Tom Kerridge has shared his secret to creating “amazing” Brussel sprouts this Christmas in a matter of minutes.
The controversial Christmas dinner item is often overlooked during the festive period, but Tom believes with the right way of cooking and wisely chosen flavour, that could all change.
Kicking things off, Tom says wok-frying sprouts instead of steaming or boiling them makes a huge difference.
“I like to wok fry them with bacon and chestnut, it’s amazing,” he told Reach PLC.
Sharing further details in a demonstration with M&S, the 51-year-old broke down the steps to his secret recipe.
Tom begins by frying bacon lardons in olive oil, but warns: “Don’t stir the bacon too much as that creates steam which means they won’t crisp up as quickly.”
Once satisfied, he suggests dropping in two knobs of truffle butter and letting it melt “until that lovely flavour comes through”.
For those who like more a kick, the chef recommends swapping out truffle butter for a chilli and lime flavour one instead.
Once decided on your choice of butter, the next step is to pour the Brussels sprouts into the pan and swirling them until they’re coated in the flavour.
“I’m [then] going to add in a sprig of rosemary and a splash of water and the lid goes on, and then I’m going to leave that to simmer for a few minutes,” he added of the next stage.
For the penultimate step, the chef recommends adding in chestnuts and then turning up the heat.
To conclude, he adds in roasted peanuts and a final knob of butter of your choice.
“Cook it for around about another minute, give it a little season (with salt) and then they’re ready to serve,” he shared.
Furthermore, Tom has shared his secret to cooking up crispy roast potatoes.
In a video shared on his website, the chef suggests steam drying the spuds once boiled all the way through, after roughly 20 minutes.
Then with a slotted spoon, gently remove each potato and place them on a cooling rack on top of tray to dry.
“That’s where you’re going to get the lovely, crunchy, crispy bits all around the outside,” he promises.
“The point of drying it means it will absorb and fry in the tray with oil much quicker and much more efficiently.”
While many opt for duck or goose fat to cook their potatoes in, Tom advises vegatable or coconut oil instead.
“It’s clean, it’s crisp and it’s flavourless,” he shared. “Use quite a bit as well, don’t be shy.”
After 15 minutes in the oven, Tom recommends adding more oil to the potatoes before putting them in again until finish.
