Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette

Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette is a delicious side dish that’s special enough for holiday dinners but easy enough for any night of the week.

Side Dishes Rule!

When it comes to a holiday meal, what is the most important part for you? Are you team turkey/ham or team sides? For me, I’m definitely team side dishes!

In my opinion, turkey or ham are just vehicles (albeit delicious vehicles!) for tasty gravy. I would be perfectly happy with a table full of just sides. So, I’m always on the lookout for new recipes for a great side dish.

Brussels Sprouts as a Side Dish

​Raw brussels sprouts on their own don’t have much flavor. They definitely need to be cooked. But, when done right, they are pretty tasty!

I think the mild flavor of a brussels sprout makes it a perfect side dish for pretty much any meal. That’s because you can dress them up any way you’d like.

Pan-seared brussels with some crispy shallots, charcoal grilled with onions, steamed with butter, salt and pepper – so many options. They really are a great substitution for a simple salad.

That’s why I thought brussels sprouts would make a great salad / side dish.

Making the Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette

As the brussels sprouts have such a mild flavor, I definitely wanted to spice them up a bit with a vinaigrette. The best part about vinaigrettes is that they are easy to make and you can have so many different flavors.

In this case, I thought a mustard-based vinaigrette would be perfect. I thought about a honey mustard vinaigrette, or maybe using dijon mustard, but I wanted something with a little more zing to spice it up. Spicy brown mustard to the rescue!

This spicy mustard vinaigrette is so flavorful and takes just minutes to prepare. You only need to whisk together a few simple ingredients (apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, spicy brown mustard, dill, thyme, salt, pepper) and it’s ready to go.

To save you even more time, the vinaigrette can made a day or two ahead of time. When you’re ready to dress the brussels sprouts, just give the dressing a quick whisk.

Making the Shredded Brussels Sprouts

Why shredded brussels sprouts? If I’m going to be mixing the brussels sprouts with any kind of dressing (in this case a spicy mustard vinaigrette), I like having as much surface area as possible for the dressing to take hold.

Now, if you have a sharp knife, a large cutting board, and great knife skills, you can certainly slice and shred your own brussels sprouts. But, you can find bags of pre-shredded sprouts in pretty much any grocery store and they’re pretty inexpensive. Save yourself some time!

Once you have your shredded brussels sprouts, you start by sautéing some onions and bacon – because onion and bacon! This adds a smokiness from the bacon and a little bit of bite from the onions.

Once the onions are translucent and the bacon begins to brown, add in the brussels sprouts. Once the sprouts are wilted and the bacon looks done, turn off the burner and mix in the vinaigrette.

Little time, little prep, big taste!

Time Saving Hacks

Not only is this brussels sprout salad delicious, it takes less than 30 minutes to pull together. However, if you want to save even more time, here are a few time-saving hacks:

• Use a bag of pre-shredded brussels sprouts.
• Make the vinaigrette a day or two ahead of time. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Chop the bacon and onion a couple of days before using. Put in resealable bags or any container with a tight fitting lid and refrigerate until ready to use.

Your New Favorite Holiday Side Dish (or Any Time Side Dish!)

The next time you’re looking for an interesting side dish, you definitely want these Shredded Brussels Sprouts at the top of your list. It’s a delicious salad recipe and it takes little time to prepare. It also uses ingredients you likely have on hand or can buy relatively inexpensively at your local grocery store.

The other great thing? You can feed a ton of people with this recipe. It is easily doubled or tripled and really doesn’t take any more time to make (especially if you use the time saving hacks above).

Brussels salads are a fantastic replacement if you’re getting a little tired of certain side dishes. And, if you’re preparing this side dish for a weeknight meal, it still comes together quickly even if you haven’t prepped anything ahead of time. It’s also fantastic the next day.

So, add this to your annual tradition of foods you serve at holidays or just enjoy on a busy weeknight. Your family and friends will surely be impressed down to the last bite!

Tips and Tricks

• To speed up prep time, use pre-shredded brussels sprouts.
• The vinaigrette can be made up to two days ahead of time.
• Chopping the bacon and onion up to a couple of days ahead of time will also speed up prep time.
• You may not need all of the vinaigrette for the brussels sprout mixture. Any leftover vinaigrette is delicious on a tossed green salad.

Ingredients Needed to Make Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette

Full instructions can be found below in the recipe card

• Apple cider vinegar – Adds tang and a slight apple flavor.
• Worcestershire sauce – This is used to add depth to the flavor of the dressing.
• Spicy brown mustard – This is used to emulsify the dressing as well as add additional tangy flavor.
• Dill – This herb goes really well with the flavor from the mustard.
• Thyme
• Salt
• Pepper
• Olive oil – I prefer olive oil over other varieties of oil because of the flavor it adds.
• Onion – I prefer red onion because I like the color that it adds to the dish, but yellow onion would work just as well.
• Bacon – This adds a delicious smoky/salty flavor to the dish.
• Brussels Sprouts – A bag of pre-shredded sprouts are a great time saver.

How to Make Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette

• In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together first 7 ingredients, through pepper, until well-combined.
• Slowly whisk in 1/3 cup olive oil until mixture is emulsified. Set aside.
• Heat remaining tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
• Add onion and bacon to skillet. Saute until the onion is becoming transluscent and the bacon is starting to brown.
• Add sliced brussels sprouts to the skillet and continue to cook until the brussels sprouts start to wilt and the bacon is cooked through.
• Turn the burner off and toss the brussels sprouts mixture with dressing until well-coated. You may not need to use all of the dressing.
• Transfer to a serving bowl.

Other Favorite Holiday Side Dishes

• Sourdough Sausage Stuffing
• Fresh Green Beans with Butter Shallot Sauce
• Brown Butter Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes
• Wild Rice Salad
• Cranberry Fluff