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Recipe · Direct · Easy

Charcoal-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Panceta on the Kamado, Seared on Cast Iron

Sprouts halved, cut side down on a cast-iron griddle at 230 °C, with diced panceta (Spanish cured pork belly) and a finish of sherry vinegar and honey. The October-to-March side that loses its bitterness by searing, not boiling.

Quick answer

Bring the kamado to 230 °C with a cast-iron griddle inside from the light-up. Brown 150 g diced panceta 5-6 minutes, lay 800 g halved sprouts cut side down in its fat and sear 6-8 minutes untouched, lid closed. Turn, give 5-7 minutes more, finish with 2 tbsp sherry vinegar and 1 tbsp honey.

Coles de Bruselas partidas por la mitad y asadas, con la cara cortada tostada y dorada y unas escamas de sal por encima, en una sartén de hierro fundido con una cuchara de madera, sobre una mesa oscura con un par de hojas sueltas al ladoSave to Pinterest
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Prep
15 min
Cook
25 min
Servings
4 servings
Temperature
230 °C

Ingredients

  • firm, tightly closed Brussels sprouts, ideally 2 to 4 cm800 g
  • cured or smoked panceta (Spanish pork belly) in a block, cut into 1 cm dice150 g
  • extra virgin olive oil2 cda
  • shallot, thinly sliced1 ud
  • sherry vinegar (vinagre de Jerez)2 cda
  • orange blossom or rosemary honey1 cda
  • flaky sea salt1 cdta
  • freshly ground black pepper0.5 cdta
  • toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped (optional)30 g

The gear for this recipe

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Method

  1. 01

    Light with the griddle inside

    Fill the Konnected Joe's firebox, which does not take a charcoal basket, to the top with Jealous Devil quebracho charcoal, over the automatic fire starter, set up the Divide & Conquer and place the cold Half Moon griddle, smooth side up, on one half, with the standard grate on the other. Light and set 230 °C. The griddle heats up with the kamado, with no thermal shock. Once the chamber has stabilised, leave it another 10-15 minutes so the iron soaks up heat from end to end.

  2. 02

    Prepare the sprouts

    While it heats, trim the base of each sprout and remove any yellow or loose outer leaves. Halve from top to bottom any over 2 cm and quarter those over 4 cm; leave whole those of 2 cm or less, which go on the grate. Dry them well with a cloth, because surface water boils before it browns. Toss them in a bowl with the oil, salt and pepper, rubbing so the cut face is well coated.

  3. 03

    Render the panceta

    Open the lid with burping: lift it about 5 cm, wait about 5 seconds and open it fully, with gloves on and your face turned away. Spread the panceta dice over the griddle and close up. After 3 minutes, stir with the tongs and add the shallot. In 5-6 minutes in all the fat will have rendered and the edges will be golden. Lift the panceta and shallot onto a plate with the tongs and leave the fat on the griddle.

  4. 04

    Sear the cut face

    Place the halved sprouts on the fat one by one, with the cut face against the iron. The small whole ones go on the grate on the other half. Close the lid and leave them alone for 6-8 minutes at 230 °C. Moving them earlier breaks contact and the crust does not form. They are ready to turn when the cut face is a very dark brown, almost black at the edges.

  5. 05

    Turn and finish

    Open with burping and turn each half with the 40 cm OXO tongs, which reach the far edge of the griddle without bringing your hand near the iron. Roll the whole ones on the grate a quarter turn. Close up and cook 5-7 minutes more. Test the thickest sprout with the tip of a knife: it should go into the heart with a little resistance, tender but not soft.

  6. 06

    Glaze

    Stir the sherry vinegar and honey together in a glass until the honey dissolves. Move the sprouts from the grate onto the griddle, return the panceta and shallot, bring everything together and pour the mixture over. Toss with the tongs for 1 minute, lid open: the vinegar boils and reduces and the honey clings to the crust. Do not go longer, because sugar on iron at 230 °C burns quickly.

  7. 07

    Serve

    Take the griddle out of the kamado with proper gloves, as the handle is at the same temperature as the chamber, or serve straight from it with the tongs onto a warmed platter. Taste for salt, add the toasted hazelnuts if using, and take it to the table within 5 minutes, before the crust softens in the sprouts' own steam.

