I can't imagine a crispy sprout lol

I think they're sulpherous if they're overcooked. Blanched, then finished in butter and chestnuts...love them! I'll eat yours.

I just recently saw an Ina recipe in which she shreds them in the food processor, then sautes them in olive oil,salt and pepper until they are crispy. Then finish with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Not my cup of tea. I hate brussel sprouts. Not a fan of balsamic either.....

I recently shredded mine in the FP, then sautéed in butter. Added them to a broccoli cheese soup mix to mask the bitterness. It got better with age, IMHO. Would do it again, but not more than 5 times a year.

Sooz, that's exactly what I needed! Thank-you!

Thanks to all for the comments. IC, it can't be overcooked that makes them sulpherous. They're that way raw and ever after. But there also might be differences based on where they're grown, etc. I hate cooking cauliflower because of the sulphur as well. It makes the house stink, but if it's cooked through, you can't smell or taste it in the final product. Cauliflower isn't sulpherous raw, but part cooked, the way many like it, it smells.

I was considering put them in the tsimmis, and IC's, Amylou's and Sooz's comments sound like it'll work. Still not sure about that.

Dave, with broccoli? Too much cruciferous for me! I get it, though. :)

I'm so sorry you have an aversion to sulphurous foods, and I imagine that's frustrating. I can't abide cilantro no matter how I try, and beets taste like dirt to me. I tell myself I've not found the right beet preparation - which I think may hold truth. I do find it frustrating when I come across those few ingredients or foods I can't tolerate or abide.

Sooz's recommendations, all of them, for me, are spot on. I think your Mom will be in 7th heaven if you go by those steps. I find the slightest drizzle of balsamic glaze to be perfection. I make my own, very easy. That wee bit of sweetness offsets the slight char of the sprouts, and the pancetta just adds that extra layer of flavor. Sheer heaven to me : )

Just wish to add, I always think it nice to make something one personally dislikes when it's to please a loved one. Very sweet of you!

I’ve probably told the story here before but here it is again. My wife has always said she can’t stand Brussels Sprouts. Over time I’ve gotten her to reconsider some foods to where she’ll tolerate them or maybe even enjoy them. One day she came home and asked, “What are you cooking?” Before answering I asked, “Does it smell good?” She said, “You know how much I appreciate your cooking, but I’m so sorry, it smells absolutely disgusting.” Needless to say, she didn’t eat any of the roasted sprouts.

They’re not my favorite but I’ve never noticed anything too offensive about them. Ditto cauliflower; this is the first time I heard that they can smell bad. The family has never complained. The only way I cook it is sautéed; could that be sparing us?

FOAS, that might be it. I know when I cook cauliflower in liquid, I apologize for the smell as soon as DH walks in, but I don't find it overly offensive. When I steam it, the odor is there as well. When I roast or grill cauliflower, if there is an offensive odor, it's not been commented on by anyone thus far.

I feel for those who can't enjoy certain foods (including myself and beets). Be it allergies or aversions for whatever reason. I adore brussel sprouts and cauliflower.

I love Brussel sprouts as well.....but only in winter. Winter grown BS are sweeter as the cold condenses the sugars and locally grown ones that have experienced a hard frost are the best! And I find they only smell if overcooked. I prefer to steam mine until just fork tender, then toss in a butter/Dijon mustard/lemon sauce. Roasting does sweeten them due to caramelization but by that time they are also overcooked and smelly.

I also like them halved, blanched and then quickly hot sauteed with pancetta. They come out quite crispy that way. You can add pine nuts or dried cranberries and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar if you like.

Pillog, I am fascinated by your aversion to Brussels Sprouts so I tried to do a little research on sulphur hatred. It turns out that maybe you are a supertaster. Are you a Supertaster?

A restaurant near me makes brussel sprouts roasted with bacon and maple syrup, and then sprinkled with blue cheese on top. It's super rich and delicious. I don't regularly make them at home this way (I do a simple roast) but for a special occasion, I make them like this.

As a sidenote, in the past year, I've noticed a faint soap taste to cilantro. I've never been put off by it before. My palate may be changing.

This Epicurious recipe is the way I make them and everyone seems to like them except my mother. (Click on recipe to enlarge it.)

Hmmm....I love broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage bok choy, radishes, turnips etc....but don't like brussels sprouts....and think the current fad of roasting until crisp makes them worse than bad.
I wonder what a brussels sprout slaw would taste like?

I don't care for them raw/fresh. Much like kale, I find them very bitter and tough to chew if left uncooked (can't take kale salad either).

I haven't done the test, but I don't have the common signs of being a supertaster. I'll have to get some food dye and try. I do have a strong aversion to sulphur, and don't need to overcook the cruciferous veg to smell it. I used to have the best multivitamins. I can't tolerate the binders that are usually used, and these were just fluff in capsules. I was working 11 hour days and not always eating well. They actually made me feel better. But then the wanted to be "all natural" and stopped putting imitation vanilla in (it's chemically identical to the real thing). They had used it to mask the sulphur from the B vitamins. I tried to hold my nose and swallow, but barfed them back up whole.

i've learned to tolerate a lot of difficult foods from cabbage to cauliflower, raw to stewed, but I'm never going to like them (except roasted crisp kale sprouts, which are delicious even though they make the house smell horrid), nor choose them, nor seek them out. I doubt anything can make me swallow a Brussels sprout, but they aren't essential, and I can eat their cousins.

I find the suggestions in thesupertaster article ludicrous, however. I can't abide cruciferous with cheese sauce! It just spreads the nastiness to the cheese! I learned to be able to eat them, when steaming became popular. Probably that not overcooked thing, and no supposed masking agent to be made worse. And I do actually like Buffalo cauliflower. I don't care for Buffalo sauce on chicken. It is too bitter and harsh. Together with cauliflower, they seem to neutralize each other.

Anyway, thanks for all the suggestions. I hope Mother likes the result.

Love Brussels sprouts! This is a favorite in our house. I sub balsamic for the apple cider vinegar. Also use much less water.

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/brussels-sprout-hash-with-caramelized-shallots-240411

FWIW, if your mom loves Brussels sprouts, she might just enjoy them more simply cooked. I love them too, but the thought of combining sweet and sour with them is not appealing at all. I trim and split them in half, top to bottom, and saute in lots of browned butter with some strips of orange or lemon peel and a sprinkle of ground coriander, salt & pepper. I saute them until lightly browned and starting to soften. Chestnuts are really good combined with Brussels sprouts, and I like to add some when I have them.

Thanks, Carol. You may be right. Thinking about it is giving me a stomach ache. I'll think about it tomorrow. :) Or...maybe I should do them on Sunday. :)

Jacques Pepin has a simple recipe that calls for browning some bacon and then cooking/browning sliced (he uses a food processor) Brussels sprouts in the drippings. Your favorite search engine will turn up the video/recipe.

I also made a mustard cream sauce with blanched (boiled) sprouts. Sauté minced shallots in butter, mustard, cream. Might be splash of white wine in there too.