My first year of veggie gardening I forgot what was planted where. I thought the brussel sprout greens were spinach so I sauted them in olive oil for dinner. They were delicious!
The way I got the brussel sprout haters in my family to finally like them was pretty wild and labor intensive but the payoff was so yummy! I peeled each leaf off the brussel one by one, cutting down the base so I could fold the leaf off. Then I quickly sauté the leaves in olive oil and thinly sliced garlic. It's a quick stir fry and has a COMPLETELY different taste than when you leave the brussel sprouts whole. I saw this once in a restaurant but never saw it again - on the internet or anywhere - so I just started doing it at home until I got to something I loved.
With cooking them, try just quartering them, then stir frying them with the same seasonings you already do. Just toss them until they are bright green, it will take a little longer than your method but not much. I like butter and lemon juice with them also. They are so different than when boiled or steamed. I find them bitter and unappealing when they are over cooked. It is the same with turnips, I like them raw but don’t love them boiled until tender.
My husbands way of cooking Brussels sprouts converts even the most stubborn hater…fry up a package of bacon in pan, save grease. While bacon is cooking, cut ends off brussels and half them lengthwise, place in large bowl. When bacon is done, break it into small pieces, pour liquid bacon grease on brussels sprouts, add bacon pieces, add tbsp of honey. Roast on foil lined baking sheet for 24-27 min at 350°, or until tender. Make sure to also toss any loose leaves from halting the sprouts because they crisp up and it’s all so delicious!
For the aphids in my garden I too use the water hose. But I also will use a paint brush. I think it's a three or four inch brush. It's only ever been used for this purpose so no contamination issues. I brush them off and the brush can reach in there between the leaves of my brassicas. It's gentle and makes me pay attention to each leave. I grew cabbage this year and collards. I just brushed the leaves everyday and never had pests.
Oh this is a fabulous idea. I have settled on water hose for what I pick for eating and letting the wasps, predators, birds and fish take care of the rest, which seems to work because I generally have stuff to eat all year. I spread all my plants all over the garden and I noticed the aphids really only attack some of them and only at certain times of the year, so overall my predators can control them. Sometimes, I hunt for an aphid-infested leaf to throw to my fish; they really enjoy the aphid treat. If my garden was in a younger stage, the paint brush sounds like a great idea.
Aphid juice from rhubarb leaves... man. I have been doing this for ages! I spray it while singing about aphid juice to the tune of batman. Lookout, here comes the aphid juice!!!!! 😂 Bee safe, just don't use it too close to harvest and wash everything well!
Sliced, then Sautéed Brussels sprouts in olive oil are also delish. Don’t have to make them mushy, just enough to cook and they still have a slight crunch.I top with a little grated Parmesan, or bacon bits, and when done then drizzle a raspberry glaze, balsamic vinegar, or soy sauce. Toss well to coat before serving. I too hated them as a kid and now I love them fancy!
We found a recipe on Allrecipes for Honey Sriracha roasted brussels that is absolutely AMAZING!!! Oddly enough, I didn't hate them as a kid because I never had them! :D Apparently my parents hated them enough that they didn't feed them to us. ;) But, they have become one of my favorite side dishes! :)
Sprouts with ham/or bacon and shallots with a red wine and worcestershire reduction. Split sprouts, sautee flat down, with onions and cubed ham. Slightly caramelize the sprouts Add liquids and reduce.
Most gardeners will show how beautiful their plants are with little to no flaws. Thank you for showing that your plants get eaten too! I always feel like I am doing something wrong because not every leaf is perfect but I keep growing to fix these things. I love your channel
I'm in zone 7b, bought kale last October and left it outside because I got lazy... it survived the whole fricking winter sitting in a pot!! Brassicas can be extremely cold hardy, especially if you provide them with a nice microclimate to keep things a bit warmer. It's still on my porch now in April of the following year. I'm going to try that with Brussels sprouts too this fall.
Just ordered my first set of 6 cells! My wife and I have been watching for over a year with our morning coffee and are finally making moves in the backyard. Thank you Kevin and team for all of your hard work. You are truly inspiring. Your consistency of posting content is what has built our confidence. So keep it up for all the newbies like us!
