Roasted broccoli and bacon is the easiest and tastiest Whole30-friendly vegetable side dish on the planet. My kids are always fighting over this dish!
Inspired by Jaden Hair’s recipe for roasted cauliflower and bacon, here’s my roasted broccoli and bacon recipe!
Time to make Roasted Broccoli and Bacon!
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 1½ pounds broccoli
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
- 4 slices bacon, cut into bite-size pieces
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, melted ghee, or melted lard
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- Juice from 1 lemon or 2 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
Equipment:
- All of my recommended kitchen tools are listed here.
Method:
Heat the oven to 400°F convection bake (or 425°F if no convection) with the rack in the middle. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.
Cut up the broccoli into florets. Organic broccoli often features small crowns and large stems so I normally trim the tough skins from the stems and throw them in as well.
Grab a large bowl and toss the broccoli, bacon, garlic cloves, olive oil, salt and pepper. Yes, you can also do this directly on the baking sheet!
Spread the broccoli and bacon in a single layer on the rimmed baking sheet.
Pop the tray in the oven for 30-35 minutes, rotating the tray and stirring the contents at the halfway point. The dish is done when the broccoli florets are nicely browned and the bacon is fully cooked.
To finish the dish, squeeze on the juice from one lemon or drizzle on some aged balsamic vinegar!
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2021).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Roasted Broccoli and Bacon
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds broccoli
- 5 garlic cloves peeled and smashed
- 4 slices bacon cut into bite-size pieces
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil avocado oil, melted ghee, or melted lard
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt to taste
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
- Juice from 1 lemon or 2 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400°F convection bake (or 425°F if no convection) with the rack in the middle. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.
- Cut up the broccoli into florets. (No, I don’t normally wash them unless they’re really dirty, but I do inspect for bugs and I toss the florets that are super-infested.) Organic broccoli often features small crowns and large stems so I normally trim the tough skins from the stems and throw them in as well.
- Grab a large bowl and toss the broccoli, bacon, garlic cloves, olive oil, salt and pepper. (Yes, you can also do this directly on the baking sheet.)
- Spread the broccoli and bacon in a single layer on the rimmed baking sheet.
- Pop the tray in the oven for 30-35 minutes, rotating the tray and stirring the contents at the halfway point. The dish is done when the broccoli florets are nicely browned and the bacon is fully cooked.
- To finish the dish, squeeze on the juice from one lemon or drizzle on some aged balsamic vinegar!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
It was really delicious! I accidentally added the balsamic before I put the bacon and broccoli in the oven and also didn’t know my oven wasn’t a convection oven lol. Despite my own errors it turned out amazing. My family says to make it again and that it was one of the best ways to prepare broccoli.