Brussels sprouts seem to get a bad rap. They are such a wonderful vegetable I just think people don’t always know how to make them. Soft, mushy Brussels sprouts = gross. Crispy, but still tender Brussels sprouts = delicious! I think the key to Brussels sprouts is how you cook them.
Brussels sprouts look like cute little mini cabbages. They are low in calories and full of nutrients including fiber, vitamin K, iron, magnesium, and vitamin C. Vegetables of course, including Brussels sprouts, are naturally low in saturated fat and low in sodium. Win-win.
Honestly, the first time in my adult life that I tried Brussels sprouts I did not like them. Donny actually made them for me and my sister and I really (I mean really) did not enjoy them. I don’t dislike many foods and it is especially strange for me to not like a vegetable. I think part of it was that I hadn’t tried them very much. My mom never really made them when I was growing up, so this was the first time in many years that I had eaten them. I bet if Donny made them exactly the same way today I would love them.
Regardless of how much I disliked Brussels sprouts the first time Donny made them for me, I allowed him to make them again. Thank goodness I did! Now we eat them all the time and they are one of my favorite veggies.
In my opinion, one key to good Brussels sprouts is to not boil or steam them. Those methods both lead to mushy Brussels sprouts. Like I said earlier, crispy Brussels sprouts are the best. I would suggest roasting or sautéing them.
This recipe is really quick to make and only takes a few ingredients. I started by sauteing some red onion in extra virgin olive oil. I then added the shredded Brussels sprouts. You can buy shredded Brussels sprouts at the store or it is pretty easy to do it yourself by slicing each sprout top to bottom three or four times, depending on how thick you want each piece. I prefer mine to be pretty thin. Once the sprouts are close to being done then add in the sliced chicken sausage. The chicken sausage that I used was Trader Joe’s Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage links. I had not tried these before and they were really good! You can use any flavor of chicken sausage for this recipe. We usually just use whatever we have on hand. The chicken sausage is already cooked so you only have to saute it until it is warm all the way through. When the chicken sausage was close to being done I added some balsamic vinegar and let it soak into the sprouts and chicken. Simple, right?!
- 1/2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
- 3 cups Brussels sprouts, shredded
- 2 chicken sausage links, sliced
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Over medium heat saute red onion in oil. Add Brussels sprouts and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper and stir occasionally. Add chicken sausage and cook until heated completely through. Add balsamic vinegar and heat 2-3 more minutes.
- The Brussels sprouts will cook quicker if the pan is covered, however the Brussels sprouts will not get the nice dark coloring.
