November 8, 2014

Pan Roasted Brussels Sprouts

A slightly dressier vegetable dish, pan roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon are wonderful for either a simple meal that needs punch, or a holiday table.

A few weeks ago our CSA farm teased us with pictures of Brussels sprouts just… sprouting… but now, we finally have them!

Brussels Sprouts - www.inhabitedkitchen.com We love these vegetables. They are, for us, a Fall treat – coming in just as the summer vegetables are over. Last year, we got them on the stalk, and I wrote about them, and how to simply steam them, which is what I usually do.

I’ve learned to pan roast them, though – and I like that as a different treatment. I can do it plain, with just a little oil in the pan, but I can also use this method to dress them up a bit… nice with an otherwise simple meal.

The other day I was cooking a fairly simple simmered pork chop, with rice on the side, and decided to pan roast the Brussels sprouts with bacon. We don’t really eat a lot of bacon by itself, but I like occasionally using some to add flavor to another dish. We can buy a package of “bacon ends” at a nearby store, and I transfer them to a zip freezer bag, freeze them, and then just cut some off when I want it.

Melting chopped bacon - www.inhabitedkitchen.com

Directions for Pan Roasted Brussels Sprouts

If you haven’t done that, but have a more typical package, I used about the amount of 2 slices… and chopped them in small pieces. The frozen bacon is easy to chop, but if I was using a slice, I’d cut it with kitchen scissors – that’s easier to manage. I put all the chopped bits in a heavy pan over a very low heat – at this stage I basically want to render out all the fat, which I will use. I cooked it for at least 10 minutes over low heat – at this point I did not want to brown the meat at all. A higher heat is less likely to melt all the fat.

Trimming Brussels sprouts - www.inhabitedkitchen.com While that cooked out, I trimmed the Brussels sprouts. This time I just got them loose, not on the stem. Because they’d been cut for a while, I needed to trim the cut ends a little, as they dry up. Then I sliced them in half lengthwise – I wanted a nice flat surface to brown.

Searing Brussels Sprouts - www.inhabitedkitchen.com Once they were trimmed, and I had little bits of meat in mostly-liquid fat in the pan, I turned the heat up a lot. The concept is to really roast the sprouts – even char them slightly – as that caramelizes them and brings out a lovely flavor. I dropped in the sprouts and turned them mostly cut side down – and let them sit in the sizzling pan for a few minutes. Then I started stirring, to brown all sides at least a little, and to keep the bacon moving (since I wasn’t trying to actually char it… though a few really crunchy bits were fine!)

Pan roasted and steamed - www.inhabitedkitchen.com-

After a few minutes of that, I lowered the heat, covered the pan, and let the sprouts continue to cook, steaming in their own moisture. How long you cook it at this stage depends on how cooked you like them – I was distracted, so these cooked nearly 10 minutes, and we probably would have preferred 5… They were still very good, though – not at all like overcooked simmered sprouts, which I dislike intensely… Take the lid off the pan when they are done to your taste, to let the steam escape.

I’m starting to come into the I Need to Plan Thanksgiving phase… starting to look at, and try out, side dishes… and the pan roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon are certainly an option for that. I’d cook the bacon and trim the sprouts earlier, while the turkey was in the oven, then heat the pan and cook them while the turkey is resting. More in the holiday mood than a simple steamed vegetable…

Edited to add – I have discovered that they freeze beautifully! I make up a big batch before Thanksgiving, freeze them, and can just microwave them on the day – or on any other day I want a lovely vegetable dish!