Brussels Sprouts w/ Miso Sesame Sauce

To make the sauce, first gather and prepare your mise en place, including the Garlic Confit. Next, blend together the miso paste, cane sugar, Garlic Confit, HOT water, mirin, rice wine vinegar—blending until smooth. Lastly, slowly drizzle in the sesame oil. Note: Hot water is used as it helps the cane sugar melt. Alternatively, the whole sauce, minus the sesame oil, can be heated first on the stovetop and then blended. Once done, set aside until ready to use. This versatile sauce can be used hot, warm or cold, either as a sauce or as a dressing. Any leftover sauce will keep for several days in the refrigerator.

To prepare the Brussels sprout leaves, peel away any dirty leaves and then trim just the very bottom of the sprouts. Then start to peel away the outer leaves. Once the you get to the point where it becomes more difficult to peel away the outer leaves, cut a bit more off of the bottom of the sprout and continue to peel away the leaves. Once most of the leaves have been peeled away, you will be left with a small cabbage-like core, save this for another time.

To cook the Brussels sprouts, heat a wok or large fry pan over high heat. Once hot, add the oil followed by the Brussels sprouts. Cook for a minute or two - the leaves should still be crunchy, so be sure you don't over cook them. Next, add the Miso Sesame Sauce and toss. Continue to cook for about a minute, just to heat the sauce through. Finish the Brussels sprouts by seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, to maintain their crispiness and vibrant color.