The sprout. Always seen at Christmas and a contender for the most contentious vegetable; you either love them or hate them.
Many a tale has been told of completely under- and overcooked sprouts, each one carrying that all-powerful sprout taste.
Let’s do something about that, huh?
What you need:
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Sprouts (duh!)
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Oil
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A few rashers of bacon
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Large onion
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3 cloves of garlic
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Balsamic vinegar
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A little bit of sugar
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Boiling water
Chop all the Brussels sprouts in half, discarding any of the outer leaves if they’re looking a little worse for wear. Put them to one side for the moment.
In a decent-sized frying pan, add some oil and place it over a medium heat.
Chop up the bacon into small bits (or use lardons if you’re particularly lazy) and throw them into the pan.
Next, chop up the onion—diced, sliced, it doesn’t matter; you decide. After a few minutes of cooking the bacon bits, add the onion and give everything a good stir.
Now smash those garlic cloves and add them to the pan, giving it another stir.
Add all your prepped Brussels sprouts and, yes, give it another stir. We want to caramelise the sprouts—or simply burn them—while adding all the flavours of everything already in the pan. You will occasionally have to flip over that one random sprout that absolutely refuses to turn over when you stir. Trust me, you’ll find it. Add the balsamic vinegar and the sugar (I dunno, a teaspoon maybe? It depends how many sprouts you’ve done).
Once all the sprouts have been caramelised, add enough boiling water so that everything is just about covered (there will be lots of steam). Turn the heat down slightly so there’s a gentle simmer. Scrape the pan if necessary to get all those lovely bits off and into the water.
Once the water evaporates, remove everything from the pan into a bowl. Done.
You will never not cook sprouts this way again. You’re welcome.
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