The Director of Recipe Development for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Television, Courtney Hill, prepared this recipe for a Thanksgiving series for the program.
Tare (pronounced tah-reh) is a Japanese seasoning liquid typically made with a soy sauce base, often enhanced by mirin, sake, ginger and garlic. Here, we use those ingredients with Brussels sprouts. We
first brown the halved sprouts in butter to develop rich, nutty flavor notes, braise them until tender, then allow the moisture to cook off, leaving the sprouts coated with a salty-sweet glaze.
Note: Don’t stir the sprouts too often in the first step. The key is to let them brown and char slightly in order to produce a rich, complex sauce.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons salted butter
1 1⁄2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1⁄4 cup mirin
1⁄4 cup sake
1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
2 medium garlic cloves, finely grated
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 scallions, thinly sliced or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro or both
Shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice), toasted sesame seeds, or chili oil if desired
TO PREPARE
STEP ONE. In a large Dutch oven over medium-high, melt the butter. Add the sprouts and 1⁄4 teaspoon each salt and pepper, then cook, stirring only once or twice, until browned in spots, 3 to 5 minutes.
STEP TWO. Add the mirin, sake, sugar, ginger, garlic and 1⁄4 cup water. Cover, reduce to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sprouts are tender but still hold their shape, 8 to 13 minutes. Uncover and stir in the soy sauce.
STEP THREE. Increase to medium and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the sprouts are lightly glazed, 5 to 8 minutes.
STEP FOUR. Off heat, stir in the scallions, then taste and season with salt and pepper.
STEP FIVE. Top with shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice), toasted sesame seeds, or chili oil if desired
