Doesn’t TaZte Like Chicken

Location: My tiny kitchen

If I have to quickly think of one thing that kids and men have in common, then I would say they both hate vegetables with a passion. If you see vegetables on their plate, then it’s because a woman put them there. From flicking the peas off their plates to hiding the broccoli under a bun, somehow they always manage to develop their skills to avoid eating vegetables.

ET is no different than other men when it comes to veggies. He is not a picky eater and sometimes I even consider him someone easy to cook for. But over all these years, he hasn’t liked any vegetable dish I made. He always implements the “3 pieces rule”, which means at most only 3 pieces of vegetable are eaten from a dish. Of course, fries and roasted potatoes are excluded from this rule. I have learned to surrender and stay on the positive side. Despite the unsuccessful attempt to convert ET to love vegetables, I believe I managed to create a few delicious veggie recipes. This brussel sprouts recipe is an example. The bacon and walnuts give a nutty flavour to the brussel sprouts while the balsamic vinegar adds sweetness. It has become our tradition serve brussel sprouts this way as one of the side dishes with turkey for Christmas.

And what does ET think of this dish? “It doesn’t suck”, he said.

This recipe serves 4 and you will need:

- 16 brussel sprouts, washed and halved with stems removed
- 2 strips of bacon, diced
- 4 cloves of minced garlic
- 1 minced shallot
- 1/2 cup of toasted walnut, coarsely chopped
- 1/4 cup of sherry
- Aged balsamic vinegar. If you cannot find aged balsamic vinegar, you can use regular balsamic vinegar.

Boil water in a quart pan, put in brussel sprouts and let them boil for 1 minute. Drain. Put them into ice water for a few minutes. Drain again.

In a skillet, put in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Put in the bacon and pan fry the bacon until crispy. Put in the garlic and shallot and pan fry them for 1/2 minute.

Put in the brussel sprouts. Add 1 tsp of salt and freshly grounded pepper. Mix the brussel sprouts with the bacon. Add the sherry. Continue to cook the brussel sprouts until the sherry has reduced and the brussel sprouts become fork-tender, about 3 minutes. Mix in the walnuts.

If you are using regular balsamic vinegar, then add 2 tbsp of vinegar into the pan and continue to cook the brussel sprouts until the vinegar has completely reduced.

If you are using aged balsamic vinegar, then drizzle in 2 tbsp of vinegar onto the brussel sprouts after they have been plated. Mix the vinegar into the brussel sprouts and serve.