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These were so absurdly delicious! I couldn’t stop talking about (or eating) them all of Thanksgiving, and I’ve never even been one to love brussel sprouts. Yum yum YUM.
Monica
The thing about caramelized brussels sprouts is that they are a) adorable, b) delicious, and c) healthy, because they’re like baby cabbages disguised as beautiful food.
On our Washington, D.C. weekend getaway, I found various forms of brussels sprouts on every restaurant menu. Caramelized, roasted, chopped, sauteed, braised, you name it. And obvi, I ordered all of them. But there was only one that really made my heart flutter, and that was the caramelized brussels sprouts. How can a real live person say no to that crispy, golden exterior? So lightly sweet and so perfect.
And this is still a VEG-E-TA-BLE we’re talking about here.
Brussels sprouts are totally trendy right now, so in addition to being delicious and 150% cute, if you like them you get a free pass to the Cool Kidz Club because of their built-in awesomeness. And a bonus 200 cool person points for caramelizing them with a sweet maple orange sauce. And crumbling bacon all over them. And yeah, I’m serious.
I made these three different times because I am kind of picky about texture. The first time, they were sure crispy alright. Like, CRISPY crispy. My oven is a leetle bit over-zealous, and it’s all my oven. Totally all my oven. The second time, they were smushy and soft when sauteed on the stovetop. Not so much, friends. We’re looking for the light crunch factor here.
So the final time, when I got the crunch just right but not too much, it was by doing this:
That’s right, cut side down, in the pan. Not ideal for my lazier moments, because you have to literally place them one. by. one. in the pan. It requires moving your hands for at least two minutes, which… I know. WHAT IS THIS. It’s like I became your bossy Jillian Michaels. But the one on one attention to place each of them down in the pan is so worth it. They browned evenly on the cut side, cooked just enough to be fork tender on the back side, and then just sizzled to a perfect caramelization state when I added the sauce.
Angels singing? I hear it too. LALALALALALA.
This plus bacon plus Parmesan equals done. Delicious and done.
And keep barking up that brussels sprouts tree because –>
Chopped Brussels Sprout Salad with Chicken and Walnuts
Chopped Brussels Sprout Salad with Creamy Shallot Dressing
Bacon and Brussels Sprout Salad
Zinggg.
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Simple Caramelized Brussels Sprouts
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 as a side 1x
Description
These caramelized brussels sprouts with a simple maple orange glaze take just 20 minutes from start to finish and pack a little nutrition punch.
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon
- 20 brussels sprouts
- juice of one navel orange (I got about 1/4 cup)
- 1 shallot, peeled and quartered
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 teaspoons stone ground mustard
- 2 teaspoons cane vinegar (any kind would work)
- 2 teaspoons real maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Parmesan for topping
Instructions
- Remove the base of the brussels sprout by cutting off just the very bottom part of the stem (it’s white). If you cut too much off, the leaves will fall apart, so be careful. Slice the brussels sprouts in half as pictured and set aside.
- Puree the orange juice, shallot, olive oil, mustard, vinegar, maple syrup, and salt in a food processor until a smooth sauce forms. Taste and adjust if you want more of a certain flavor. Set aside.
- Fry the bacon according to package directions until crispy. Drain on paper towels. When cool enough to handle, chop into small pieces. Pour the hot grease into a small heatproof container and set aside.
- Return the same pan to medium high heat and add the brussels sprouts to the pan, cut side down. Drizzle with a little bit of the reserved bacon grease (1-2 teaspoons) and gently push the brussels sprouts around in the pan, keeping them cut side down. You might need to do it twice depending on how many you can fit in your pan at one time. After about five minutes, when the brussels sprouts have browned slightly on the cut side and the pan is hot, pour the sauce in with the brussels sprouts. It will sizzle like crazy; that’s perfect! Pick the pan up by the handle(s) and shake it a little bit so that the brussels sprouts move around in the pan. They burn easily, especially once the sugars are there, so do this quickly (1 minute or less) and remove from heat when you have the right amount of caramelization. Toss with the reserved bacon and Parmesan cheese. Yummay!
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: brussels sprouts, caramelized brussels sprouts, brussels sprout recipe, orange glaze
I just made this for the first time. I used chorizo sausage instead of bacon (I removed it from it’s casing) and 1/2 a small purple onion instead of shallot. Sooooo good!
Can you add pecans to this recipe, or would it mess up the flavor?
Joy
Pecans would be delicious!
These were amazing! I actually enjoyed the leftovers even more!
Great tip for putting the cut sides down!
May I use Sweet Vidalia onions in place of the Shallots?
Vidalia onions would be a great substitute!
