Roast Brussels sprouts are fantastic. I can eat as it is every day. But I also like to uplift them by adding simple sauce and extra texture, such as this recipe, making them into a perfect side dish or starter.
This is the second recipe I tried out from Joe Woodhouse’s cookbook, ‘More Daily Veg‘.
There looks like a lot of steps in this recipe, but don’t be intimidated. It can be divided into 4 parts – croutons, roast Brussels sprouts, tomato sauce and sesame sauce, and each part can be made ahead to save time.
A Small Note Before You Cook
I made a small change to this recipe: replace tahini with sesame paste, since that’s the only alternative I had. Is tahini equal to sesame paste? No, it’s not. They are both made from sesame, but tahini is made with raw sesame, while sesame paste is made with roasted sesame, so its colour is much darker and its flavour is stronger. You can find more information from this blog post.
Now, let’s see how to make this wonderful side dish/starter.
Ingredients
Serves 2-3
For the Croutons
- 60 g bread, torn into small bites
- 1 tbsp of olive oil
- a pinch of salt
For the Brussels Sprouts
- 200 g Brussels Sprouts, halved and trimmed
- olive oil
- a good pinch of salt
For the Spicy Tomato Sauce
- ½ medium onion, diced
- ½ celery stick, finely sliced
- ½ – 1 red chilli, diced
- 200 g (½ tin) chopped tomato
- 100 ml water
- 1 tbsp honey
- salt to taste
For the Sesame Sauce
- 40 g sesame paste
- juice of ½ lemon
- approx. 3 tbsp water
How to Make Roast Brussels Sprouts with Spicy Tomato Sauce and Croutons
- Make the croutons first. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Toss the bread with oil and season with a pinch of salt. Roast it in the oven for a few minutes until golden. Set aside. Meanwhile, toss the Brussels sprouts with oil and salt.
- Prepare the tomato sauce. Heat a tbsp of oil in a pan, stir in the onions, celery, red chilli and a pinch of salt, sauté until the onions are softened, about 10 minutes.
- Roast the Brussels Sprouts. After the croutons are done, roast the Brussels sprouts in the same oven for about 15 minutes.
- Back to the tomato sauce. Add tinned tomato and water to the pan. Bring it to a simmer and cook gently for about 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the sesame sauce. Place the sesame paste into a bowl, add lemon juice and water, keep stirring until the consistency is nice. Add more water if required.
- Back to the tomato sauce. After 15 mins cooking, most of the water has been evaporated and the tomato sauce should be thick now. Add honey and a pinch of salt to it. Stir well.
- Finally, plating. Spoon the sesame sauce on a plate followed by the Brussels sprouts. Then dot around the tomato sauce and finish with the croutons.
More Easy Brussels Sprouts Recipes
- Garlicky Smashed Brussels Sprouts, a Crowd Pleaser
- Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon Apple and Dill
- Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Chestnuts
- Lemony Brussels Sprouts Creamy Spaghetti
- So Easy! Pan-seared Brussels Sprouts
