I don’t know about you, but we eat a lot of broccoli around here. It’s quick to make and is usually on the list of “safe” veggies even for my picky eaters. Because it’s so often in our rotation, I’m always thinking about ways to change it up. This time around, I was really in the mood for the spicy kick of chili garlic sauce. I also wanted to make sure there was some extra crunch in this salad, so in addition to the broccoli, this salad also has asparagus, red onion, and some crushed peanuts. To get a picture of the genesis of this Broccoli and Asparagus Louie Salad, think Crab Louie and then swap out the seafood for veggies.
Note: If you’re not a spicy person, fear not. You can temper the spiciness with the creaminess. (i.e. If you’d like, you can use a little less chili garlic sauce and a little more heavy cream and mayo. Just adjust it to suit your taste.)
What You Need to Make Broccoli and Asparagus Louie Salad
Equipment
- Cutting Board
- Chef’s Knife
- Vegetable Steamer – I use one that you add water to and stick in the microwave. You could also use a steamer basket on the stove top or by whatever other method you usually steam veggies. The other way that I’ve done this is by placing the broccoli in a gallon zip top bag with a couple tablespoons of water, sealing all but an inch of the bag and then microwaving it. If you use that method, please apply lots of common sense so that you don’t get burned by really hot water and / or a really hot plastic bag. It hurts.
- Rimmed Baking Sheet – See my notes on rimmed baking sheets for a disambiguation of how I use this term.
- Aluminum Foil – This is for lining the rimmed baking sheet. You don’t have to do this, but it makes cleanup easier, especially if you happen to be making something else for which you are going to need to reuse your rimmed baking sheet right away.
- Wire Rack Insert for Rimmed Baking Sheet – You could get away without this, but I like using the rack because it allows the asparagus to get heat more evenly on all sides.
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Measuring Cups – Since we’re measuring semi-liquid substances, I strongly recommend one of the plunger style measuring cups.
- Measuring Spoons – Same note about using one of the plunger style measuring spoons. I finally got one for Christmas last year, and I use it non-stop.
- Rubber Scraper – Or any other large spoon will do.
Ingredients
Salad Mixture
- Broccoli Florets – You’ll want to trim them and cut them into bite-size pieces. This is one half of a family size bag from the grocery store.
- Asparagus Spears
- Avocado Oil or Olive Oil – This is for coating the asparagus before you roast it.
- Kosher Salt – The salt gets divided out across the broccoli, asparagus, plus more to taste in the final salad mixture if desired. I don’t think it needs any more by the end, but everyone’s tastes are different..
- Ground Black Pepper – This will also be divided between the broccoli, asparagus, and final mixture.
- Large Red Onion – The recipe only calls for half of an onion, but if you really love red onion, you could use more.
- Roasted Lightly Salted Peanuts – These add a nice texture and crunch. However, if you need to work around a peanut allergy, just leave them out. If you prefer other types of nuts, you could also swap the regular peanuts for something like crushed pistachios or slivered almonds.
Louis Dressing
- Mayonnaise
- Chili Garlic Sauce
- Heavy Cream
Getting Started with Making Broccoli and Asparagus Louie Salad
As usual, I like to start by getting all of my chopping prep over and done with. Trim the ends off of the broccoli florets and cut them into bite-size pieces. Place them in a zip top bag and toss them with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of ground black pepper.
Break off the woody ends of the asparagus and cut the stalks into about 1 to 1.5 inch pieces. As with the broccoli, place them in a zip top bag and toss them with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of ground black pepper.
Dice one half of a large red onion.
I suggest cutting up the broccoli, asparagus, and red onion the day / evening before, adding hte seasoning, and storing them in the fridge.
When you’re ready to cook, preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with heavy duty aluminum foil, and place a wire rack on it.
Place the broccoli in a microwave steamer basket and cook for 2 minutes. If you do not have a microwave steamer basket, no problem. Just use whatever your usual method of steaming vegetables is–stovetop, zip top bag in the microwave, etc. The important part is that you want the broccoli to still have crunch, like al dente pasta. Whatever method you use, I would not recommend steaming the florets for more than 2 minutes. Let the broccoli cool.
Drizzle about 1.5 tablespoons of avocado or regular olive oil into the bag with the chopped up asparagus pieces, seal, and shake to coat. Spread them out in an even layer on the wire rack that you placed on the rimmed baking sheet.
Roast the asparagus at 400 F for 6 minutes. Again, the goal is an al dente crunch. Once done, let the asparagus cool.