Yes, roasting them is the way to go. I slice the small ones in half and slice the large one in thirds, toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper and put them in a single layer in the roasting pan making sure the cut side is down. About 15-20 minutes at 450°F to get a nice crispy bronze on them. Before serving, toss in a handful of toasted pine nuts or, surprisingly, a handful of raisins.
I used to work on a vegan food truck a woman I know started, one of her main selling points was Brussel sprouts. Before her I had only had my mother in law's which were not steamed but overly burned. I finally tried some, especially with her homemade comeback sauce, so good. She had a grill and she would cut them in half, olive oil, salt and pepper and fry on the grill until they were slightly crisp and just a little blackened. That's still the way I cook them, just in a pan on the oven, but I just asked my husband who is the main eater of Brussel sprouts in our house and apparently he has been cooking them in the oven without my knowledge 😂
p.s. THANK YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUU for not being gimmicky or sales-y or filling your videos with a bunch of useless info. You're always on point and on topic and cover EVERYTHING.
I have the same memory of having to sit at the table for two hours until I was done eating my Brussels sprouts! And you know now I can sauté Brussels sprouts now like no one else 👨🏼🌾💙🙏🏼
I was LITERALLY just thinking about today about what seeds I'm gonna start this week, and brussel sprouts were one of the ones I've never tried before that I was considering! Impeccable timing as always, Kevin!
Zone 9 in San Diego here. I let them grow through the summer and just keep harvesting the sprouts without chopping down the plant. I go until theyre eventually 6 feet tall or so and too unwieldy to keep going. I seem to get smaller sprouts off of them but a longer harvesting time, and I havent noticed a taste difference even though Brassicas can get a bit bitter in the heat. The birds in my yard have become quite the catapillar and hornworm eaters..but those aphids can be a battle.
Do you have much trouble with bolting when growing through the summer? I've had consistent troubles with bolting or the heads just opening completely when the temps get even "warm". Even my plants that I transplanted in November are struggling (lost 3/5 to severe bolting as early as March here). Trying some row covers this time as things are already heating up here in April, but still mixed results so far. Zone 9b Bay Area California.
@@chrisdepner1153 I did a little digging after his video dropped and according to Johnny’s they’re only susceptible to bolting if there are high temps during a particular growing period. Something something internal growing tip something (and it only lasts for 10 days!). I didn’t understand it really - and there’s no way to externally check to see if it’s in that growing period, which is why companies suggest growing in winter. I found a couple of varieties that are a smidge more heat tolerant and going to try again this year. I’d link to Johnny’s page but YT will think I’m spamming….
I have been watching you for a quite a bit now and you kinda convinced me to have a garden, so this last October my Dad and I built two large garden boxes in the backyard. I'm excited for this summer in Utah.... Because now I get to put my knowledge to the test😬, and will show some of our viewers around our garden too!
Great segment Kevin on growing Brussel Sprouts. My Mum used to cook them in a pan with can of tomato soup to sweeten them up for us as kids and we ate them. Tip: cut a cross into the top of Brussel Sprouts, add crushed garlic, butter, S& P, (STEAM). Then pan fry with little olive oil (whole or cut into halves) add to get golden coat. They taste so sweet and tender.🧫
My cabbage moth cure: Buy yourself a wasp trap and cover it with tulle/netting so they don’t get trapped. They’ll come for the pheromone and then once they realize they can’t get in they’ll start to hunt in your plants. Now, your question then becomes ‘but I don’t want to get stung’, and to that I say you’re 99% unlikely to get stung. They’re there for the little guys not you big guys. Also they tend to arrive at sunrise and the hottest part of the day, otherwise my garden is wasp free. Sincerely, this has worked the best for me. Because if I use netting on my crops for loopers somehow (👿) aphids get in there anyway - and then they’re totally protected by the tulle. I just find easier to fight bugs with bugs.
Gave my nephew a green thumb challenge and told him to grow one plant from start to finish, and eat the finished product. The lesson here teaching him basics and follow-through, and the feeling that comes over a person when they become aware they can provide their own food. For some reason, he chose brussel sprouts. Please tell me you have a good recipe... because I prefer cabbage. I sent him this video. Pro tip on the machete: Any time you are cutting something that takes more than a few whacks due to the diameter, tilt your blade in the opposite direction so the first cut is like \ and the next cut is like / and \ and / and so on. Bushcraft 101. Some survivalists are big on using the same method with a knife, and it takes about the same amount of time. Myself, well, I use a vietnam issue Marmac and that thing refuses to fail like some modern machetes/bush knives. I literally found it in the forest just laying on the forest floor in the middle of nowhere.
