Golden & crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, and ready to serve in less than 30 minutes – The Best Brussels Sprouts of Your Life!
This easy side dish is my family’s favorite vegetable recipe… EVER. And I’m betting that once you try it, it’ll be a favorite in your house too!
Guess how many ingredients are in this recipe? C’mon guess! Okay, I’ll tell you… four. Just four ingredients (and some seasoning)! Hello, simple side dish! You’re Welcome! ?
Who knew Brussels Sprouts could be so exciting? I mean really – Brussels Sprouts! For me, they always had a bad reputation. Something that was served to me steamed, or boiled to within an inch of its life.
But all that has changed with these crispy Brussels Sprouts – sprout skeptics step aside because these are amazing!
Why This Recipe Works
- Cooking the sprouts in high heat, cuts bitterness by caramelizing them, creating crispness, and a sweet, nutty flavor.
- The crisp outside contrasts well with the tenderness of the inside.
- The nuttiness of the roasted garlic and the saltiness of the cheese is a delicious combination!
The Benefits of Eating Brussels Sprouts
Like so many a cruciferous vegetables (edible members of the cabbage family), Brussels Sprouts are very low in calories, high in fiber, and help with reaching your daily value of many vitamins, and minerals. They’re rich in vitamin K, high in vitamin C. They also contain small amounts of vitamin B6, potassium, iron, thiamine, magnesium and phosphorus.
So, with all of that in mind, we should all eat more Brussel sprouts, right? Once you try this recipe, you’ll make them a lot more!
Buying Guide
- Choose Brussels sprouts that feel tightly compacted and hard when squeezed.
- Choose bright green heads that are similar in size.
- Smaller sprouts tend to taste sweeter, while larger sprouts taste more cabbage-like.
- Untrimmed Sprouts are just as good as trimmed, and both should keep for several weeks refrigerated.
Preparing and Trimming
Start with cleaning the sprouts and then remove any loose leaves. Trim stems by cutting off the tough ends and halve the larger Brussels sprouts.
Leave smaller sprouts whole, but cut a cross symbol through the stem. The stem is the toughest part of the Brussels sprout and the cross allows them to cook at the same rate as the tender area.
How To Make Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Add the prepared Brussels sprouts to a sheet pan.
- Drizzle with olive oil.
- Add sliced garlic, grated Parmesan cheese, and season with salt and pepper.
- Toss to evenly coat.
- Roast at a high temperature until crispy and golden.
Step By Step Instructions
Place the prepared Brussel sprouts on a large roasting pan or a large baking sheet and arrange in a single layer.
Add olive oil.
Add thinly sliced garlic to the pan evenly.
I use this garlic slicer for thinly sliced garlic.
I’m telling you, if you don’t have one, you’ll love it because it is amazing! Just fill it with peeled garlic, twist, and perfectly thin sliced garlic comes out! Click this link to get one (paid link).
Add freshly grated Parmesan cheese. You can use pre-grated, but I promise freshly grated will be worth the extra time!
Season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat well.
Roast at 400F for 20 minutes or until golden brown with a nice sear on the bottoms. Scatter with more freshly grated Parmesan cheese and serve.
Serve this delicious recipe with anything from holiday dinners to Breaded Chicken Cutlets with a side of roasted potatoes for an easy dinner everyone will love!
Make ahead and Freezing Instructions ❄
- Making Ahead – I recommend prepping in advance and then serving straight from the oven. Alternatively, cook in advance and rewarm in the oven at 350°F/175°C until heated through (about 5-7 minutes). You can also reheat them in a microwaveable dish in the microwave until warmed through.
- Storing Leftovers: Stored in an airtight container, leftovers will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
More Roasted More Side Dishes
Love Brussels Sprouts? Try my Brussels Sprouts with Bacon recipe! It’s to die for!
Erren’s Top Tips
- Dry your Brussels sprouts well. The drier they are, the crispier they’ll be. If washing, use paper towels to pat them dry or use a salad spinner to spin that liquid right off.
- For crisper sprouts, spread them out on the pan without too many touching. Overcrowding causes you to steam the Brussels sprouts instead of roasting.
- Cut the sprouts to be even sized pieces if you want them to have a similar texture.
- Be sure to start with a hot oven to help the sprouts crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.
- Brown is good. If you’ve never cooked Brussels sprouts this way, at first glance you may think it looks burnt out of the oven, but once you taste it, you’ll know those little “burnt” areas are the best tasting parts!
- When using untrimmed Brussels sprouts, trim off the dry part of the stem at the base of the sprout and any loose outer leaves.
- For extra caramelized area place the sliced Brussels sprouts cut-side down at on the pan. This will give a larger browned surface area.
- Leave smaller sprouts whole to avoid overcooking.
- On smaller sprouts that don’t need to be halved, slice a cross in the stem (see the video). The stem is the toughest part of the Brussels sprout and the cross allows them to cook at the same rate as the tender area.
- For an extra kick of flavor, try adding try adding red pepper flakes or lemon zest before roasting and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice before serving.
- Be sure to taste and season well before serving.
FAQs
To cut the bitterness, be sure to start with a pre-heated oven. Hot and fast cooking is best, and a preheated oven will speed things up. Slower cooking seems to enhance the bitterness.
Unless very dirty, it’s not necessary. If they are very dirty, soaking them in cold water for 20 minutes will help remove excess soil.
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Let’s Make The Best Brussels Sprouts of Your Life
Ingredients
- 1 pound Brussels Sprouts Cleaned and trimmed
- 3 cloves garlic peeled & sliced *See the notes section before starting
- ¼ cup Parmesan Cheese Freshly grated
- salt and freshly ground black pepper To taste
- 3 tablespoons good quality olive oil or for Keto, butter flavor coconut oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C.