I wanted to love this recipe but wow, the amount of ground mustard. This was the overwhelming flavor in these brussels, even after I tried to compensate with adding extra orange and maple syrup. This was not what we expected for our kid-friendly Thanksgiving Day side dish. I did appreciate the added instructions for browning the brussels.
These were quite good! I actually did not use the Parmesan cheese as I thought they were quite tasty without it. I thought it would be too much olive oil but it cooks down and when the sauce almost disappears, that’s when you know these are crisp-tender and ready to devour! Thanks!
Glad you liked the recipe, Ginny!
Made them for my mother who does not like brussel sprouts. She loved em!
Yay! So happy to hear this, Michael!
Going to try these for Christmas dinner. Can they be partially or completely prepare the day before & warmed?
OK, unlike other commenters, I did actually make this, according to your recipe. And, though it turned out well, it is not a recipe (technique) that I would use again, or recommend to others. The final result–while certainly edible, and not offensive in the least– is just sort of underwhelming (this coming from an experienced brussels sprout gardener and cook). That being said, I do enjoy your blog. Cheers!
I’m thinking of attempting this for Thanksgiving dinner, despite having never made Brussels sprouts before – eek! I’m not too worried since all of your recipes have turned out amazing for me.
I know I can trim and half the sprouts the day before, but do you think the maple orange purée will be fine to do in advance?
You mentioned cane vinegar for this recipe. What kind of vinegar is that?
Hi Eileen! Cane vinegar is made from syrup from sugar cane. For this recipe, any type of vinegar will do!
Let me begin by saying I am a true amateur when it comes to cooking. But I do love brussel sprouts and I’ve tried a few recipes. This sounded wonderful to me … orange juice, maple syrup….love them. The only thing I did differently was use pancetta rather than bacon simply because I had some I needed to use. My result was very, very saucy. Though I thought the sauce was delicious, it really overwhelmed the sprouts and looked nothing like your beautiful end result. Any ideas on what I did wrong?
I just made a test batch of these for thanksgiving dinner and loved them. Thank you for the recipie and helpful tips!
PS for any kosher or halal eaters out there I subbed regular bacon for turkey bacon and it worked just fine.
I’ve been on your site for at least 2 hours now. I have my menus figured out for the next 6 months, I think. I crave brussels sprouts on a regular basis and I’m going to go do this recipe right now!!
Hope you enjoy it!
Wanted to try this but no brussel sprouts in the house. Made it with cauliflower flowrettes. Dellicious!! Thanks for the idea.
These were so absurdly delicious! I couldn’t stop talking about (or eating) them all of Thanksgiving, and I’ve never even been one to love brussel sprouts. Yum yum YUM.
That’s awesome! I’m so happy to hear that. Thanks so much Monica!
I want to make this but I cannot find cane vinegar anywhere… if I use regular vinegar will that be ok or should I keep searching??
Yes! Just use regular white distilled vinegar. Or apple cider vinegar could be good too!
These look delicious!! Any suggestions for an truly vegetarian version?
Omit the bacon.
Yum for sure! Now if only I can convince my husband they are amazing!
We eat brussels sprouts regularly in our home. I usually just toss in olive oil, sprinkle with coarse salt and roast for 15 minutes in the oven. Simple and divine. Especially the little bits that break off and get super crunchy. But like anything, you need to switch it up so I tried this recipe tonight. I made a double batch of the sauce and used the extra to marinate a pork tenderloin before grilling. Oh my holy goodness. What a party of flavors. People, do yourself a favor and make this. To reference to the comment above: it’s actually better than candy. I was tempted to lick the remaining bacony citrusy (yes, fat laden) glaze from my cast iron skillet for dessert. Thank you for sharing. New family favorite.
haha – thanks Kelly! So glad you liked it!
Good grief woman! 102 calories of fat (11.3 grams) and 365 mg of sodium! Why would you do that to a perfectly good brussel sprout? Even if kids like them who wants to give their children all that fat and salt. Brown them in a small amount of olive oil and use alot less than a 1/4 cup of oil in the sauce (1 tablespoon is plenty). I’m sure this is delicious as candy but don’t call it a vegetable.
Thanks for sharing your opinion, Mona.
All I can think of is how is it possible that I’ve never tried brussel sprouts?! That is changing this weekend!
What a delicious recipe!!!!
Perfect way to serve this otherwise under-rated vegetable!
The Macadame. xx
http://www.creamstop.com
Brilliant! I’m 200% with you being Jillian Michaels on me if it gets me these beauties. Pinning these and making them ASAP.
Brussels sprouts + maple orange glaze + bacon + yum = forever in my tummy! 🙂