Cook them on the stalk, brushed with EVOO and garlic, salt and pepper, in a 400F oven until the outside is golden and crispy and the inside of the sprout is creamy and buttery. Drizzle with Balsamic vinegar for heavenly bites.
Just moved some Brussels Sprouts to my garden today. Had no idea they got that big, and had no idea the sprouts grew directly off the main stem! Never seen them fully grown before. Can’t wait to try them!
I love Brussel Sprouts, but that's probably because my mum only lightly steamed them, so they still had some crunch and flavour. Most modern cultivars have a totally different taste tho the ones you hated as a child, they're sweeter and taste amazing roasted. I'm on the East coast of Scotland, where it can be really cold with the wind blowing down from the arctic circle, so it's perfect for Sprouts. I grew my own Christmas dinner veg last year - Sprouts, red cabage and Sarpo Mira potatoes, which are a great red-skinned al-rounder. They made fabulous Pomme Dauphinoise.
Planted my seedlings end of October per advice of our local master gardener. We are hardiness zones 9a and 10b. Our summers are excruciatingly HOT! I tried some seeds in September and hardly a thing sprouted. So I waited per the advice of the master gardener, even though i had small plants already. I have never been able to grow these here. Now we are having summer temps and it's only the beginning of April. Easily over 90 4/5/2022. We have taken down the greenhouse plastic and put up shade cloth. Any pointers would be helpful. I love these tasty little morsels and don't like to pay the price for them at the store. Keep up the great work and thanks for sharing!
I rather eat them small and they’re great in a pot of soup or chicken & dumplings. And thanks for the info, I’ve never had luck growing them, but my kids and I love them!
I'm trying some purple brussel sprouts seeds for the first time in milk cartons with the winter sowing method, we'll see what happens, thanks for sharing such great info
My kids' favorite food is Brussel Sprouts. My 9 year old even asked her Spanish Tutor how to say this one in Spanish to tell everyone her favorite food in class. In Minnesota, we put them in seed pods to put in at the end of April.
Great video, thank you for all the inspiration and tips! I planted Brussels sprouts in grow bags but were decimated by squirrels. I'll try again this fall in zone 10a!
Lol that's what I thought he was going to say when he said here's what I do with leaves covered in aphids... Cut them off and give em to the chickens! That only works so many times before you give them the whole plant tho 🤣
Charles Dowding recommends planting transplants in June for Northern areas. He harvests by plucking enough individual sprouts for a meal. Leaving the rest for future meals. In the north, this works, using outdoors as a storage area. I cook them with lots of garlic. The top bit of green is edible.
@@epicgardening dowding is a wealth of info and compost techniques, a mentor for me as well! I envy his wet climate, but work to mitigate and adapt to my dry summers with landrace breeding
I live in GA zone 8a. We get freeze and sometimes snow. The ground doesn't freeze but it will go down to 19. We also have erratic heat and then cold. So I'll plant some now. April.
This will be my 1st year growing Brussel sprouts. Not until fall. We get too hot here in the summer months. Far East San Diego County-high desert. Wish me luck.
Lower leaves you can remove more of to allow the sprouts to have more room to grow, saying that yours look a good size - maybe this is a UK thing! Need to learn to grow in the hot climate in Perth so love following your warm weather guide!
I saw those on another video and wonder about them. I try to garden but am not very good at it. And my family makes fun of me. But I keep trying. Anyways, I thought those might be good for me, a beginner. What are your thoughts? Blessings!
@@Jules1280 depends on your region, but I've found brassica plants to be trickier and don't recommend for beginners. Would start with leafy greens, ground veggies, or climbing peas/beans.
@@Jules1280 Keep trying! Don't let anyone make fun of you. I swear I still kill tons of plants but I also always have something from the garden to eat. It takes time to figure out what works in your zone, what you like to eat, what the people you care about like to eat. I think for me, the biggest revelations was use mother nature: No pesticides, no squishing, feed aphids to fish or spray them off with water or just leave them alone and grow more plants - strangely most of the time, I have aphid free plants and only some will have aphids on them. It took time to figure out what I got to keep and eat and what the aphids got to keep and eat - not as much as I first thought. 2nd was containers - I'd always grown in containers, but now I am better at it and have more containers. 3rd is shade cloth - here in the hot desert, it has meant that my plants do not die or lose all their leaves in 110+deg summers. Summers are still harsh but shade cloth helps alot. Plants want to grow. We are just here to figure out which ones and what conditions they like better.