- If needed, clean and trim the Brussels sprouts and cut them in halves and place them in an oven safe dish. Make sure to dry them very well before cooking.
- Add the garlic, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper, followed by the olive oil. Toss to coat.
- Roast in the oven uncovered for 20-25 minutes until crisp, brown and caramelized on the outside and tender on the inside. Serve with more grated cheese.
Tips + Notes
- *This recipe makes very crispy garlic. In some ovens, it could burn or become bitter. If you are worried about the garlic getting too dark for your liking, slice it thin and add at the last 5-7 minutes of cooking time, coated in a little oil, and scattered around the pan.
- For less crispy cheese, add it for the last 10 minutes.
- To keep your sprouts from sticking, line your pan with nonstick foil or baking paper.
- Dry your Brussels sprouts well. The drier they are, the crispier they’ll be. If washing, use paper towels to pat them dry or use a salad spinner to spin that liquid right off.
- For crisper sprouts, spread them out on the pan without too much touching. Overcrowding causes you to steam the Brussels sprouts instead of roasting them.
- Cut the sprouts into even-sized pieces if you want them to have a similar texture.
- Be sure to start with a hot oven to help the sprouts crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.
- Brown is good. If you’ve never cooked Brussels sprouts this way, at first glance, you may think it looks burnt out of the oven, but once you taste it, you’ll know those little “burnt” areas are the best-tasting parts!
- When using untrimmed Brussels sprouts, trim off the dry part of the stem at the base of the sprout and any loose outer leaves.
- For an extra caramelized area, place the sliced Brussels sprouts cut-side down on the pan. This will give a larger browned surface area.
- Leave smaller sprouts whole to avoid overcooking.
- On smaller sprouts that don’t need to be halved, slice a cross in the stem (see the video). The stem is the toughest part of the Brussels sprout, and the cross allows them to cook at the same rate as the tender area.
- For an extra kick of flavor, try adding lemon zest before roasting and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice before serving.
- Be sure to taste and season well before serving.
Nutrition Information:
Update Notes: This post was originally published on Dec 5, 2017, but was republished with, step by step instructions, photos, cooking tips, and a video in September of 2018 and new information in 2020.
Jess says
Yummy!!
Erren Hart says
Thank you for taking the time to leave a review, Jess!
Sheran says
I would give this recipe a 10 star if it was possible! My husband and i loved, loved this dish, we don’t even like brussel sprouts, but this made a believer out of us, i am going to make this for our church dinner on wed night for the ones that don’t like brussel sprouts and the ones that do and i know this will make a believer out of them too!
Erren Hart says
Thank you so much for trying our Roasted Brussels Sprouts recipe, Sheran. We’re glad you and your husband enjoyed it! We hope you’ll make it again for your church dinner and convert even more people to loving brussels sprouts! 🙂
Amy says
I make this regularly now and store it in ‘to-go’ portions. it’s easy to warm up on the road in a microwave, and totally delicious! I prefer these over late night snack food!
Erren Hart says
Thank you for trying our roasted brussels sprouts recipe; we’re glad to hear that you enjoyed it so much! We appreciate your kind words and your wonderful feedback. Thank you for choosing to cook with us, and we hope you’ll try more of our recipes in the future.
Barb says
These were by far the best Brussels sprouts I’ve ever made. And my husband liked them really well.
Erren Hart says
I’m so glad to hear it, Barb! I appreciate you taking the time to let me know!
John B. says
Bam! I haven’t eaten a Brussel sprout for 50 years. As a child I had to eat them and learned to despise them. Not any longer, This recipe was the bomb!! Loved them. I added corn pepper flakes for a bit of heat, and next time i may add some crispy bacon, but it was amazing! Thanks!!. Oh I did drizzle some vinaigrette glaze on them. Thank you!
Erren Hart says
Thank you for such great feedback, John! I’m so glad to hear I have played a part in changing your mind about Brussels sprouts! 🙂
Rose says
By the ingredients it was obvious they were going to turn out delicious!! I added a drizzle of honey and that was our BANG moment. Thanks for sharing.😀😀
Erren Hart says
Great feedback, Rose! 🙂 I’m so glad to you found a way to make the recipe work for you! Thank you for the kind words and for taking the time to leave a review!
Sarah says
Oh my goodness these are delicious! Im sure I could eat the whole pan. The crispy bits are the best part. Baked for 20 min, flipped and did an extra 5 min. Definitely gonna be a staple!
Erren Hart says
Sarah, thank you for trying our Brussels Sprouts and leaving such a positive review. We’re so happy that you enjoyed them and hope you’ll be back to cook with us again! Thank you for your kind words, and we hope to hear from you again!
Sandra Bee says
I am sure if you like Brussell Sprouts, these are good. Made them for hubby and I and we both threw them away. Not the recipe’s fault!!
Erren Hart says
I’m not sure how to respond to this, Sandra. I’m sorry that you didn’t enjoy the dish as much as you had wished. I hope you’ll try more recipes and you’re able to find one that works for you, but can I suggest you start with ingredients you know you enjoy? 😉 All the best, Erren
Bill McDonald says
made these last week, turned out perfect, making them again Fri. for company, thk you
Erren Hart says
Thank you for giving us such a great review! We’re glad to know that you enjoyed it so much! Thank you again for following up with us.
John Rhoe says
I used to make my sprouts this way but in a skillet on the stovetop. This recipe rocks!
Erren Hart says
I’m so glad you enjoy the recipe, John. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!