Winter vegetables have always been a challenge to me, not counting potatoes, of course. Just opening a can of something always seems like a cop-out, but after laboring over a main course and salad, most nights the veges came in a slow third as I tried to think of something interesting. But I’ve discovered something you can pull together at the last minute. It’s particularly tasty if you’re one of those people who loves the crispy browned bits of almost anything. You want this to char some; it adds to the flavor.
The quantities are indefinite; this is something that doesn’t require precision in measurement. Learning to cook this way is something that some of us take longer to learn than others, but it certainly builds a cook’s self-confidence. I poured oil and vinegar from the bottles, and just cut off a piece of butter by eyeballing it. When you trim the sprouts, some leaves will fall off and you can discard those; those that come off in the pan can remain. More crispy bits for the cook, unless you’re a particularly generous soul. You can substitute other vinegars for the sherry vinegar, if it’s not on hand. The coarse salt adds a nice texture. If you have the oven on, you can pop the skillet in there to finish cooking the sprouts after you flip and season them.
The recipe is adapted from one from Vetri, a Philadelphia restaurant, via the Post-Dispatch.
Small brussels sprouts – about 5-6 per person
1 garlic clove
butter
olive oil
salt – coarse, if you have it
black pepper, preferably fresh-ground
sherry vinegar
Trim the dry end of the stem off the sprouts. Then cut them in half through the stem.Cut the garlic clove in half and rub each cut surface of the sprouts with garlic.
Heat a tablespoon or so (more if you’re feeding more than a couple of people) of olive oil in a non-stick skillet. Add about 1 ½ tsp. butter to the oil, again adjusting quantities upward if you’re feeding more people. When it’s melted, turn the burner to high and place the sprouts in the skillet, cut side down. Char them until dark brown, perhaps 3-4 minutes. Drop the heat to low, turn the sprouts over, sprinkle them with salt and pepper and pour a couple of tablespoons of sherry vinegar over them. This will almost immediately cook down; that’s okay. Continue cooking a few more minutes until the sprouts are tender.
–Ann