About this recipe

Brussels sprouts carry a reputation they earned in the pot. Boiled to the end, they release sulphur compounds, turn grey and smell like a school canteen corridor. Halved and set cut side down on cast iron at 230 °C, they become something else: a near-black brown crust, a tender heart and a sweetness nobody expects from them. With a few cubes of panceta (Spanish cured pork belly, sold in a block), a splash of sherry vinegar and a spoonful of honey, they are the seasonal side that stands up to a Sunday roast and the Christmas table.

Why searing removes the bitterness that water does not

The bitterness in cabbage-family vegetables comes from glucosinolates, the defence system of the whole brassica family. The varieties sold today carry far fewer than those of thirty years ago: in the late nineties the two main culprits, sinigrin and progoitrin, were identified, and plant breeding gradually reduced them. What remains is decided by the cooking. In water the sprout softens all the way through, the bitterness spreads and, if you overdo it, the sulphur smell appears. Against hot metal the Maillard reaction takes place and the sugars in the leaf caramelise: toasty, sweet notes appear that balance the bitter backdrop instead of leaving it on its own. That is why the cut face has to touch the griddle and stay still. Sprouts from the first frosts, October onwards, also come out sweeter.

A half moon of iron and a half moon of grate

The set-up uses the Divide & Conquer system of Kamado Joe's Classic range, the 46 cm one. One half takes the Half Moon reversible cast-iron griddle, smooth side up: that is where the panceta renders and the large halved sprouts sear. The other half keeps the standard grate, which takes the small whole sprouts, 2 cm or less, so they pick up smoke and grill marks without falling between the bars. The manufacturer lists that griddle as compatible with the Konnected Joe, which uses the same diameter and the same system as the Classic. Kamado Joe does not list it for other brands' kamados: if yours is another brand of the same diameter, check its manual, because without a Divide & Conquer support it would have to sit on top of the full grate.

The Konnected Joe lights the charcoal by itself and its digital controller drives the fan back to the temperature you set, so after each opening the chamber recovers to 230 °C without you touching the vents. You will open it several times: for the panceta, for the shallot, for placing the sprouts, for turning them and for the glaze. Every hot opening is done with burping, and the griddle goes in cold with the kamado, never dry at full power all at once.

Panceta first, vinegar last

The order is what makes the recipe. The panceta in 1 cm dice goes first, on its own, for five or six minutes: it releases its fat, the edges brown and it comes off onto a plate, leaving the griddle greased for the sprouts. Then the sprouts go in on that fat, sear untouched and are turned only once. The sherry vinegar and the honey arrive in the last minute, so they have no time to burn: the honey's sugar clings to the crust, the vinegar cuts the fat and the dish goes from heavy to lively. If you want other winter vegetables with different techniques, the whole roasted cauliflower is cooked indirect and so is the squash with honey and paprika; this one is the griddle recipe. There is more on looking after iron inside ceramic in the guide to cast iron in the kamado, and more meat-free ideas in what to cook in a kamado.

In 30 seconds

Cast-iron griddle inside the kamado from the light-up, chamber steady at 230 °C. Diced panceta 5-6 minutes, halved sprouts cut side down in its fat 6-8 minutes untouched, turn and 5-7 minutes more; small whole ones on the grate. Last minute: 2 tbsp sherry vinegar and 1 tbsp honey. Burping at every opening.

Editor's tips

  • Within each group keep the size even: halves of 3-4 cm sprouts cook together on the griddle, but a 5 cm sprout cut only in half burns outside before the heart is done. That is why anything over 4 cm goes in quarters.
  • Do not put wet sprouts, or ones straight from the fridge, onto the iron all at once: water slows the searing and the temperature contrast does the griddle no favours. Dry them and leave them 15 minutes at room temperature.
  • For a pork-free version, replace the panceta with 2 more tablespoons of oil and add 1 teaspoon of Vera smoked paprika (pimentón de la Vera) to the glaze: it keeps the smoky note.
  • Clean the griddle while still warm with a spatula and hot water, dry it on the kamado as it cools down and give it a very thin coat of oil. The honey's sugar must not stay stuck on from one week to the next.

