Brussels sprouts steamed briefly and then stir-fried with a sweet and tangy hoisin glaze.
Do you ever order mu shu pork at a Chinese restaurant?
It’s my favorite, and I think it’s mostly because of the sauce, that thick, dark, gooey, sweet and spicy hoisin sauce.
Hoisin sauce is readily available in the Asian section of the grocery aisle, at least around here, and you can use it as a dipping sauce or glaze for practically anything—wings, meatloaf, ribs, salmon, eggplant, meatballs, chicken, and in this case, Brussels sprouts.
In this quick and easy stir-fry, we lightly boil the halved sprouts first, so they cook more evenly.
We sear sliced onions, stir-frying them with the blanched sprouts, ginger, and garlic, and then sprinkle everything with some rice vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin, and sesame oil.
These Brussels sprouts come out like candy, so good! A pound of Brussels sprouts will serve 3 to 4, but if left to my own nefarious ways, I’ll eat the whole batch.
Hoisin Glazed Brussels Sprouts Recipe
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Serves 3-4 as a side dish
Ingredients
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts, rinsed, any older outer leaves discarded, stems trimmed slightly, sprouts sliced in half through the stem end
- 1 Tbsp peanut oil, or other vegetable oil
- 1/2 large onion, sliced thinly root to tip
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 1 garlic clove, minced, about 1 teaspoon
- 1 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 3 Tbsp hoisin sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
- Salt to taste
Method
1 Whisk together the seasoned rice vinegar, soy sauce, and hoisin sauce in a small bowl, set aside.
2 Pre-steam the brussels sprouts: Place a steamer rack in a medium pot, add an inch of water. Heat the water to a boil, then add the brussels sprouts to the pot. Cover the pot and steam the brussels sprouts for 5 minutes.
Remove the sprouts from the pot and lay them out on a baking sheet to cool while you cook the onions in the next step.
3 Sauté the onions: Heat the peanut oil in a wok or large sauté pan over high heat on your most powerful burner until the surface of the oil shimmers. Add the sliced onions and toss to coat with the oil.
Sear over high heat until the edges of the onion slices begin to brown, about 4-5 minutes.
4 Add the ginger, garlic and brussels sprouts to the pan and toss to combine. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, or until the brussels sprouts begin to brown.
5 Add the rice vinegar, soy sauce and hoisin sauce mixture to the sprouts and toss to combine. Stir-fry for a minute or two (watch the sides of the pan and turn off the heat if you see any of the sauce scorch on the side of the pan).
Drizzle with sesame oil and add salt to taste. Serve at once.
Links:
Golden Crusted Brussels Sprouts, from 101 Cookbooks
Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic Vinegar and Cranberries, from The Pioneer Woman
Brussels Sprouts with Chinese Sausage, from Steamy Kitchen