In a medium mixing bowl, make the Louie Dressing by combining the mayonnaise, chili garlic sauce, and heavy cream. Whisk until fully incorporated.
Crush the roasted peanuts. I do this by placing them in a plastic zip top bag and smashing them with the flat side of a meat tenderizer. Very cathartic.
Once the broccoli and asparagus have cooled down, toss them into a large mixing bowl with the red onion and crushed peanuts.
Fold the Louie Dressing into the veggies with a rubber scraper until they are completely coated.
You can serve immediately or store, covered, in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
This salad keeps well in the fridge and makes great lunch material if you happen to have any leftovers.
Related Recipes
Wondering what to serve with this Broccoli and Asparagus Louie Salad, check out the following Dinner Party Pages for some menu ideas:
Broccoli and Asparagus Louie Salad
Ingredients
Salad Mixture
- 16 ounces Broccoli Florets Trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces. This is one half of a family size bag from the grocery store.
- ¼ cup water
- 24 ounces Asparagus Spears This is basically 1 (2 pound bag from Sam’s once I’ve trimmed off all of the woody ends.)
- 1.5 tablespoons Avocado Oil or Olive Oil
- 3 teaspoons Kosher Salt Divided: 1 teaspoon with the broccoli, 1 teaspoon with the asparagus, 1 teaspoon or to taste in the final mixed salad
- 3 teaspoons Ground Black Pepper Divided: 1 teaspoon with the broccoli, 1 teaspoon with the asparagus, 1 teaspoon or to taste in the final mixed salad
- ½ Large Red Onion Diced
- ½ cup Roasted Lightly Salted Peanuts Crushed
Louis Dressing (See Notes for alternative quantity suggestions)
- ¾ cup Mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons Chili Garlic Sauce
- 6 tablespoons Heavy Cream ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons
Instructions
Broccoli
- Trim the ends of the broccoli and cut it into bite-size pieces.16 ounces Broccoli Florets
- Place the broccoli in the steamer with about ¼ cup of water. Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Microwave the broccoli for 2 minutes. You are going for the broccoli equivalent of “al dente” so it is not quite fully cooked.3 teaspoons Kosher Salt, 3 teaspoons Ground Black Pepper, ¼ cup water
- Let it cool.
Asparagus
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with heavy duty aluminum foil and place a wire rack in the pan.
- Trim the woody ends off of the asparagus stalks. Then chop into bite-size pieces, about an inch.24 ounces Asparagus Spears
- Place them in a plastic zip top bag. Add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Seal and shake to coat. Add 1.5 tablespoons of oil. Reseal and shake to coat again.3 teaspoons Kosher Salt, 3 teaspoons Ground Black Pepper, 1.5 tablespoons Avocado Oil or Olive Oil
- Spread out the asparagus pieces on the wire rack.
- Roast at 400 degrees F for 6 minutes. As with the broccoli, you’re going for “al dente” with the asparagus too.
- Let it cool.
Salad Assembly
- Dice 1/2 of a large red onion. Set aside.½ Large Red Onion
- Crush the peanuts. Set aside.½ cup Roasted Lightly Salted Peanuts
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, chili garlic sauce, and heavy cream.¾ cup Mayonnaise, 3 tablespoons Chili Garlic Sauce, 6 tablespoons Heavy Cream
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the diced red onion, broccoli, asparagus, and crushed peanuts.
- Fold in the Louie Dressing
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Stir until everything is fully incorporated. You can stick it in the fridge until you are ready to serve. It can be served immediately, but will be better if everything has 1-2 hours to meld.
- Serve cold or cool.
Equipment
- Vegetable Steamer
- Aluminum Foil
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Rubber Scraper Or other large spoon
Notes
- Louie Dressing
- The original quantities that I used for this recipe made a bit more sauce / dressing than you need. However, if you happen to really like the sauce and want some extra for something like dipping veggies or drizzling over an omelet, etc., you can use the slightly larger quantities as listed here:
- 1 cup Mayonnaise
- ¼ cup Chili Garlic Sauce
- ½ cup Heavy Cream
- You’ll get about a half cup of extra sauce / dressing.
- The original quantities that I used for this recipe made a bit more sauce / dressing than you need. However, if you happen to really like the sauce and want some extra for something like dipping veggies or drizzling over an omelet, etc., you can use the slightly larger quantities as listed here:
- Broccoli Quantity Alternative
- Instead of using the reduced Louie Dressing quantities, you could also just double the amount of broccoli to use all of a 32 ounce bag.
