Balsamic Glazed Bacon Brussels Sprouts (One Skillet)
These are the Brussels sprouts that turn skeptics into believers. I fry the bacon first, leave all that smoky grease and seasoning right there in the skillet, then cook the halved sprouts in it so they soak up every bit of that flavor. A drizzle of balsamic reduction at the end pulls it all together — sweet, tangy, and glazed right in the bacon drippings. I threw these together as a side and they completely stole the show.
This one wasn't planned. The night before I filmed, I was in the kitchen just putting stuff together — some Nashville honey salmon bites, steamed jasmine rice, and these sprouts to round out the plate. The salmon was supposed to be the star, and honestly the whole meal was a banger — but the sprouts are what I kept reaching for, which is why they earned their own page here.
If you steal one move from this video, steal the pan handoff: the bacon comes out, but its grease and all that seasoning stay right where they are, and the butter and sprouts go in on top. The flavor is already in the skillet before the first sprout lands. It's a quick skillet side for anyone who wants something green on the plate that doesn't taste like a chore — and for whoever at your table still thinks they don't like Brussels sprouts.
Watch me make it — video from my YouTube channel
The recipe
Balsamic Glazed Bacon Brussels Sprouts (One Skillet)
Ingredients
- Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
- 4 to 6 pieces bacon
- butter, to taste
- balsamic reduction, to taste
How to Make It
- Rinse the Brussels sprouts.
- Cut the ends off each sprout, then cut it in half.
- Fry about four to six pieces of bacon in a skillet.
- Remove the bacon and set it aside, leaving the bacon grease and seasoning in the pan.
- Add some butter to the pan with the reserved bacon grease.
- Add the halved Brussels sprouts to the pan and cook for about three to four minutes.
- Break up the cooked bacon, then add it back to the pan.
- Add the balsamic reduction and stir it in well.
Curtis's Tips
- I serve these alongside my Nashville honey salmon bites over white steamed jasmine rice — it's a banger.
- Keep the seasoning and grease from the bacon in the pan when you add the butter; that bacon flavor carries right into the sprouts.
- Cook the sprouts for three to four minutes before you add the bacon back to the pan.
- This one was improvised — I was just putting stuff together, and it worked out great.
Why this works
Watch the pan, not just the bacon. After I fry the bacon and pull it out, I add butter — but I deliberately keep the grease and the seasoning from the bacon right there in the skillet, because that bacon flavor carries straight into the sprouts. The sprouts never touch a neutral pan: every minute they spend in that skillet, they're picking up bacon. The order matters too. The halved sprouts get about three to four minutes in that fat on their own, then the bacon comes back, and the balsamic reduction goes in dead last, stirred in really well — and then, like I say in the video, there you have it.
- Bacon — pulls double duty: the pieces go back into the pan at the end, and the grease they leave behind becomes the cooking fat for the sprouts.
- Butter — goes in on top of the bacon grease, not instead of it; the two together are what the sprouts cook in.
- Balsamic reduction — the last thing in the pan; stir it in well and the dish is done.
FAQ
Do the sprouts cook in oil, or in the bacon grease?
The bacon grease — that's the point. I fry four to six pieces of bacon first, take them out, and keep the grease and seasoning in the pan. Then I add some butter right on top of it. That combination is all the fat this recipe needs; I don't add any oil for the sprouts.
When does the bacon go back into the pan?
Not right away. The halved sprouts cook on their own for about three to four minutes first, then the bacon goes back in, and the balsamic reduction follows last of all. Keep that order and you'll land where I do in the video.
How much balsamic reduction should I use — and does it have to be a reduction?
In the video I just pour it over the pan at the end and stir it in really good — that's the whole instruction, no measured amount. What I am specific about is what it is: a balsamic reduction, which is what I call for on camera. The video doesn't cover swapping in plain balsamic vinegar, so I can't vouch for that here — stick with the reduction.
What do you serve these with?
The night I came up with these, they sat next to my Nashville honey salmon bites over steamed white jasmine rice, and the whole plate was a banger. That's the original pairing from the video, and it's the one I'd point you to first.
Estimated nutrition, per serving (recipe makes about 4 servings): ~190 calories · 8 g protein · 13 g fat · 11 g carbs. Computed from the ingredient list using standard reference values — an estimate, not a lab analysis; your exact brands and portions will vary.
