Neither of us grew up liking Brussels sprouts all that much, but when the Brussels sprouts craze hit Denver a few years ago, we were sold on just how tasty they could be. We still laugh about the year when three separate friends all showed up with the exact same Brussels sprouts side dish for our annual Practice Thanksgiving celebration! They were kind of a big deal.
How to make Brussels sprouts actually taste good
In my opinion, steaming is out. They just taste mushy and bland. We have experimented with blanching them first before finishing with a saute. They turn out pretty well using that method, but it takes a little more work to have the boiling water, an ice bath and the frying pan all going.
Our current favorite is starting the Brussels sprouts with a quick sear in a cast iron pan, then finishing them in the oven. You get great flavor and color from searing them in the pan, but it’s easy and convenient to finish roasting them in a hot oven. Served with bacon – what can be better?!
Seared Brussels sprouts with bacon garlic aioli
Bacon and Brussels sprouts…a winning combination. Topped with a creamy bacon garlic aioli, delicious!
Ingredients
Seared Brussels sprouts
- 4 strips bacon
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts
- Sea salt and pepper
Bacon garlic aioli
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 strip bacon
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
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Wash and trim ends of Brussels sprouts. Slice each Brussels sprout in half and remove the outer leaves.
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Place bacon in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Flip occasionally until cooked through. Remove bacon and set aside. Drain off and reserve excess bacon grease, but leave some in the pan for the first round of Brussels sprouts.
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Spread one layer of Brussels sprouts evenly in the cast iron pan. You may need to cook the Brussels sprouts in several batches because you want each one to be touching the bottom of the pan to receive a good sear. Add back in bacon grease as necessary for your cooking fat.
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Once the Brussels sprouts are in the pan resist the urge to touch them! Just let them sear for a few minutes (probably 3 or 4 minutes depending on the heat in your pan). Then remove them from the cast iron pan and place them on a sheet pan with parchment paper or a Silpat mat while you sear the next batch.
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Once all Brussels sprouts have been seared, put sheet pan in the oven for 10-15 minutes to finish cooking. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and shake the pan half way through the cooking time.
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While the Brussels sprouts are in the oven, crumble all the strips of bacon. You will use one for the aioli and the rest will be added in directly with the Brussels sprouts.
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Combine all aioli ingredients in a small bowl and place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
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When Brussels sprouts are roasted to perfection, remove from oven and transfer to serving dish. Add crumbled bacon and serve with bacon garlic aioli on the side!
Recipe Notes
You can use our homemade mayo recipe as a great base for the bacon garlic aioli!
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