Cooking Brussels Sprouts You’ll Love

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Homegrown Brussels sprouts are sweeter and nuttier than their industrially grown counterparts.
Homegrown Brussels sprouts are sweeter and nuttier than their industrially grown counterparts.
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If you think you hate Brussels sprouts, try this delicious recipe for oven-roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon.
If you think you hate Brussels sprouts, try this delicious recipe for oven-roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon.
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You can begin harvesting your homegrown Brussels sprouts as soon as they are marble-sized, but the most flavorful harvests are left for later in the season after the first frost has come and infused your sprouts with a natural sweetness that most commercially grown versions will never know.
You can begin harvesting your homegrown Brussels sprouts as soon as they are marble-sized, but the most flavorful harvests are left for later in the season after the first frost has come and infused your sprouts with a natural sweetness that most commercially grown versions will never know.
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The best thing about growing Brussels sprouts is that they are so cold-hardy you can enjoy them well into the winter, even at holiday meals.
The best thing about growing Brussels sprouts is that they are so cold-hardy you can enjoy them well into the winter, even at holiday meals.
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In wintery climates, choose dwarf varieties of Brussels sprouts that take a long time to mature.
In wintery climates, choose dwarf varieties of Brussels sprouts that take a long time to mature.
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The trick to cooking Brussels sprouts is not overcooking them. A properly cooked sprout should be fork-tender but not mushy, and should retain most of its green color.
The trick to cooking Brussels sprouts is not overcooking them. A properly cooked sprout should be fork-tender but not mushy, and should retain most of its green color.
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Choose slow-growing tall varieties of Brussels sprouts in warm areas.
Choose slow-growing tall varieties of Brussels sprouts in warm areas.
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A 2006 study in Current Biology found that some people may be genetically predisposed to hate Brussels sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables. But don’t count yourself among them until you’ve tried properly grown and prepared Brussels sprouts!
A 2006 study in Current Biology found that some people may be genetically predisposed to hate Brussels sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables. But don’t count yourself among them until you’ve tried properly grown and prepared Brussels sprouts!

You can learn a lot about a country based on how its people talk about food and love. In Belgium, for example, it’s not uncommon to refer to a loved one as “mon petit chou,” which translates as “my little cabbage” or “my Brussels sprout.” This may come as a shock to those of you who have never uttered the words “love” and “Brussels sprouts” in the same breath.

Brussels sprouts are one of those “love ’em or leave ’em” vegetables that elicit strong opinions. I considered myself among the “leave ’ems” until I moved to Belgium in the 1990s. It was there that I discovered both Brussels sprouts and love. I was dating a young Belgian woman who would later become my wife. We often spent weekends in the countryside with her family. As a gardenless city dweller, I was happy to get out in the country and scratch at the ground, even if it wasn’t my own ground. And as a somewhat homesick expatriate, I felt comforted by Mom’s cooking, even if she wasn’t my mom. It was Ginette, now affectionately known as “Mami” to my three Belgo-American sons, who introduced me to Brussels sprouts cultivation and cookery.

Sweet, Nutty and Yummy

A star of the fall and winter garden, cold-hardy Brussels sprouts can be enjoyed all winter long; the colder the weather, the better they taste. The trick to cooking Brussels sprouts is not overcooking them. Most people who say they don’t like Brussels sprouts have eaten industrially grown, bitter versions with all the flavor and color cooked out of them. A properly cooked sprout should be fork-tender but not mushy, and should retain most of its green color.

A classic Belgian way of cooking Brussels sprouts is steamed eight to 10 minutes and then lightly sautéed in butter with some chopped shallots or onions. Add some salt and pepper, and if you’re feeling extravagant, a drizzle of cream. That simple recipe was what converted me from a Brussels sprouts leaver into a lover 10 years ago. Since then, I’ve discovered other ways of cooking Brussels sprouts that have reinforced the love. Roasting Brussels sprouts, for example, brings out their sweetness and a pleasant nutty flavor. (See recipe below.) They can also be added to stir-fries. 

  • Published on Feb 1, 2008
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