Crisp tender brussels sprouts baked in a rich and creamy cheese sauce, and topped with crispy smoky bacon. This is the perfect holiday side dish recipe!
This Brussels Sprouts Gratin recipe is one of those recipes we have with so many of our family dinners and for holidays like Easter. We also love easy Easter recipes like my Copycat HoneyBaked Ham and Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese. This is one of my Side Dishes recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
BRUSSELS SPROUTS GRATIN RECIPE
Growing up, I was definitely not a fan of brussels sprouts. Probably sounds familiar right? Sadly, they’re the outcasts of the vegetable world.
As an adult, I’ve been trying new things, and once I tried them roasted on a sheet pan, I realized, I’d been totally missing out. Sprouts are fantastic!!
But once I tried them this way, sautéed with shallots and garlic, drizzled with cream, smothered in gooey cheese and topped with crispy bacon… I officially fell in LOVE!!
I can’t tell you that these converted my sprout-hating children… although it did convince my daughter to try one, which is a victory in and of itself.
But for any adults… I think these would absolutely convert them to a sprout lover!!
HOW TO MAKE BRUSSELS SPROUTS GRATIN
- Preheat oven and saute sprouts and shallots. A lot of gratin recipes don’t call for any sautéing to be done, but I like the added flavor it adds, plus is cuts down on the oven time. Go ahead and add your seasonings here, so the flavor really develops.
- Turn off the heat, add cream. The reason we remove the pan from the heat before adding the cream is so it doesn’t get heated too much. Too much heat, too quickly, could potentially curdle the cream – and no one wants that.
- Sprinkle with cheeses and bacon and bake. No need to stir the cheeses in, just sprinkle them evenly over the top. Bake about 12 minutes, until hot and bubbly.
ADDITIONAL COOKING TIPS
The part that takes the longest here is prepping your brussels sprouts… sometimes those little buggers can be tedious to prepare. Especially for this recipe, when you’re going to want about 32 oz of sprouts (2 lbs).
HOW TO TRIM BRUSSELS SPROUTS
When looking at fresh brussels sprouts, you’ll see a hard little bit of stem at the base. Take a sharp kitchen knife and carefully trim off that bottom stem.
Remove any loose outer leaves, and slice in half from top to bottom. Don’t worry if a few other leave fall off during the cooking process. If the sprouts are giant, go ahead and quarter them.
VARIATIONS OF THIS RECIPE
- CASSEROLE – if you’d rather not saute the sprouts with the shallots, you can add everything to a casserole dish (9×13 works well). Bake at 400°F degrees for about 25-30 minutes, until bubbly and hot.
- BREADCRUMB TOPPING – for a more traditional gratin dish, top these brussels sprouts with 1 cup of panko breadcrumbs that’s mixed with a tablespoon or so of melted butter.
- CHEESES – if you prefer a different blend of cheeses, feel free to substitute with your favorites. Parmesan or Swiss are great alternatives.
MAKING BRUSSELS SPROUTS GRATIN AHEAD OF TIME
I love that this recipe can be made ahead of time, which is perfect for the holidays!
To reheat, bake in a 350°F oven, uncovered, until warm throughout, 12-15 minutes.
STORAGE
Leftovers should be refrigerated in an airtight container and consumed within 3 days for best flavor.
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT FOR THIS RECIPE
- Cast Iron Skillet – I use my cast iron pan for SO many things, you love it!
- Enameled Skillet – Also cast iron, but with the added benefit of easy cleanup!
I really hope you all give these Cheesy Brussels sprouts with Bacon a try… you definitely won’t regret it!!
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Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup sliced shallots (this was about 2 shallots for me)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 32 oz bag of fresh Brussels sprouts, cored and halved (or equivalent amount of smaller containers)
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- pinch black pepper
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 3/4 cup heavy cream (might be labeled as heavy whipping cream)
- 3/4 cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese (freshly grated is best)
- 1/2 cup shredded Gruyere cheese (freshly grated is best)
- 6 slices cooked bacon, crumbled (or about 1/2 cup bacon bits)
- minced fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Add butter to a large oven safe pan or skillet, and heat over MED heat. Add Brussels sprouts, shallots and garlic, seasoning with kosher salt, black pepper and paprika. Saute, stirring occasionally, about 5-8 minutes.
- Remove pan from heat, pour in heavy cream. Sprinkle shredded cheddar and gruyere cheese all over the Brussels sprouts. Top with crumbled bacon and bake about 12 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Sprinkle with additional black pepper and minced parsley if desired.
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Chef Tips
- If you desire a more browned cheesy top, broil on high for a minute or so after baking.
- For a deeper bacon flavor, dice uncooked bacon slices and cook in oven safe pan or skillet until browned and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon, add 1 Tbsp butter, and saute Brussels sprouts and shallots as directed. Continue with recipe. - this adds flavor, but also adds more time to cook
Video
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Recipe closely adapted from Delish
Jerry says
My wife made this . I was amazed how good it tasted. It’s my first time to eat Brussels spouts an I’m 55. WOW
Jessica says
Can you use mozzarella cheese instead?
The Chunky Chef says
Sure can!
Jaime says
I noticed in the video you used scallions, not shallots. Was that a typo? I already cut all my shallots and then watched your video. Have you done it with both? Which one was better? Thanks.
