Buttery Brussels Sprouts
3 Mar
I never knew what Brussels sprouts were in my growing up years. My first sight of this vegetable was during a work assignment in UK. They were served at a party steamed whole, and their appearance had me entranced. If Gulliver’s Lilliput land cultivated cabbages, this is how they would look.
“Brussels sprouts” is a classic misnomer – they are not “sprouted” i.e. germinated the way moong beans etc. are, and going by Wikipedia, they possibly did not originate in the city of Brussels either!
In my debut attempt at cooking this vegetable, I kept it simple. The result was pretty good. This is my recipe – buttery Brussels sprouts:
Parboil 250grams of Brussels sprouts in salted water for 3 minutes. Dunk them immediately in chilled water. Drain, slit them vertically into halves.
Sprinkle salt and pepper on the parboiled halves. Mix well.
Heat a tablespoon of butter in a non-stick pan. Sauté the halves on medium-high flame for 4 minutes.
Buttery Brussels sprouts is ready. Serve immediately.
I served Brussels sprouts as a side dish with spaghetti in tomato sauce.
Recipes To Try
I’m bookmarking these great-sounding recipes from various food sites to try out next. Click on the picture to reach the recipe.
 1. Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberry Pistachio Pesto |
 2. Brussels sprouts toss with paprika, maple syrup and pecans |
 3. Balsamic roasted Brussels sprouts and carrots |
Suggestions for other interesting recipes with this vegetable? Do share them in the comments section.
Notes:
A tip to keep in mind: Do not overcook Brussels sprouts. Apparently overcooking causes it to release a sulfurous smell and turn bitter.
Here are a few more vegetables that I was unacquainted with in my early years and grew to love later. Try their recipes:
- zucchini – moong dal with zucchini and coriander, easy cheesy zucchini, zucchini cherry tomato with mustard
- poi saag / basala – poi saag toor dal, pumpkin basale leaf curry
- chow chow / chayote – chayote tomato curry, chayote apple salad with chili lime, chow chow raita
I love brussel sprouts, though don’t seem to make them as often as I would like. Might have to put this on the menu for this week!
There’s no reason to be confused about the term ‘sprout’ – they are small buds along a stalk a bit like an long cabbage stalk – indeed, they are really just a form of cabbage in which the buds develop into large ‘sprouts’ while the cabbage head is very open and not dense like a normal cabbage. Nothing whatever to do with sprouted seeds…