Eat Your Brussels Sprouts!

So it appears that slowly, slowly, photos are starting to work again. I get an error message about 50% of the time, and I have to upload only two or three photos at a time, but I've managed to get most of the photos on the previous posts that were lacking and I'm going to try a new one. We shall see how this goes.

Ever since I was a kid, I hated Brussels sprouts with a fiery passion. I think it was mostly the strong smell, but then that smell comes into the taste, too, and... blech. But then when we had tapas in New York at Alta, everyone insisted I try the "Crispy Brussels Sprouts," and I admit, they were amazing. They also involved Fuji apples, crème fraiche, and pistachio nuts, however. Were my taste buds simply being tricked?

Then, at Thanksgiving, my friend Ryan served fried Brussels sprouts, again with the disclaimer that everyone who doesn't like Brussels sprouts should definitely try them. And they were amazing! Crispy but tender on the inside, greasy yes, but with a hint of lemon... I decided I had to try to re-create this concoction for myself.

Fortunately, there was a neat little pack of fresh Brussels sprouts at Hy-Vee, which I didn't really expect because I'd only seen them frozen. All the recipes say take off the tough outer brown leaves, but I didn't have many of these. I peeled off the tougher leaves anyway, which were dark green, and thoroughly rinsed and chopped all my sprouts in half. Some had some brown parts, so just in case I cut those away.

Some recipes suggest that you first fry, then cover the pan and add a little water to steam for a few minutes, just to make sure they're tender, but I was too afraid of that horrid smell creeping in, so I just fried them simply in a healthy pool of olive oil (and by healthy, I mean large). I sprinkled some salt and lemon juice on at the end, as well as a bit of white pepper. The taste? Good. The texture? Well, maybe I should have tried that steaming thing. They were still a little crunchy, but not unbearably so. I tried microwaving the leftovers and it helped, but there was a wee bit of Brussels sprout smell.

Any suggestions? Maybe I'll just have to e-mail Ryan for the recipe.