They're Back!
On my early morning loop around the market after getting my own stand set up I spied something I’ve been waiting for all season—fresh brussels sprouts! Although I’d grown up with miniature cabbage-like orbs, it was only when I was an adult shopping at the Ventura farmers market did I first see them still attached to the stalks as a local grower had them standing tall in a large, galvanized stock tank. I was gob smacked.
“Just slather it with olive oil, toss the whole thing in the oven and roast it,” the farmer suggested. I was hooked.
It would take another twenty years for me to discover the best part of the plant isn’t the sprouts themselves, but the loose ball of leaves at the crown. So desperate for something green in the dead of winter, as Twin Springs was packing up at the end of the day I snagged a few of the strange vegetables I’d never seen before. All they needed was steaming—no butter, no oil, no salt—naked and perfectly delicious.
It's difficult to imagine that at one time brussels sprouts were the butt of yucky vegetable jokes along with kale and cauliflower. Now we can’t get enough of them.
Just what are brussels sprouts?
Brussels sprouts are a cultivar group of the same species as cabbage. They belong to the Brassicaceae or Cruciferae family. Other members of this family are broccoli, kale, kohlrabi, and collard greens. They are a fall crop and tend to be sweeter after the first frost.
Originating in the Mediterranean, references to the vegetable date back as far as the 5th century. By the 13th century, Belgian farmers were cultivating brussels sprouts along with other northern European countries. When the French colonized Louisiana in the 18th century is when the vegetables first made it to America. Today the majority of commercial production is located in California trailed by Washington state and Long Island, New York for a cumulative production of 32,000 tons annually.
While most end up in the frozen foods section, fresh brussels sprouts have become a coveted staple at local farmers markets. Sometimes you’ll even find them sold by the stalk instead of the pound!
Heirloom vegetables are championed for their flavors, but when it comes to brussels sprouts Dutch growers and geneticists have identified the compounds that cause bitterness and through careful plant breeding have developed varieties that are sweeter in flavor as well as purple in color. And don’t even get me started on my addiction to kalettes—the designer vegetable (aka: hybrid) which is a cross between brussels sprouts and kale—another cold weather crop.
How do you cook brussels sprouts?
Like most vegetables, there are seven ways to Sunday to prepare them. The standard boiling method was popular because it reduces the amount of sulforaphane, the culprit that causes gas. However, this also tends to reduce flavor and color as well turning the sprouts into a dingey gray soggy mass.
My favorite way to cook brussels sprouts is to roast them in a cast iron skillet along with lots of fresh garlic and olive oil. To make more of a meal, I’ll add mushrooms and top with pungent hard cheese like Pecorino. Are you still grilling? Try skewering whole sprouts and brushing with olive oil. With Thanksgiving looming on the horizon, nothing beats roasted brussels sprouts with bacon and maple syrup as a side dish.
But the best part about brussels sprouts is the fact that they can languish in your refrigerator for a month and not turn into a soupy mess.