# You know, Brussels sprouts really aren't that bad **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 28, 2013, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644 "2013-01-28T20:17:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2013, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/61 "2013-02-06T23:33:13Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > Jacque Pepin’s fricassee of brussels sprouts is my go to. It takes less than 10 minutes, and they’re fantastic. > > [Recipe](http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=715063) I like how that recipe calls for “good olive oil”. Darn, I was hoping to use the cheap rancid stuff. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/62 "2013-02-07T00:14:51Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Darn, I was hoping to use the cheap rancid stuff. Perhaps you should consider buying frozen Brussels sprouts and boiling them for a couple of hours. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/63 "2013-02-07T00:22:53Z")
Martha Stewart - give the devil her due - has [this recipe](http://www.marthastewart.com/317997/sauteed-brussels-sprouts-with-raisins) for sprouts sliced with yellow raisins and carrots, which debuted Christmas night _chez_ **Doug** and has been a tremendous hit since. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/64 "2013-02-07T01:41:54Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > Martha Stewart - give the devil her due - has [this recipe](http://www.marthastewart.com/317997/sauteed-brussels-sprouts-with-raisins) for sprouts sliced with yellow raisins and carrots, which debuted Christmas night _chez_ **Doug** and has been a tremendous hit since. Mrs. Plant v.3.0 comments, “Oh God, something you eat when you want to throw up. Something you eat when you don’t want to go to school. Can you imagine what it looks like coming back up?” I am not responsible for Mrs. Plant v.3.0’s comments, nor do they necessarily agree with this poster. But Jesus Christ,\* raisins?\* ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/65 "2013-02-07T02:04:24Z")
A supermarket in Ohio did some sort of caramelized sprout that was delicious, but I’ve never figured out what they did. Dammit, now I need to know. ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/66 "2013-02-07T02:26:43Z")
> [@DummyGladHands](#): > > Why do I always get a bitter one that puts me off my meal? You mean these recipes guarantee no bitterness?? Nah, there’s no guarantees. Though the roasted ones I’ve tried haven’t been bitter so much as just plain assy. Literally assy, like being Dutch Ovened inside your mouth. But they all taste like that, raw, steamed, roasted, whatever. ---
**Author:** ![satogata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@satogata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/satogata)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/67 "2013-02-07T03:22:12Z")
Just had some fantastically roasted ones the other night – really fresh ones, kept cold until you cook them, will help with the bitterness. We also dipped them in hummus, which was a yummy combination. I couldn’t stop eating them (even cold), and I think that’s going to be one of my go-to semi-healthful snacks 'til I tire of them. ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/68 "2013-02-07T04:08:36Z")
> [@swampbear](#): > > +1 bazillion. The vilest, most evil, most grotesque, icky, yucky, fit only for Satan’s school cafeteria substance ever! Guys, we need to stick together. There seems to be a movement afoot to convince the world that … those things that must not be mentioned…are, in fact, in some way edible. Amnd we are going to be directly in the firing line. We need to organise, we need to publicise, we need to arm ourselves. I know where there are some log cabins in Montana. If they want me to eat those things, they’ll have to prise my cold, dead jaws apart… ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/69 "2013-02-07T08:41:33Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Mrs. Plant v.3.0 comments, “Oh God, something you eat when you want to throw up. Something you eat when you don’t want to go to school. Can you imagine what it looks like coming back up?” > > I am not responsible for Mrs. Plant v.3.0’s comments, nor do they necessarily agree with this poster. > > But Jesus Christ,\* raisins?\* The chicken broth makes it all ok, somehow. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/70 "2013-02-07T14:05:26Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > The best quick way to cook Brussels sprouts is to steam them over boiling water unless just tender, serve with a little butter or margarine and salt. Excellent. > .. Yes! Hated them as a kid. Now can’t get enough. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/71 "2013-02-07T14:20:34Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > You have to cut them in half While I’ve always liked them, I have to admit that since we started cutting them in half they’ve been much better. Partly it lets the seasoning in better, but also it helps them cook more evenly so they’re not overdone on the outside and underdone at the core. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/72 "2013-02-07T15:49:31Z")
