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Miso Brussels sprouts combine bursts of umami, sweetness, and saltiness to take your average crispy roasted sprouts to a whole new level. Don’t miss this quick and easy, six-ingredient recipe.
Why we love this recipe
Good old roasted Brussels sprouts with olive oil, salt and pepper are dreamy just the way they are. But sometimes you’re in the mood for something a little extra-special that’s still quick, easy, and good for ya.
Miso Brussels sprouts:
- Get seared for a minute or two in a blazing-hot cast iron pan
- Then tossed with a savory, salty, sweet, and sticky glaze
- And roasted in the oven until tender
I provided a list of serving suggestions below, but honestly? I’m equally happy snacking on them straight out of the skillet.
What you’ll need
Here’s a glance at the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe.
- Choose Brussels sprouts that are firm, bright green, and tightly closed.
- White miso paste has a mild, balanced flavor with hints of umami, salty, and sweet. It’s fairly widely available these days, or get it here.
- This recipe uses tamari, a good quality, gluten-free soy sauce. Use any soy sauce you like.
- Safflower oil is neutral-tasting and amenable to very high heat. You can use any neutral oil with a high smoke point. Other good choices include canola, peanut, corn, and vegetable oil blend.
- Toasted sesame oil adds another layer of flavor dimension to this dish. Drizzle it on after cooking — it doesn’t like heat.
How to make miso Brussels sprouts
Here’s what you’ll do to make miso Brussels sprouts. You can see all the steps in action in the video that accompanies this post, and get the details in the recipe card below.
- Trim off the stem end and then halve each sprout. In a small bowl, stir together the ingredients for the glaze.
- Set a 12-inch cast iron pan over medium-high until it’s blazing hot. Pour in the safflower oil and make sure it coats the bottom of the pan. Add the sprouts and arrange them cut-sides down in a single layer. Leave them alone for a minute or two until seared on the bottom.
- Give them a stir and remove from the heat. Pour the glaze into the pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and give it all a good toss.
- Roast the sprouts until tender. You can choose how cooked you like them — I find 15 minutes to be our sweet spot. After roasting, drizzle with toasted sesame oil and toss with a spatula, scraping up all the delicious brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Serve right from the pan if you like.
Expert tips and FAQs
That’s okay! Cast iron is a great conductor of heat, so it helps the sprouts get seared and crisp. But you can use any pan that goes from stovetop to oven safely. The goal is to have enough surface area that the sprouts can sear in a single layer. If that’s not possible with the equipment you’ve got, sear them in batches before proceeding as directed in the recipe card below.
We love these straight out of the pan, just barely cool enough to eat. But they’re also great at room temperature, so feel free to make them earlier in the day. Even though they’re a side dish first and foremost, they’re also great as a snack or part of a buffet.
Keep them tightly sealed in the fridge for up to a week.
How to serve it
Miso Brussels sprouts make an especially great addition to:
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Miso Brussels Sprouts
Ingredients
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts
- 1 tablespoon white miso paste
- 2 teaspoons tamari
- 1 tablespoon very hot water
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon safflower oil
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil, with or without hot chili
- Fine sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F with a rack in the center.
- Wash and dry the Brussels sprouts. Trim off and discard a little bit of the stem end from each sprout and slice each sprout in half lengthwise.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the miso paste, tamari, hot water, and maple syrup.
- Heat a 12-inch cast-iron skillet for a few minutes on medium-high. Pour in safflower oil and spread to coat bottom of pan.
- Add Brussels sprouts and arrange cut-sides down. Cook without stirring until seared on the underside, 1 to 3 minutes depending on your stove.
- Remove pan from heat and pour miso glaze over sprouts. Stir to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Transfer pan to oven and roast for about 15 minutes, until cooked to your liking.
- Drizzle sprouts with sesame oil and toss well, scraping up any delicious browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and serve in a bowl or straight from the pan.
Notes
- Choose firm, tightly closed, bright green sprouts.
- White miso paste has a mild, balanced flavor with hints of umami, salty, and sweet. It’s fairly widely available these days, or get it here.
- This recipe uses tamari, a good quality, gluten-free soy sauce. Use any soy sauce you like.
- Safflower oil is neutral-tasting and amenable to very high heat. You can use any neutral oil with a high smoke point. Other good choices include canola, peanut, corn, and vegetable oil blend.
- Cast iron is a great conductor of heat, so it helps the sprouts get seared and crisp. But if you don’t have a cast iron pan, you can use any pan that goes from stovetop to oven safely. The goal is to have enough surface area that the sprouts can sear in a single layer. If that’s not possible with the equipment you’ve got, sear them in batches before proceeding as directed in the recipe card below.
- We love these straight out of the pan, just barely cool enough to eat. But they’re also great at room temperature, so feel free to make them earlier in the day. Even though they’re a side dish first and foremost, they’re also great as a snack or part of a buffet.
- Keep leftovers tightly sealed in the fridge for up to a week.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hungry for more?
Subscribe to Umami Girl’s email updates, and follow along on Instagram.
