Brussels sprouts are divisive. People who love them, really love them. And people who hate them? I firmly believe they just haven't had them prepared the right way yet. I, myself, dreaded them growing up, when they were served to me as pale green globes in a steaming baking dish with mushy texture and bland, bitter flavor. When the lid came off that dish at the dinner table, the groans would start.
If you know where I am going with this, you can already see the folly of our past ways. Whole pieces meant they had to cook for way too long. Baking them in a crowded, covered dish meant they were essentially just steamed. And these things together meant that the flavor never had a chance to develop.
It wasn't until much later, when I was living in New York and seeing Brussels sprouts on restaurant menus everywhere, that I saw the infinite potential of this once-maligned vegetable. And I took notes to be able to make them at home. Just as we've explored restaurant methods for perfectly crunchy sautéed green beans, flavorful, fresh asparagus, and expertly seared mushrooms, we're following suit to get the most out of these tiny cabbages as well.
Let me start by saying that many restaurants deep fry Brussels sprouts,andthat’scertainly a delicious (albeit sometimes greasy) option, but in my opinion, you can get equally tasty results from the oven.Andit’sa whole lot easier, too.This recipe for Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan lays out the method I typically follow. Here are the important details to pay attention to:
Start with trimmed and halved sprouts. It's okay to have some loose leaves in the mix—they get extra crispy.
Toss the prepped veg with olive oil or a neutral oil until evenly coated. Season generously with salt and pepper. You can also use other seasonings—like garlic powder as listed in the recipe—though I often keep it simple. (Pro tip: Swap oil for duck fat like Chef John for off-the-charts flavor.)
Spread the Brussels sprouts out and with space between them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. This allows the heat to reach every surface of the vegetables and makes sure nothing sticks.
Crank up the oven. Here, creatorJuliana Hale calls for 400 degrees F, though I go a little hotter to 425 degrees F.
Flip or shake every so often, but not so often that the sprouts don't have a chance to brown and caramelize.
Go past golden brown but stay shy of burnt! The Brussels sprouts can handle it and the flavor deepens the more they roast.
Finish with flavor. Squeeze lemon over top once they come out of the oven and sprinkle on a quality Parmesan cheese. You'll never go back to boring Brussels ever again.
With those same ideas in mind, we also have a recipe for Air Fryer Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Maple-Mustard Mayo that sounds like a must-try and would give that same crispy, fried goodness with the ease of an air fryer.
You can't beat lemon, Parmesan, and perhaps a couple shakes of red pepper flakes, but there are many other complementary enhancements to try. Before cooking, use seasoning blends in your chosen flavor profile to amp up the taste. After the sprouts are roasted and caramelized, drizzle honey (or hot honey), soy or balsamic glaze, or go sweet and savory with sweet chili or maple syrup. Sub in other cheeses while you're at it, like Gruyère, feta, or blue, depending on your mood.
A dipping sauce can really take these crispy, earthy veggies up a notch, too. Try the maple mustard dip mentioned above, go with a bright and acidic garlic aioli or romesco, or take a smoky spin with harissa aioli—just to name a few.
What to Serve With Brussels Sprouts
These are good enough to enjoy on their own of course, and restaurants nowadays have Brussels sprouts featured as an appetizer. But more often than not, they're a side to main dishes. I absolutely love them with roasted chicken, pork chops, steak, or holiday ham, but really the possibilities are as endless as the sprouts' layers themselves.
However you serve them, I think we can now agree that Brussels sprouts really shine when they have a crisp, caramelized crunch—elevated with balancing flavors like tart citrus and nutty cheese. The best part is, they're just as easy to make at home as they are to order out.
Before cooking, use seasoning blends in your chosen flavor profile to amp up the taste. After the sprouts are roasted and caramelized, drizzle honey (or hot honey), soy or balsamic glaze, or go sweet and savory with sweet chili or maple syrup.
In the late 1990s scientists identified specific chemicals, called glucosinolates, that made Brussels sprouts taste bitter. Plant breeders started growing old seeds, previously discarded for producing paltry harvests, to identify tastier versions with lower levels of these compounds.
The combination of techniques, searing then roasting, is what gives restaurant Brussel Sprouts the upper hand on the until-now pathetic homemade variety. Eureka! Avoid using a glass baking dish with very high sides, as this will trap moisture inside the pan, causing the sprouts to steam rather than roast.
This is a quick technique that results in tender, crisp vegetables, according to the American Heart Association. Montiel recommends this method for reducing the bitterness in Brussels sprouts. "Cut the Brussels Sprouts in half and blanch them in salt water for about 2 minutes," he says.
The soak time tenderizes the sprouts so the middles are softer. Don't worry, they won't be soggy! I would never do that to you. If, like me, you don't mind some chew to your sprouts, you don't need to soak the Brussels sprouts prior to cooking.
A Dutch scientist named Hans van Doorn, who worked at a seed and chemical company, figured out exactly which chemical compounds in Brussels sprouts made them bitter. The next step was to plant sprouts with the least amount of these chemicals and eventually cross-pollinate the chemicals out.
Some people cut a cross in the base to make sure they cook evenly, but with smaller ones it's not necessary, as it can cause them to go mushy. Larger ones can be cut in half. To boil, put into a pan with some salt, cover with boiling water, bring back to the boil and cook, covered, for 5-10 mins.
Over the last twenty years, farmers have mellowed the "unpleasant" flavor of brussels sprouts by breeding a vegetable that contains fewer bitter compounds or glucosinolates. So, brussels sprouts just taste better than they used to when we were kids. The rub is that glucosinolates help protect sprouts against pests.
You need a nice coating of oil—enough to make the heads shiny or if they're cut, enough oil to get inside the folds of some of the leaves. Without oil, Brussels don't brown and soften—they dehydrate. Its also possible that they simply need more time in the oven. Cooking times vary depending on their size.
After the sprouts are roasted and caramelized, drizzle honey (or hot honey), soy or balsamic glaze, or go sweet and savory with sweet chili or maple syrup. Sub in other cheeses while you're at it, like Gruyère, feta, or blue, depending on your mood.
To maximize the flat areas, which get the most crispy surface area, cut your Brussels sprouts in half. If your Brussels sprouts are very small, you can leave them whole (and if they are very large, quarter them).
Steaming Brussels sprouts preserves more of the nutrients and antioxidants than any other cooking method. And they turn out tasting like crisp-tender, sweet little nuggets. Plus they're just about the quickest veggie side dish you can cook.
Roast 'em! Our two rules: place and space! Place them cut side down to create that slightly crunchy exterior and soft interior. Space them out evenly so they don't steam–a crowded sheet pan party is not where your brussels want to be.
The bitter taste of Brussels sprouts comes from compounds called glucosinolates and their degradation products, he explains. These bitter tasting compounds are an important part of the plant's defence mechanism against leaf-eating enemies, such as insects, nematodes, slugs, and herbivores, like pigeons and deer.
What's more, frosty weather converts bitter starches into sugars, leading to sweeter tasting sprouts (hence the logic behind grandparents remarking they “won't eat sprouts until the first frost”).
Introduction: My name is Pres. Lawanda Wiegand, I am a inquisitive, helpful, glamorous, cheerful, open, clever, innocent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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