Brussels Sprouts with Hot Bacon Dressing
Delicately shredded Brussels sprouts are pan fried in bacon grease, giving them lots of flavor. These Keto Brussels sprouts are tossed in a hot bacon dressing that is tangy and sweet and topped with crumbles of goat cheese!
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I’ll be the first to admit, I didn’t always like Brussels sprouts. Since starting Keto, I’ve made them a few different ways and my favorite way to prepare them has been roasted in the oven with balsamic and prosciutto.
But I have to say, once I made them with the hot bacon dressing, this recipe slid into my #1 spot. The dressing is so rich with bacon flavor, (and who doesn’t love bacon, right!?) and tangy from the dijon and apple cider vinegar.
Typically I would add honey to sweeten and thicken up the dressing, but on Keto, that’s just not going to work, so I found the perfect replacement- sugar-free apricot jam! It might sound odd, but trust me when I tell you that it just works!!
If you’ve never been a fan of Brussels sprouts, this recipe just might change your mind!
What’s in Shredded Keto Brussels Sprouts with Hot Bacon Dressing
- Brussels sprouts, shredded
- Uncured bacon
- Bacon Grease
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Sugar-free apricot jam
- Dijon Mustard
- Brown Swerve
- Shallot
- Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
- Optional: Goat cheese
*Exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below.
How to Make the Best Keto Brussels Sprouts
Add the chopped bacon to a large skillet and fry until crisp and all the fat has rendered. Transfer the bacon to paper towels and allow to drain.
You should have 1/4 cup of bacon grease total. Pour most of the bacon grease into a cup, leaving behind just a tablespoon in the skillet.
Add in the butter and Brussels sprouts, then toss and sauté for about 7-10 minutes or until they are tender.
Remove the Brussels sprouts and and set aside.
Add the bacon grease back into the pan and heat on medium. Add in the shallots and sauté for about 2 minutes.
Then add in the apricot jam, Brown Swerve, apple cider vinegar, dijon mustard and water.
Whisk until combined and continue cooking for another 2 minutes, then drizzle over the Brussels sprouts and toss to combine.
Top with the reserved bacon, crumbled goat cheese and serve warm.
If you’re like me, you always save your bacon drippings. In order to keep your bacon grease fresh and even safe to leave on the countertop, use a strainer to remove any solids that are remaining in your skillet. This bacon grease keeper is great. It has a strainer and it stainless steel!
Tips on Making the Best Keto Brussels Sprouts
How to Make the Low Carb Hot Bacon Dressing
The base of this hot bacon dressing starts with uncured bacon and the bacon fat that is rendered. If your bacon is on the leaner side, you might have to either dig into your stored bacon fat reserves (if you have some) or fry a little more bacon up. I’m sure it won’t be hard to figure out what to do with the extra bacon, right!?
Before Keto, I used to use honey in my hot bacon dressing. But with Keto, I needed a replacement for honey, so I used a great sugar-free apricot jam. It’s sweetened with Stevia and really tastes delicious! The jam adds a nice level of sweetness to the dressing, but also helps to thicken it up just as honey does.
I also used Apple Cider Vinegar because it adds such a nice flavor, along with the Brown Swerve. If you don’t have the vinegar on hand, you can use white wine vinegar instead.
If you can’t find Brown Swerve, you can use Swerve confectioners, and a tiny drop of blackstrap molasses. You can also substitute with any Keto friendly brown sugar replacement to get that same sweet molasses like flavor.
How to Prepare the Brussels Sprouts on Keto
While you can shred the Brussels Sprouts with a sharp knife, the easiest and fastest way is with a Food Processor. I used the 4mm slicing blade on mine and they shredded perfectly in about 2 minutes.
Are Brussels Sprouts Keto?
You bet! They are high in fiber and low in net low in carbs, plus for a whole cup there’re only about 88 calories in brussels sprouts which makes them a great choice on any diet.
They’re super healthy and contain Vitamin K and C, but also contain Vitamin A, and folate. Read more about the health benefits of Brussels sprouts in this article!
How Many Carbs in Brussels Sprouts?
There are 4.7g of net carbs in one cup of Brussels sprouts.
A Few Tips on Brussels Sprouts
- Before cooking brussels sprouts, trim the woody ends, leaving the sprout itself in place.
- When shopping for brussels sprouts, look for bright green leaves without any browning or yellowing.
