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Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Peanuts

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Makes 4 servings 1x

Time 30 minutes

In How to Cook Everything Fast, recipe directions are separated into “prep” and “cook.” Here, we’ve made that distinction with italics for prep-work and plain text for cooking. This reflects the most efficient order and timing of tasks.

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Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons good-quality vegetable oil
  • 2 pounds Brussels sprouts
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 large clove garlic
  • 1 fresh hot chile (like Thai or jalapeño), or more to taste
  • 2 limes
  • 2 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 cup raw or roasted peanuts
  • Several sprigs fresh cilantro

Instructions

  1. Put 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large skillet over low heat.
  2. Trim the bottoms and outer leaves from the Brussels sprouts.
  3. Raise the heat under the skillet to medium-high and add the Brussels sprouts along with a light sprinkle of salt and lots of pepper. Stir a couple times until they sizzle, then add 1/3 cup water and adjust the heat so it bubbles gently.
  4. Cover and cook, stirring once or twice, until the Brussels sprouts are a little shy of tender, 5 to 10 minutes depending on their size.
  5. Peel 1 clove garlic. Trim the chile. Chop them together and transfer to a small bowl.
    Halve the limes; squeeze the juice into the bowl.
    Add 2 tablespoons fish sauce, 2 teaspoons sugar, and 1/3 cup water to the bowl and stir to combine.
  6. Check the Brussels sprouts after about 5 minutes. When you can barely pierce one with a fork, remove the cover, add the lime juice–fish sauce mixture and the peanuts, and raise the heat to high. Cook, stirring just a few times, until the liquid reduces to a thick glaze and the color of the vegetables and nuts darkens a bit, 2 to 3 minutes.
  7. Chop several cilantro sprigs.
  8. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Sprinkle with the cilantro and serve hot or warm.

— Recipe from How to Cook Everything Fast

Recipe variations

Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Cashews Substitute raw or roasted cashews for the peanuts.

Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Chicken, Beef, or Pork A perfect use for leftovers. Depending on how much cooked meat you have handy, you can either omit the nuts or reduce them to 1/2 cup. The goal is to get to 2 cups pulled or chopped plainly cooked chicken, beef, or pork alone or in combination with the peanuts or cashews. Add it with the lime juice–fish sauce mixture in Step 4.

Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Tofu Keep the nuts, or omit them if you prefer. Before starting, cut 1 brick firm tofu (14 to 16 ounces) into 1/2-inch cubes. Increase the oil to 3 tablespoons. Add the tofu to the skillet in Step 4 along with the sauce. Be careful stirring so the tofu doesn’t crumble too much.