Awesome video, loved it thank you! Tip for cooking - add them into the tray of any roast meat for added flavor and they also caramelize while cooking. My favorite is roast turkey with brussel sprouts...Mmmm mm 😋😋🥰🥰
I’m glad you have had super success I’m not sure how long I’ve been watching you way before your new place. Now to the current subject one year I got the kalettes before they were a thing. I didn’t eat them I thought there was something wrong with that plant what’s funny is that plant was in the garden so long it’s side shoots started producing the kalettes I didn’t have the heart to pull them out they were so frilly and cute
We grow almost everything, but have not grown Brussels Sprouts for years, already got the purple seeds though, and I can keep those moths away no issue for us 😀, thanks
This plant is my nemesis it is the only thing I haven't successfully harvested they survive all year but the sprouts never get large enough to eat before the end of the season gonna try and put some of this info to use hopefully it will help me
One of the struggles I have where I live is that by the time the danger of frost is gone, we have morning lows of 40ºF with afternoon highs in the upper 70ºF up into the upper 80ºF temperatures. I'm thinking of putting in a high tunnel this year so I can have better success with cool weather crops.
Brussel sprouts in season are tasty and I look forward to the every year. My brussel sprout sprouts grew massive, but something gnawed them and you can eat the brussel sprout tops. Take off any leaves that aren’t healthy, it will help prevent slug attacks
Thanks for sharing your tips with us. I live in zone 5 and tried to grow them last year but directed sowed them too late as they never matured before the heat hit us. I will have to start them indoors next year and when would you estimate to put these outside for zone 5 which is mid to south mid Iowa. Thanks for all you do! Blessings!
My 8 year old son loves them! I steam them, cut them in half and then toss in a tiny bit of melted butter, salt and pepper. I tried to grow them once a few years ago but the pests decimated the plants early.
Just transplanted three (because I'm lazy 🤣) today from a six pack I purchased a couple weeks ago just for the heck of it and because they were the pitiful-looking, last one on the shelf, staring at me to rescue them. Excited to watch them grow! Hopefully, I'll get a bunch of mini cabbages. I love Brussels sprouts! Roasted with EVOO, garlic, dash of honey or maple syrup, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle/toss with crumbled bacon and Craisins right before serving. Yum!
Halved Brussels tossed in a miso and soy sauce mix and then roasted are to die for! I can't get enough Brussels. I'm a child of the 70's and my mother used to boil them for too long, as did everyone. We only ever had them at christmas dinner even though she hated them... fortunatley my dad and I used to gobble them all up, even cooked like that. Nowadays we all know how to _really_ cook them so I'm in 'Sprout Heaven' every week. They're even nice raw!
Sweet, I'm hoping you will do the opuntia cactus species that you harvested along with the other prickly pear species. Such as the "Indian fig" variety.
Place on a roasting pan add salt pepper and nutmeg then lay a few slices of bacon over them and roast for about 15 min or until as done as you like them. This gives them a good crunch on the outside and a delicious flavor! My daughter told me last time that i didn't make enough lol
We love Brussels in the UK.we had the same pests as you.its cabbage white butterfly.handfulls of caterpillars will strip them.the aphids are called white fly.if you shake the plant it's a white cloud.they leave a residue like cigarette ash that ruins the sprouts.the farmers seem to have none because they spray and spray.grow your own.and you know what your eating.
i believe you should try and grow canibis it would be fun intertaining and educational if you dont like that much of a chalenge then go with auto flower and if you do like a chalenge get some dif seeds
I’m in zone 8 and I planted cabbage in September last year. The frosts almost killed all of my cabbages. I now have 3 finally growing. I bought some Brussels sprouts from the hardware store and they were planted in March. We shall see.
@@Sabbathissaturday Have you heard of anyone on YT with a container asparagus set up? I’m too scared to try it since it’s such an investment in time, but I’m 100% container.
