Spice Up Your Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Even Your Kids Will Love Them
My sister Myna said, “A photo of any kid smiling while eating Brussels Sprouts is a great photo” when I sent her a text of our 4-year old Liam happily munching on oven-roasted sprouts. As some of you know, I’m always thinking about ways to get my little one to eat more vegetables. Even if you’re an adult, it’s easy to get stuck in a rut with the same vegetables every week. For us, I’m trying to branch out from the regular roster of broccoli & cheese, green beans, and peas & carrots. Our pediatrician Dr. Rosenberg always reminds us that all children get picky at some point, so it’s important to keep introducing them to as much variety as possible. Lately I’ve had some success with baking homemade spicy kale chips, to which I added seat salt and cayenne. Liam gobbled up half a bunch of kale in one sitting.
My first attempt at homemade kale chips was a success. They were a great way to introduce a new vegetable (kale) and heat (cayenne) to a 4-year old.
Last weekend, I got really bold after Liam ate up steamed cauliflower which he only recently started to like. I figured I was on a roll. I made a Sunday dinner that included my dad’s homemade chicken curry with basmati rice & peas, and I decided to roast a few Brussels sprouts in the oven. I pulled out a cookie sheet, sliced a pound of fresh Brussels sprouts lengthwise, and generously tossed them with curry powder, cayenne, salt, and olive oil. After 40 minutes, I pulled them out. The garlic had become soft and sticky, and the sprouts were were browned and caramelized. Sweet and spicy aromas filled my kitchen. Now, for the test. I put a few sprouts in a small bowl for Liam. He ate one and smiled. He finished the whole bowl along with his chicken curry & rice. Score one for Mommy!
On a large cookie sheet, line it with aluminum foil and place the sliced Brussels sprouts and whole garlic cloves on it.
Sprinkle salt, ground curry powder, and cayenne powder and olive oil, gently coating the Brussels sprouts and garlic cloves with your fingers.
Ta da! What a vision after 40 minutes.
Liam: “Mommy, I like to eat these Brussels Sprouts”
Roasted Curried Brussels Sprouts Your Kids Will Love
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 lb. Brussels sprouts, sliced in half
- 4-5 cloves of garlic
- 2 teaspoons curry powder
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Slice each Brussels sprout in half lengthwise. Add Brussels sprouts and garlic cloves to the cookie sheet and sprinkle salt and ground spices over them. Add olive oil and use fingers to coat the sprouts and garlic.
- Roast in oven for 35-40 minutes. Check the batch 2-3 times while they’re roasting and move them around with a wooden spoon so they bake evenly.
Hello Ross!
Thanks kindly for the comment! You’re right, sometimes the end result can be overly crispy shards of Brussels sprouts, particularly if you slice everything too thinly. I find that keeping the garlic cloves whole and slicing each sprout lengthwise gets the best results. Otherwise the whole batch is crispy (and oily) and not as fun to eat.
You’re most welcome and thanks for visiting Big Apple Curry! If you make anything from our blog or you’re looking for a specific recipe, just let us know!
Have a great weekend,
Ina
First of all, cute kid!
Second, I just had dinner but now I’m hungry again!
Good ingredients, with great flavour, treated with respect. Before seeing this I was finding myself having to supervise the baking process more closely because of too-crispy results. In looking at the instructions, keeping the garlic whole and the sprouts not too thinly sliced is a simple and smart move that elevates the flavour, reduces stress and makes for easier clean-up too! Thank you BigAppleCurry! From Ross (Jill Z’s Always-Learning Chef)