Can You Eat Brussels Sprouts Raw? Yes! In Brussels Sprouts Slaw
A winter take on coleslaw that uses raw Brussels sprouts, oranges, and pecans.
We’re talking about Brussels Sprouts here on TheCookful right now. While I love roasting them, today we’re going a bit crazy and not even bothering to cook them.
Can You Eat Brussels Sprouts Raw?
Yes, it’s true. You can eat raw Brussels sprouts. Now, you wouldn’t want to stick a whole one in your mouth and munch away though. Brussels sprouts are a cruciferous vegetable a lot like mini cabbages and I sure as heck don’t want to eat cabbage like an apple. They can taste a bit on the bitter side.
So what do you do? You shred it finely and toss it with a vinaigrette to make a version of coleslaw. And that’s exactly what we’ve done here.
How To Shred Brussels Sprouts
To shred the sprouts we used a mandolin. We tried a box grater and it didn’t do a great job. If you don’t have a mandolin, get out a sharp knife and slice as finely as you can.
But wait, if you don’t have a mandolin, we highly recommend this Hand-Held Mandolin Slicer from OXO. It’s not a full-on big mandolin machine. It’s a compact, easy to use, inexpensive tool to have on hand for those times when you need a lot of thin slicing.
Making Brussels Sprouts Slaw
A bit about the flavors in the Brussels Sprouts Slaw. The shaved raw sprouts have an unexpectedly delicate flavor. We kept the dressing really simple so that it would shine through.
The dressing is just lemon juice, orange juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Nuts go very very well with Brussels sprouts so we added pecans. And for more citrus and to really tie in the wintry feel of this recipe, we added navel orange segments. Chopped mandarins or clementines work too.
So you shred your Brussels, zest and segment your oranges, and mix up the simple dressing. Mix it all up along with the pecans and your raw Brussels sprout salad is ready to enjoy.
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Brussels Sprouts Slaw Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 min
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: No-Cook
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
A winter take on coleslaw that uses Brussels sprouts, oranges and pecans.
Ingredients
- 16 oz. Brussels sprouts
- 3/4 cup pecan halves, toasted and crushed
- 2 oranges
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. coarse black pepper
Instructions
- Shred Brussels sprouts thinly on mandolin (we used the #2 setting on this OXO slicer).
- Zest one orange and segment both oranges, squeezing the juice from the remaining center of the orange into a large bowl. Add the orange pieces and zest to the Brussels sprouts.
- To the bowl of orange juice add salt, olive oil, lemon juice and pepper. Whisk to combine. Add Brussels sprouts mixture and pecans. Toss gently to coat and serve.
This post originally appeared in November 2015 and was revised and republished in October 2022.
This is really good! The orange zest is a nice touch. I didn’t crush the pecans, I wanted more crunch from them. I used a Sumo so it would be more tart. I also put some prosciutto crisps on top, the saltiness went well with the citrus. Thank you!
Glad you liked it, Dan!
I usually HATE brussel sprouts, so I’m going to give this very unique recipe a try. Can you clarify step 2 for me though? If you segment all the oranges, what is left in the middle to juice? Perhaps the instructions mean to cut the segments out of the membranes and then there’s a little membranous stuff left in the middle?
No problem, Heather, I hope you end up loving them! Yes, you’re really only needing a small amount of the orange juice, so whatever is left after cutting your orange segments is good. If you’d like a little more, you can do a splash of OJ or squeeze some from a third orange.
I came back to report that these were good! I’ve NEVER liked brussel sprouts, even when they were served at a super swanky steakhouse. Great recipe!!
Oh, I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks for reporting back, Heather.
I’ve become a big fan of roasted brussels sprouts, but haven’t tried them raw yet. This recipe looks like a delicious place to start down that path:)