It’s it funny how these things run? I just got on the Brussels sprout bandwagon, even though my husband has been mutely begging me to make them for years. I posted a photo of my latest batch on Facebook and and people were crawling out of the woodwork to talk about them. (I sauteed them with onions in olive oil. Tres yum.) ---
**Author:** ![JerrySTL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e274bd/32.png) [@JerrySTL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerrySTL)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/73 "2013-02-07T17:40:47Z")
I love them especially in butter. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/74 "2013-02-07T20:09:46Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > While I’ve always liked them, I have to admit that since we started cutting them in half they’ve been much better. Partly it lets the seasoning in better, but also it helps them cook more evenly so they’re not overdone on the outside and underdone at the core. [ol] [li]Steam them, not boil.[/li][li] **Select them all to be the same size.** Trying to cook a pan of ones from marble to golf ball size means they’re going to come out uneven.[/li][/ol] I find whole ones tastier when steamed. Halving them is better for grilling. ---
**Author:** ![nachtmusick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ac91a4/32.png) [@nachtmusick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nachtmusick)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/75 "2013-02-10T05:21:00Z")
I recently dined at one of the finest restaurants in San Francisco; the kind of place where you can order any one of the unusual items they have on the menu and be confident that the master chefs will deliver something memorably tasty. My duck came with brussel sprouts expertly singed and coated with a melange of spices that yielded a pleasant aromatic bouquet as I lifted them to my palate. They still tasted like ass. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/76 "2013-02-10T06:09:40Z")
Going by responses in this thread, I guess Brussels sprouts are like okra – you love 'em or you hate 'em and there’s no middle ground. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/77 "2013-02-10T07:50:03Z")
I have long loved them. When the first fresh ones become available each year I usually do a big bowl, steamed tossed in butter with flaked almonds and pepper. Lots of good recipes so just some small tips to add: They, like all the cabbage and onion family, are improved greatly if cooked with star anise. Makes them seem amazingly sweet. Vary to taste. They are great for dipping in stuff like lime and chili mayo if roasted plain. If you shred them they make a much better coleslaw base than cabbage does. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/78 "2013-02-10T13:58:12Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > steamed tossed in butter with flaked almonds and pepper. > They, like all the cabbage and onion family, are improved greatly if cooked with star anise. Makes them seem amazingly sweet. > > They are great for dipping in stuff like lime and chili mayo if roasted plain. > > If you shred them they make a much better coleslaw base than cabbage does. Hmmmm. Thanks, don’t ask! ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/79 "2013-02-10T14:06:35Z")
> [@Wallaby](#): > > Guys, we need to stick together. There seems to be a movement afoot to convince the world that … those things that must not be mentioned…are, in fact, in some way edible. Amnd we are going to be directly in the firing line. > > We need to organise, we need to publicise, we need to arm ourselves. I know where there are some log cabins in Montana. > > If they want me to eat those things, they’ll have to prise my cold, dead jaws apart… It happens so often, I’ve given up. Someone claims that the only problem with brussel sprouts is the way they’ve been cooked. They all swear that heir method is perfect, and I’ll never look at brussel sprouts the same again. Then I try their special recipe and its the same vile taste that I remember. Liars! Thy are all liars! ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644/80 "2013-02-10T14:30:46Z")
> [@WarmNPrickly](#): > > It happens so often, I’ve given up. Someone claims that the only problem with brussel sprouts is the way they’ve been cooked. They all swear that heir method is perfect, and I’ll never look at brussel sprouts the same again. Then I try their special recipe and its the same vile taste that I remember. > Liars! Thy are all liars! Take your pills, and have some cabbage boiled with star anise. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-brussels-sprouts-really-arent-that-bad/648644.md?page=5)