Balsamic-Roasted Brussels Sprouts
These crisp roasted brussels sprouts with pancetta and syrupy balsamic vinegar come from Ina Garten’s best-selling cookbook Foolproof, where she shares her favorite simple yet spectacular dishes that anyone can pull off—even on Thanksgiving Day, when even the most accomplished cooks can be challenged by the number of last-minute tasks. If your sprouts are very large, she suggests cutting them into quarters.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb. (750 g) brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut in half through the core
- 4 oz. (125 g) pancetta, cut into 1/4-inch (6-mm) dice
- 1/4 cup (2 fl. oz./60 ml) good olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Tbs. syrupy balsamic vinegar (see note below)
Directions
Preheat an oven to 400°F (200°C).
Place the brussels sprouts on a sheet pan, including some of the loose leaves, which will get crispy when they’re roasted. Add the pancetta, olive oil, 1 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper and toss with your hands. Spread out the mixture in a single layer.
Roast the brussels sprouts for 20 to 30 minutes, tossing once, until they’re tender and nicely browned and the pancetta is cooked. Remove from the oven, drizzle immediately with the balsamic vinegar and toss again. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if desired. Serve hot. Serves 6.
NOTE: You can buy aged balsamic vinegar that’s syrupy—and very expensive—or you can boil good balsamic vinegar until it has become syrupy and reduced by half in volume.
Reprinted from Barefoot Contessa Foolproof. Copyright © 2012 by Ina Garten. Photographs copyright © 2012 by Quentin Bacon. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House.