I discovered rotisserie chicken about 3 weeks ago. It has basically opened up a whole new world, one that allows me to concentrate on cooking only a side dish to eat alongside my moist, crispy lemon garlic Fairway chicken. It has also raised a number of questions for me, not least of which is, how can a cooked chicken possibly cost less than a raw one? Hasn’t anyone ever studied economics? How do they smell SO GOOD? How did I not discover this resource until now? If you eat an entire rotisserie chicken by yourself and no one sees you, did you really eat it?
I used my first foray into the land of rotisserie chicken to make a broccoli coleslaw that almost brought tears to my eyes. I ate it like someone who doesn’t eat food very often, shoving it relentlessly into my mouth way too quickly. It is just that delicious. It is also made primarily of broccoli, a super healthy vegetable even despite the fact that it is covered in mayonnaise.
I think the best part of the broccoli coleslaw is the contrasts. It’s at the same time sweet and vinegary. It’s salty from the bacon, sweet from the raisins and earthy from the sunflower seeds. It’s super crunchy (not soggy like so many mayonnaise-soaked coleslaws that went before it), but in so many different ways. Broccoli, onions, bacon and sunflower seeds are different sizes and have different types of crunches.
If this hasn’t been enticing enough, this is a side dish that takes no time to make. You can slice the broccoli and chop the onion while the bacon cooks in the oven, and be done in under 30 minutes. And speaking of broccoli, this is a great way to use the whole vegetable. If you prefer to buy only crowns, that works, but I bought the whole thing and the stalk trimmed and thinly sliced works great in this recipe as well – and adds extra contrast.
It’s a testament to my love of this coleslaw that I have made it twice in the past month. In a dramatic and terrible accident (I will spare you the tear-soaked details), I deleted my photos off my phone this weekend, so a number of recipes I haven’t posted yet are now photo-less. Of all of these recipes, I chose two that were really worth recreating to share, and this was one of them. So I made it again on Sunday night (with a NEW and equally delicious rotisserie chicken) and it was just as excellent as I remembered. Get it into your rotation before summer – and coleslaw season – is over!
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon (4 oz.)
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- 1 large head of broccoli (1 1/4 lbs.), cut into bite-sized florets and thinly sliced lengthwise
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup roasted unsalted sunflower seeds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Set a wire rack over a foil-covered baking sheet. Arrange the bacon slices on the rack in a single layer. Bake for about 25 minutes, until browned and crisp. Drain on paper towels, then coarsely chopped.
- In a large bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the vinegar and sugar; season with salt and pepper. Add the broccoli, raisins, onion, sunflower seeds and bacon and toss to coat evenly. Transfer the coleslaw to a serving bowl.
- The slaw, without the bacon and sunflower seeds, can be refrigerated for 1 day if you'd like to make ahead.
Notes
https://www.thekitchenchronicles.com/2015/08/17/broccoli-coleslaw-with-bacon-and-raisins/
