Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Figs

I made this Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Fig dish for the Christmas Eve dinner at Mo-Fo Duo's. It was a combination of two recipes from David Chang's Momofuku book and Mark Bittman's Minimalist article. Porgy bought me a signed copy of the Momofuku book a couple months ago so I was glad that I was finally able to use it.


I loved Mark Bittman's idea of adding both the salty component (bacon) and the sweet component (fig) to the bitter and nutty Brussels sprouts but I liked having my sprouts halved instead of shredded (like the one in Momofuku book). Next time, I would add in some kimchi to provide some heat to the dish - as suggested by David Chang.


Ingredients:
1/2 lb bacon, cut into 1-inch strips
1 lb Brussels Sprouts, halved
1 cup dried figs, stemmed and quartered
1 shallot, finely diced
1/4 cup dry white wine
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
  • Pre-heat the oven to 375F.
  • In a oven proof large skillet over low medium heat, cook bacon, stirring occasionally, until it crisps (for about 8 minutes).
  • Put the bacon on a plate lined with paper towel to drain off the excess oil.
  • Remove most of the bacon fat, leaving approximately 2 tablespoons on the pan, and add the sprout halves cut side down in a single layer.
  • Increase the heat to medium high and cook the sprouts, undisturbed for 6-8 minutes until the bottoms are well browned (and burned a bit).
  • Add in the shallots, dried figs and 1 more tablespoon of bacon fat and stir for a couple of minutes.
  • Add in the white wine and shake the pan to redistribute the sprouts.
  • Put the whole pan into the pre-heated oven and bake for 10 minutes until the Brussels sprouts are tender.
  • Season with salt and pepper.
  • Add the bacon back into the pan.

3 comments:

  1. I am such a fan of brussel sprouts, that literally I make them just for me... no one else will share! Your dishes look delicious!!

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  2. i just made this for dinner and i have to restrain myself from going back for seconds. this is absolutely delicious.

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  3. i love the idea of figs in this dish!

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