.

What goes well with a broccoli salad?

This is a great side dish to any main course. I love serving it along side some homemade pizzas, a warm bowl of bean chili, or a creamy vodka sauce pasta. It is a great healthy addition to any meal

Other Salads You Might Enjoy

If you are looking for another spinach salad recipe, this spinach and arugula with apples and pecans is a great one. There are a lot of warming fall flavors in that salad.

For something a little more on the pasta salad side, this lemon orzo broccoli salad is a great choice.