Gear for this recipe

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  • Kamado Joe Plancha Reversible de Hierro Fundido Half Moon (Classic)

    Kamado Joe Half Moon Reversible Cast Iron Griddle (Classic)

    The whole recipe depends on the cut face touching hot metal without moving for eight minutes, and that takes thermal mass. Kamado Joe's reversible cast-iron Half Moon griddle fills half the grate of the 46 cm Divide & Conquer system: the panceta renders and the halves sear on it, while the other half stays free for the small whole sprouts and for air to keep circulating through the dome. Kamado Joe lists it as compatible with the Classic range and with the Konnected Joe. The smooth side is the one that matters here; the ribbed side is for marking, not for searing.

    €70

    View on AmazonRead review
  • Kamado Joe Konnected Joe

    Kamado Joe Konnected Joe

    This side means opening the lid five times in twenty-five minutes: panceta, shallot, sprouts, turn and glaze. The Konnected Joe lights the charcoal by itself and its digital controller adjusts the fan to hold the set temperature, so the chamber returns to 230 °C without you touching the vents between openings. It uses the 46 cm diameter and the Divide & Conquer system of the Classic range, which is what allows the half-moon griddle on one half and the grate on the other. Every hot opening, with burping.

    €3,140

    View on AmazonRead review
  • Jealous Devil 100% Quebracho Blanco carbón lump 15.8 kg

    Jealous Devil 100% White Quebracho lump charcoal 15.8 kg

    Searing on iron needs a bed that gives high, even heat for the whole cook. Jealous Devil's white quebracho charcoal is 100 % quebracho, a very dense wood, hence its name, quiebra hacha (axe-breaker), and it comes in large lumps that let through the air the Konnected Joe's fan pushes. Being lump charcoal, with no binders, it leaves no odd flavours on sprouts that absorb everything floating in the chamber. Like any dense lump, it can spark while lighting: let the Konnected Joe finish lighting it with the lid closed before you open up.

    €205

    View on AmazonRead review
  • OXO Good Grips pinzas largas 40cm

    OXO Good Grips 16" tongs

    Turning sprout halves one by one on a griddle at 230 °C, with the kamado dome overhead, is work for precision and distance. The OXO Good Grips 40 cm tongs are just long enough to reach the far edge of the griddle without your forearm passing over the iron, and the tip has enough grip to flip a 3 cm sprout without crushing it or tearing off its crust. They also serve for stirring the panceta and for tossing the glaze in the last minute.

    €32

    View on AmazonRead review

FAQ

  • How do you cook Brussels sprouts on a griddle so they are not bitter?

    Halve them, dry them and put them cut side down on a very hot griddle, at about 230 °C, without moving them for 6-8 minutes. The searing and the caramelisation of their sugars balance the bitter backdrop, which boiling leaves unchecked. Turn them once, cook 5-7 minutes more and finish with a sweet-and-sour touch, such as sherry vinegar and honey. Do not overcook them: too long releases sulphur compounds.

  • Do you have to boil Brussels sprouts before barbecuing them?

    Not if you halve them. With the cut face against the iron and the kamado lid closed, the all-round heat of the ceramic cooks the heart while the face sears, in about 12-15 minutes in all. Blanching first puts water on the surface and the crust comes out worse. Only very large sprouts, over 4 cm, are better quartered than given a preliminary boil.

  • How long do Brussels sprouts take on the barbecue?

    In a kamado at 230 °C with a cast-iron griddle, about 6-8 minutes on the cut face and 5-7 minutes after turning them, plus 1 minute for the glaze. Add 5-6 minutes beforehand for the panceta if you use it. What takes longest is letting the kamado and the griddle stabilise: allow 10-15 minutes of heating the iron once the chamber reaches temperature.

  • What goes well with Brussels sprouts and panceta?

    They work as a side for winter roasts: a whole chicken, a joint of pork, lamb or a Christmas turkey. The sherry vinegar cuts the richness of the meat and the honey links with sweet sauces. As a light main, add toasted hazelnuts and a fried egg on top. For a table of seasonal vegetables, pair them with roast squash or whole cauliflower, which are cooked over indirect heat.

  • Can you cook Brussels sprouts in the kamado without a griddle?

    Yes, directly on the grate, ideally whole or threaded onto skewers: halves tilt and the cut face only touches the bars in stripes. They pick up smoke and grill marks, but not the continuous crust the cut face gets on iron. A cast-iron pan on the grate is the closest alternative to the griddle, as long as it leaves room around it so the air keeps flowing through the dome.

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