The Chunky Chef says
The video production company I used for that video is located in Australia, so there was a miscommunication there. Shallots are what’s best 🙂
Robin says
Wow. I made this for a friend. It is fabulous! We love Brussels sprouts,and now we love them even more! Thanks for this recipe. Once the sprouts are trimmed, everything (almost) goes in the pot. Salute and then add the cream, the cheese, and bake.
Amy says
So amazing I would make this over and over I didn’t have any gruyere cheese so I use Swiss instead still amazing!!
Deanna says
I was wondering if you thought I could cook the brussel sprouts, bacon, shallots and garlic the night before and put the rest of it together the next day before I bake it? Or even put it all together the night before?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve not tested the recipe this way, so I can’t say for certain if that would work.
Karen Pittman says
Made this with the Honey, Ginger and Garlic Roasted Pork Tenderlion! My boyfriend loved the meal!!! These were the best brussel sprouts I’ve ever had!!!!
Both recipes were easy and delicious!!!!!
Emma says
This was my first time making brussel sprouts. I used sharp white cheddar and colby jack cheese because that’s what I had. Left out the shallots. This was wonderful! 10 out of 5 stars. Thanks for sharing. I’ll be looking at your other recipies. 😊
Katie says
Has anyone tried this in a slow cooker?
Dee says
Hello, so if im doing meal prep for the week. Will this recipe spoil before the week is up? How long can this last in the refrigerator? Thanks
The Chunky Chef says
I would say they would last 2-3 days. Sprouts have a tendency to not last very long, in my experience. So I would count on them for 2-3 days of meals 🙂
Mimi says
I made this with about 16-oz of Brussel Sprouts because that was all I had. Used the full amounts of both cheeses, bacon, garlic and scallions. We LOVE all of those, LOL!! It turned out soo yummy 😋😋😋
Will definitely be on a regular rotation here 😉😁🤩🤗
Anna Marie Blocher says
Are the nutritional values for the entire dish or per serving? If per serving what’s the size? Thanks!
The Chunky Chef says
Per serving, and approximately 1 – 1 1/2 cups is the serving size. I don’t measure it exactly, so I can’t be super specific.
Double R says
This is a wonderful dish. “Google a shallot” – really????? You totally rock, chunky chef.
Becky Brown says
My husband has never liked Brussels sprouts, but a friend sent me this recipe and said I must try it. Even picky eaters will love it! Since it’s just the two of us, I halved the recipe. Made it exactly as written and we both loved it!! There was plenty left over, so the full recipe will make a big pan. This one is a definite keeper! If you think you don’t like Brussel sprouts, try this one, it will change your mind.
Kelly says
This was outstanding! I didn’t have any papeika and used jack cheese instead of guyere, yet it was very delicious. Will make again but try adding some burger and/or chirizo.
Jan Humphrey says
I brought this for the family Thanksgiving with the idea I would come home with most of it. Well to my surprise they ate it all, even the little kids. So it’s my go to veggie dish for every event. Can’t wait to take it to a pot luck.
Nycole says
Hey there, while I love brussel sprouts my family is adamantly against them (not stopping me from bringing them to every holiday dinner!) this recipe looks delicious but I don’t want to leave them with no veggies if they still refuse to eat them (their loss=my gain!) so I was thinking about adding another veggie to this, do you think asparagus or broccoli would work in this recipe too? Thanks!
The Chunky Chef says
I feel your pain… my extended family won’t try them either! I think either broccoli or asparagus would be fabulous in this as well 😀
La says
Approximately how many servings is this recipe? I want to make for Thanksgiving and wondering if I need to double it? It looks delicious!
The Chunky Chef says
Approximately 6-8 servings 🙂 Hope you love it!
Autumn Boulton says
Are the nutrition facts per serving or in total?
Thank You so much! Looks delicious
The Chunky Chef says
Per serving 🙂
FoodFloozie says
Made this tonight a bit differently and perhaps more economically.
The economical part: when we’re going to chop up the bacon anyway, we use bacon “ends and pieces” for cooking – they cost less, are easier to handle and taste just as good as sliced bacon. We usually have an assortment of cheese ends lounging in the frig which, though hard and funny looking, are perfect for grating into a cooked recipe. Tonight we used some blue cheese, smoked gouda and sharp cheddar. At our local green grocer we found big bags of (again slightly funny looking) brussel sprouts and crimini mushrooms on sale for 99 cents per bag. As these were going to be chopped in halves or quarters and baked, it didn’t matter that they weren’t visually.perfect. Didn’t have shallots handy, but found a drowsy looking quarter of a white onion lounging in the frig veg drawer, so chopped it up in place of the shallots. As to how we made the recipe “a bit differently” Instead of cooking the bacon, and then removing it from the pan, we started on med heat cooked the bacon and butter for about three minutes, then threw in the chopped onion for another minute, then the brussel sprouts, salt, pepper and paprika for 4 minutes and then the mushrooms for a couple more minutes. Removed from heat, stirred in some half and half (didn’t have cream) and topped the concoction with our grated cheeses into which we’d mixed a hefty half cup of panko bread crumbs. Baked for 22 minutes at 375. Result: a total yum! Thanks for posting your recipe – it got us off on our dinner adventure. 😀