- The leaves should be tight and snug against one another.
- For a sweeter flavor, you should look for smaller sprouts as the larger they get, the more they take on a cabbage flavor.
- Avoid packages of brussels sprouts that have moisture. Brussels sprouts that can not breathe will sweat and create moisture. The moisture will create mold.
Other Uses for Sugar-Free Apricot Jam
You’ll notice that this recipe uses a sugar-free apricot jam from Good Good. If you’re on the fence about giving it a try, let me encourage you to do so.
It’s by far the best sugar free jam I’ve tasted. I like to use it as a Keto substitute for honey to thicken and add sweetness to homemade salad dressings.
And if you’re wondering what you should do with the remaining jam in the jar, here are some awesome ideas that will put it to delicious use:
- Using apricot jam in a vinaigrette dressing, like in this recipe, is so tasty. If you like the sweet and tangy flavor, you may also enjoy this Sugar Free Apricot Vinaigrette recipe. It is especially good on this Grilled Shrimp Salad.
- The sweetness in the jam is fabulous with bacon. Yep, bacon! Give it a try with these Grilled Bacon Wrapped Asparagus bundles. They have a apricot glaze that sends them right over the top!
- I absolutely love a summertime berry medley. You can take some of this jam and thin it out with a little water and simple syrup made with Swerve or Allulose and drizzle over a bowl of berries. It makes a super easy dessert everyone will love.
- Last but not least, in its simplest form, Sugar Free Apricot Jam serve with homemade Keto Biscuits is so good, you won’t even miss traditional jam.
More Keto and Dishes:
- Shredded Brussels Sprouts
- Creamed Spinach
- Grilled Broccolini
- Green Beans Almondine
- Cheesy Mashed Cauliflower
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Brussels Sprouts with Hot Bacon Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, shredded
- 7 slices uncured bacon, chopped
- 1/4 cup bacon grease
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar-free apricot jam
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons brown Swerve
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon hot water
- salt and pepper to taste
- Optional: 1/4 cup goat cheese, crumbled
Instructions
- Add the chopped bacon to a large skillet and fry until crisp and all the fat has rendered. Transfer the bacon to paper towels and allow to drain.
- You should have 1/4 cup of bacon grease total. Pour most of the bacon grease into a cup, leaving behind just a tablespoon in the skillet. Add in the butter and Brussels sprouts, then toss and sauté for about 7-10 minutes or until they are tender. Remove the Brussels sprouts and and set aside.
- Add the bacon grease back into the pan and heat on medium. Add in the shallots and sauté for about 2 minutes, then add in the apricot jam, brown Swerve, apple cider vinegar, dijon mustard and water. Whisk until combined and continue cooking for another 2 minutes, then drizzle over the Brussels sprouts and toss to combine.
- Top with the reserved bacon, (optional) crumbled goat cheese and serve warm. Store in an airtight container for several days in the fridge.
*Make sure to scroll up and read the post for substitutions, additions and helpful tips for making this recipe.
*Nutritional data is provided as a courtesy and is accurate to the best of my knowledge. You can verify it using the nutrition calculator of your choice. All data is based on net carbs, without sugar alcohol: Swerve, Erythritol, Monk Fruit or Allulose.
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Rate this Recipe
I do have a keto honey. Would you use the same amount of honey that you do the jam?
This looks delicious and I am excited to try the recipe!
I would probably use a little less honey since it is so concentrated.
This looks delightful but sugar free jam
Isn’t something I can get my hands on where I live. Do you have any suggestions for substitutes? I have sugar free strawberry jelly but I don’t think that would work.
I think the sugar-free strawberry jelly would work fine. You are mainly wanting it to add a little sweet glaze. Let me know if you try that and how it turns out.
The recipe looks good but I cannot justify spending $11 on jam just for one tablespoon. Would a less pricey one work?
Sure, as long as it’s Keto friendly. But I have used this jam in a few other recipes, so you could easily use up a jar. Plus it’s delicious just spread on my Keto Drop Biscuits or even chaffles.
You had me at bacon! I was looking for a recipe to use with the brussel sprouts I just picked up and this is amazing! I love all the flavors, it is so bright and flavorful. This is definitely going on the menu for future family gatherings. I do think this will win even anti-brussel sprout people over. Thank you for a fantastic recipe = )