Adding vegetables to your diet has shown countless health benefits. From blood pressure to heart diseases, consuming vegetables can help you fight several health problems. If you love eating vegetables, this piece of writing will be a pool of knowledge for you.
Brussel sprouts are part of cruciferous vegetables like cabbage. It is also Belgium’s official vegetable owing to its name. The taste of this vegetable is strong, spicy, and a little on the bitter side when cooked for a long time.
Brussel sprouts have a versatile usage as you can cook, pickle, fry, or roast them. Boiling them is not a great option since you will get an unwanted aroma. It would be best not to eat them raw as it aggravates the gas and bloating situation. Instead, mix it in oil and roast it to ease its digestive process.
Most commonly, Brussel sprouts are roasted with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Some people suggest shredding them in a salad. However, we recommend not eating it raw if you suffer from bloating and gas.
Brussel sprouts have multiple health benefits, including being low in calories. The sprouts contain other Vitamins like A, C, and K. It also contains iron and folate, essential for our diet.
If you are craving Brussels sprouts but can’t find them in your area, you can go for the best Brussels sprouts substitutes listed below.
Substitutes For Brussel Sprouts
1. Broccoli
Broccoli is the first substitute for Brussel sprouts on our list. A vegetable found in every kitchen, broccoli has a grassy and earthy flavor with a bitter sidekick. It is a versatile substitute for Brussel sprouts.
You can boil, roast, steam, or even eat it raw. It has tons of health benefits as it has tons of mineral salts and vitamins, and as a cherry on the cake, it is extremely low on calories. It’s pretty effective in cancer prevention, and it has also shown great results for diabetes patients.
With that out of the way, experts suggest eating broccoli in raw form as you get the most nutrients by eating it in natural form. However, wash it properly and separate its florets before eating it.
However, you may not like the taste of uncooked broccoli. So, if you want to cook broccoli, be mindful that it can lose its nutrients if you cook it in abundant water.
And yes, don’t boil it for a long time, or you may end up losing an essential nutrient in broccoli, i.e., glucosinolate, which is an anti-tumor nutrient. Experts opine that you should not eat boiled broccoli since boiling can have an ill effect on this substance.
Steaming is an excellent alternative to cooking. However, don’t steam cook the broccoli for too long. Steaming it for five minutes will be enough as prolonged heat from steaming can also make it lose its nutrients. You may also go for microwave cooking if feasible.
2. Napa Cabbage
The next alternative to Brussel sprouts is napa cabbage. It is a Chinese cabbage that comes in an oblong shape. Since it is widely grown in China, it is a vital ingredient in Asian cuisine. The taste is mild and sweet after cooking.
The water content in the vegetable makes it juicy and soft. It is easier to find at any grocery store because of affordability, preparation, and health benefits. It contains minerals, including iron and calcium.
You could add napa cabbage to noodles, rolls, salads, and stir-fry them to use in other dishes. Thus, its versatility and taste make it a good substitute for Brussel sprouts.
3. Beetroot
For me, beets are one of the unique vegetables in the world. From taste to its versatility, beetroot is a top item. The whole plant is edible, including the leaves. The taste is a combination of sweet and earthy.
You can use them raw in salads, boil, roast, bake, or steam them. In order to substitute for Brussel sprouts, it is best to roast them. You don’t have to remove the skin before roasting. The process will yield a sweet-tasting beet. You can serve roasted beets with meat in pasta and utilize it within a salad.
4. Asparagus
Asparagus is a lively green-colored vegetable with pointed spears. Like other vegetables on our list, you can roast, steam, or grill asparagus as per your choice.
The taste of asparagus depends on the variety. However, the general flavor is earthy, grassy, and similar to green beans. So, use slices of asparagus as a replacement.
To cook asparagus, consider cutting off its bottom part after thoroughly washing it. Most people cut it off because it contains stiff fibers that are hard to chew. But how do you know which is the bottom part?
Well, just pick it up and bend it, and it will break exactly where it is supposed to. And yes, you don’t necessarily have to throw them in your garbage. You can feed them to your pets or also use them in soups.
Now take a pan and fill it with one inch of water. Once you notice that the water is boiling, take a bunch of asparagus and put it inside the pan. As soon as you put it in the boiling water, it will change its color. Let it boil for 60 to 90 seconds.
Asparagus cooked for 90 seconds will still be crunchy. Take it out and season it using olive oil and salt. Consider spraying lemon on it to add to its flavor. You may also want to add black pepper if it is to your liking.
Another option to cook asparagus is to dry roast them in an oven. For this purpose, put them on a baking sheet and spread them out a bit. Now add olive oil and a little bit of salt before putting it in an oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.
After taking it out, you can season it with olive oil, parmesan, or butter as per your liking.
5. Leeks
Leeks belong to the onion family and look like green onions. They are pretty easy to prepare and offer a mild flavor rather than the aggressive oniony flavor. A younger leek with a bit of a long bulb that is not round tends to be sweeter. You can add them to casseroles, soups, salads, or fry or roast them.
Leeks are an expensive choice, but their versatility makes them a good option. If you want to cook leeks, make sure not to go overboard with time. And yes, since leeks grow in sandy soil, they tend to be quite dirty from the inside. So make certain to give them a thorough cleaning before cooking them.
Once you have washed it, consider cutting off the top dark green potion as it has tough fibers that are hard to eat. You also have to cut off the leek base, which has leek hair.
Now keep cutting leeks into slices and then put those slices into a bowl of water to wash them. You may use oil or butter for cooking leeks.
A buttered leek or a combination with meat or cabbage makes them a suitable replacement for Brussel sprouts. Regarding nutritional benefits, leeks outshine Brussel sprouts and dozens of other vegetables.
6. Celeriac
This brown-colored vegetable is part of the carrots and parsnips family. You can use them by boiling, roasting, steaming, or raw. It has a bulb-like stem with a white interior.
Celeriac is expensive because it is not readily available in the grocery store. The taste is nutty and similar to parsley. The texture is firm, and the flavor is more prominent in cooking. Thus, you could alternate Brussel sprouts with celeriac.
All in all, it would be safe to say that there are multiple decent substitutes for Brussel sprouts.