I consider myself open to pretty much any kind of food. I’ll try anything at least once and often many times over the course of my life as tastes change. For instance- I hated eggs and mushrooms until I was in my 20s. Now I make mushroom omelette nearly every weekend. There are a few foods I’ve all but given up on- beets and brussel sprouts come to mind. I’ve tried dozens of incarnations of both and have been let down everytime. What are some preparatios that would change peoples’ minds on “difficult” foods? Yes, I’ve had brussel sprouts cooked in bacon and they’re ok. But it’s sort of cheating....bacon cooked in anything is going to taste pretty good.
This is not very helpful, but I just pickle beets, if I grow them. I enjoy them that way......but pretty much ONLY that way.
Saw Jamie Oliver make some Brussel sprouts for Christmas dinner once, and it looked tasty, so I tried it, and they were the best sprouts I've ever made. https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetable-recipes/brussels-with-hustle/ Highly recommended.
This is the only recipe you really need for brussel sprouts. Cook bacon, chop up bacon, add butter to bacon grease, add brussel sprouts and onion (I also add garlic) to the bacon grease and butter and cook them in that. Add back in bacon at the end. Simple, delicious, cheap. An idiot can make it taste like heaven'**, it's impossible to fuck up as-is, and of course there's a thousand ways to make it even with additional spices at the like. Spoiler: ** cooking basically anything in/with bacon grease makes it delicious, just don't do it naked
I will only eat Brussel sprouts if I roast them. I do them with Yams, and Broccoli. Toss them in a little oil with Salt, Pepper, and random spices (usually coriander, oregano, thyme). Sometimes I throw in a bit of cinnamon, or garam masala, smoked paprika, skies the limit. Spread in a single layer and fire in an oven a 425 for 30 ish minutes or until the yams are soft and everything else is crispy. Give the pan a shake about halfway through.
I've been putting beets in basically everything this winter because we always get them in our CSA. Borscht is alright but doesn't have great replay value. So they've made appearances in pho (holy bright pink rice noodles), coconut curry, and all manner of soups and salads. I even made some passable beet/feta "burgers" but the kitchen looked like a crime scene and it wasn't worth the effort. My favorite way to have beets is in salad along with goat cheese, avocado, arugula and candied walnuts, plus or minus some french lentils if you want to call it a full meal. I roast the beets with salt/pepper/olive oil/sweet aged balsamic until they're really caramelized. I feel like the trick with beets is getting them to cross over from tasting dirty and muddy to tasting sweet and delightful, which usually takes some time and patience.