Mikey Dalton's Brussels Sprouts
Brussel sprouts with speck, aged balsamic, pine nuts and onion cream
As we approach the end of another fantastic year, the questions of what to cook for Christmas lunch always pops up! Whether you have your staple dishes and family favourites this dish from Head Chef Mikey Dalton will have a permanent place at the table!
Ingredients
500g Brussels sprouts
150g Speck
50g Toasted pine nuts
½ bunch Parsley
¼ bunch Tarragon
50g Butter
Pecorino Romano or Parmesan to finish
35ml Aged Balsamic (make sure it’s aged for drizzling after or regular is fine)
For the Onion Cream
500g Onions
35g Garlic
30g Butter
60ml Cream
2 Sprigs of thyme
Method - Onion Cream
Roughly dice your onions, garlic and thyme
Melt the 30g of butter in a saucepan and add the onions, garlic and thyme with a pinch of salt. Cover with a lid and cook on a low heat until very soft. This usually takes 20-25 minutes.
Pour in the cream and cook for a further 3 min. Then add to a processor or blender and blend until silky smooth.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Method – Brussels Sprouts
In a pot, add water, a tablespoon of salt then boil.
Cut the end off your sprouts then cut them in half (also chop your parsley and tarragon and set aside for later) blanch in salted boiling water for about 4 to 5 min, then drain and refresh in cold water preferably with some ice.
Once the sprouts are cool, drain and set aside. Make sure you drain all the water as you don’t want any oil spatters when it comes time to pan fry them.
Cut the speck in lardons (small strips) and fry in a hot pan with no oil. Once the fat start to render from the speck, add the sprouts face down so they can caramelise. You want them to be very dark almost burnt.
Add the 50g of butter and the balsamic, then toss through with the chopped tarragon and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add the onion cream to a plate or bowl and serve the sprouts over the top. Grate the Parmesan or Pecorino Romano generously over everything and finish with the toasted pine nuts.
Going to give this recipe a try? We’d love to see how it turns out. Don’t forget to tag @palermomelbourne on Instagram!
Feliz Navidad!