Serious Eats: Recipes
Sautéed Brussels Sprouts With Bacon
Ambitious home chefs of the world: if you are considering culinary school but aren't committed to the hours and low wages associated with working in a restaurant kitchen after school, save yourself a great deal of money and invest instead in chef, teacher and author James Peterson's latest cookbook, Cooking.
Cooking is a friendly master work ("600 recipes, 1,500 photographs, and one education") on general culinary technique. Peterson's Sauces is the definitive book on that subject; this new book encompasses a much broader range of techniques, tricks, and tips while maintaining the same spirit of encouragement and calm authority.
Because much of what he presents are foundational recipes, Cooking is a great source for simple side dishes. Narrowing down which recipe to include in our Thanksgiving roundup was my only challenge.
Perhaps because the farm-to-table movement has improved the overall quality of brussels sprouts available, their image as a least-loved vegetable has reversed in the past few years, although the question of whether they are scary or tasty was raised in Talk this week.
Although I think they are delicious with only olive oil as dressing, brussels sprouts, as a member of the cabbage family, pair beautifully with smoky meats such as bacon. They are a staple of the holiday table, and Peterson's tasty take is a quick preparation that provides a nice firm bite next to all the mashed potatoes and soft stuffing.
