Easy Brussels Sprouts Gratin

This easy Brussels sprouts gratin is a tasty way to elevate the humble sprout. After a quick parboil, the Brussels sprouts are smothered in a rich and velvety cheese sauce, before being topped with some cheesy breadcrumbs and baked in the oven.

I am a huge fan of Brussels sprouts and I eat them all year round. They are easily one of my favourite vegetables and I’m happy with them boiled, then served with butter and black pepper.

However, not everyone shares my love of the humble sprout, and for those doubters in the family , I look for other ways to get them to enjoy them. That’s where this simple Brussels sprouts recipe comes in, after all doesn’t everything taste better with a blanket of cheesy sauce.

I’ve used a combination of extra mature cheddar and Parmesan, which result in a really cheesy sauce. This is the perfect sauce to temper the pungent sprout.

This is the best Brussels sprouts gratin recipe as I’ve made it with a cream based sauce, which I’ve thickened with a little cornflour, rather than wheat flour. I prefer this to a more traditional bechamel which can be on the heavy side I find.

Why you’ll love this recipe

• A simple cook the whole dish can be prepared in just 15 minutes then placed in the oven to heat through and finish cooking.
• Make ahead earlier in the day and store in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook and serve.
• Feed a crowd as this recipe is easily doubled up.
• A gluten free gratin as I thicken the sauce with cornflour, rather than flour which you would find in a bechamel sauce.

Recipe ingredients

• Brussels sprouts – I use 500 g (1 lb) of Brussels sprouts, to serve 6 as a vegetable side dish.
• Garlic – I use a clove of crushed garlic to infuse flavour into the cream.
• Cream – I use double cream (heavy cream) to make the sauce.
• Mustard – I like to add a spoon of English mustard to the cheese sauce as the acidity in the mustard cuts through the rich creaminess of the sauce.
• Cheese – for maximum flavour I use a combination of extra mature cheddar cheese, and Parmesan cheese to flavour the sauce.
• Cornflour – I use cornflour (cornstarch) to thicken the sauce.
• Seasoning – I season the sauce with a little sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and some ground nutmeg.
• Breadcrumbs – I combine the panko breadcrumbs with a little cheddar to finish the top of the gratin. The breadcrumbs give it a nice crunch.

How to make Brussels sprout gratin

• Preheat the oven to 200C/180CFan/360F.
• Trim the Brussels sprouts, and cut a cross in the base of each sprout.
• Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil, adding 1 teaspoon of salt. Add the Brussels sprouts and boil for 5 minutes, then drain and leave in the sieve to steam dry.
• When cool enough to handle, cut the sprouts in half, through the stalk, and place in an oven proof dish.
• While the sprouts are cooking, get on with making the sauce. Pour the cream into a small saucepan, add the crushed garlic clove, whisk through the English mustard, and heat up gently. Do not boil.
• Now add 140g of the grated cheddar cheese and all of the Parmesan cheese to the saucepan. Heat gently, stirring constantly, to melt the cheese.

• Place the cornflour into a small bowl. Remove some of the creamy sauce into the bowl and stir through the cornflour to form a smooth paste.
• Remove the garlic clove from the cream, then return the cornflour mixture to the saucepan and stir through the sauce. Keep stirring until the sauce thickens.

• Season the sauce to taste with salt and black pepper (see top tip below), and stir through the ground nutmeg. Then pour the sauce over the cooked Brussels sprouts.
• Combine the remaining 60g of grated cheddar cheese with the panko breadcrumbs, sprinkle over the top of the dish, and place into the hot oven to bake for 20-25 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

Top Tip: Only season the sauce once the cheese has been added, as cheese is naturally salty and will season the sauce. So taste and add extra if needed.

Recipe variations

• Brussels sprouts – I’ve used Brussels sprouts in this gratin recipe, but you can swap this for other cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, romanesco.
• Vegetables – add other veggies into the mix. Parboil some carrots, butternut squash, sweet potato, or parsnips along with the sprouts, and add them to the dish, along with the sprouts.
• Cheese – I’ve used a combination of extra mature cheddar and Parmesan cheese for the sauce. As these are both strong flavoured cheeses you need less of them to flavour the sauce. If you prefer a milder cheese flavour, use a medium or mild cheddar.
• Garlic – the garlic is only used to impart a little flavour into the cream as it warms up. If you prefer no garlic you could leave it out.
• Mustard – I like to add mustard to cheese sauce as the acidity cuts through the richness of the cheese. I’ve used strong English mustard, but you can swap for Dijon or wholegrain mustard if you prefer a milder mustard flavour.
• Bacon – make Brussels sprouts gratin with bacon, by crisping some bacon under the grill, then breaking it up and stirring through the cheese sauce.

Serving suggestions

This great tasting side dish serves 6, and can be served with any main meal. Serve it with the weekends roast dinner, try my Slow Roasted Pork Belly or Italian Style Chicken Breast. It’s also makes a great Christmas or Thanksgiving side, serve it alongside my Roasted Turkey Crown or Slow Roasted Turkey Leg.

Useful hints and tips

1. Steam drying sprouts: Don’t skip this step, steam dry the Brussels sprouts after they’ve been parboiled. Not only does this make them easier to handle, it also removes the water and stops your sprout gratin becoming soggy.
2. Seasoning: It’s important that you only season the sauce, once the cheese has been added. Then taste the sauce and add salt if you think it needs it. Parmesan in particular adds lots of seasoning and you don’t want the sauce to be too salty.
3. Double or treble the recipe if you are feeding a crowd.
4. Vegetarian: Serving vegetarian diners, no problem, just ensure you use vegetarian cheese.
5. Allergy advice: gluten free, egg free, soya free and nut free. For comprehensive and detailed allergy advice go to Allergy UK.

FAQs

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Additional recipe suggestions

If you like this recipe then try some of these easy vegetable sides recipes:

• Gluten Free Cauliflower Cheese
• Easy Honey Roasted Carrots & Parsnips
• Honey Roast Carrots
• Easy Oven Roasted Asparagus
• Honey Roasted Root Vegetables

For all my favourite vegetable recipes in one place, check out my 12 Best Vegetable Side Dishes post.