These bacon ranch brussel sprouts are a delicious and simple side dish that the whole family can enjoy. Made with just 5 ingredients this dish is as easy as it is delicious.
Looking for a fun way to spruce up your veggies? This Bacon ranch brussels sprouts recipe is a surefire way to get everyone to eat their greens (and like it!)
With ranch brussel sprouts you get a tangy flavor added to every savory bite and when you pair the soft onions, carmelized brussel sprouts, and crisp bacon, it's a winning dish that everyone will enjoy.
We love brussel sprouts around here and it's one of the veggies my kids will gladly ask for more of, so having plenty of recipes to use them keeps us from getting bored. Check out my Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Carrots or these Instant Pot Brussel Sprouts for more ideas.
Why This Recipe Works
- It's quick. This is a great side dish to make when you're in a hurry and needing something fast.
- Minimal ingredients. You really won't need much to make these brussel sprouts taste good. This is great for keeping in budget or maintaining a small shopping list.
- It pairs well with anything. You can serve this recipe up with your next roasted chicken, holiday ham, or thanksgiving turkey and it's sure to be enjoyed no matter what.
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🥘 Ingredients
Brussel sprouts- You will need fresh brussel sprouts that have been washed and trimmed.
Onion- Use an onion as an aromatic. it's going to give us a great depth of flavor and sweetness once cooked.
Bacon strips- Bacon adds a salty chewy touch to this dish that pairs perfectly with everything else.
Olive oil- Use olive oil to help coat the veggies. This will help the seasoning to stick so that everything tastes better.
Ranch seasoning mix- Use a packet of ranch seasoning mix, this will provide all of the seasonings we want in a convenient packet.
For specific quantities, see the recipe card below.
🍽 Equipment Needed
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🔪 Instructions
Check out how to make bacon ranch brussel sprouts with these simple step-by-step instructions:
Heat a 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until warm.
Add in the bacon strips and cook until crisp on both sides. Remove bacon and drain all but 1 tablespoon of grease from the pan. when bacon is cool enough to handle, chop into tiny bits.
Add in your diced onions and cook for about 1 minute until soft.
Add in the brussel sprouts and olive oil.
Cook until the brussel sprouts are browned and softened. This will take about 15-20 minutes. Remember to stir occasionally to prevent burning.
Stir in the ranch seasoning mix and bacon bits. Toss well to combine.
Remove from heat.
Serve warm
🧾 Substitutions
Bacon: Instead of using bacon strips you can use ½ cup of bacon bits.
Bacon grease: You can replace the reserved bacon grease with additional olive oil.
📖 Variations
Add Chicken
You can turn this side dish into a full meal by simply adding in some cooked chicken.
If desired you can stir in cooked chopped chicken just before stirring in the ranch mix. The heat from the sprouts should help to warm up the cooked chicken so that the dish feels more complete. This is a great way to use up leftover rotisserie chicken!
You can also make chicken bacon ranch brussel sprouts by adding 1 pound (or one breast) of chopped 1 inch cube sized pieces of raw chicken to the pan right after removing the bacon. Cook until golden on the outside and no longer pink on the outside. Remove from pan and return to pan at the end, just before stirring in the ranch mix.
Please note that by adding in chicken your 12 inch pan will really be FULL, so a 14 inch pan would be a better choice, or simply reduce the brussel sprout recipe by half to accommodate the added chicken.
🍴 Recipe Tips
This recipe can be scaled
This dish will really fill your pan well and give plenty of servings so that everyone can enjoy second helpings or larger portions if desired. If you don't have so many mouths to feed or don't want to make such a huge batch, feel free to reduce the recipe in half.
🥬 Brussel Sprouts Prep
To prepare the brussel sprouts, wash them all well in a colander in the sink under cool running water. Then transfer to a towel to drain as you work your way through the batch, chopping off the wooden-like bottom ends of the sprouts.
After the bottoms have been removed, sit the brussel sprouts upright on the cutting board and use your knife to slice them into quarter sized pieces.
If the brussels are smaller than a quarter, simply cutting them in half is sufficient. You can either discard or keep and use the loose leaves that fall off of the sprouts.
💭 FAQs
To make this dish dairy free all you would need to do is look at the back of your ranch seasoning packet and be sure to grab one that does not contain dairy as a listed ingredient. There are a lot of options for dairy free ranch seasonings but there are also quite a few brands that have dairy as a listed ingredient so it's important to double check when shopping.
To reheat this side dish you can either microwave a serving on a plate for 1-2 minutes (the bacon will be soft) or you can reheat it over medium heat on the stove, this will give you a more crisp texture. Cook until warmed through.
We serve brussel sprouts with just about anything because it's such a popular veggie around here! We love to serve it up with chicken and pork the most. Anything from chicken drumsticks to a simple pork roast works wonderfully but you can also serve brussel sprouts up with your holiday meats like ham and turkey too.
More great side dish recipes to check out soon
- Sheet Pan Chicken, Brussel Sprouts and Potatoes
- Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Carrots
- Instant Pot Brussel Sprouts and Bacon
- Easy Canned Corn Recipe
- Garlic Roasted Brussel Sprouts
- Cheesy Chicken with Quinoa and Roasted Brussel Sprouts
📖 Recipe
Bacon Ranch Brussel Sprouts
Ingredients
- 2 pound brussel sprouts, quartered ($5.96)
- ½ cup diced onion (yellow or red) ($0.35)
- 4 slices bacon ($1.44)
- 1 tablespoon reserved bacon grease ($0.00)
- 2-3 tablespoon olive oil ($0.39)
- 2 tablespoon ranch seasoning mix ($0.20)
Instructions
- Heat a 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until warm.
- Add in the bacon strips and cook until crisp on both sides. Remove bacon and drain all but 1 tablespoon of grease from the pan. when bacon is cool enough to handle, chop into tiny bits.
- Add in your diced onions and cook for about 1 minute until soft.
- Add in the brussel sprouts and olive oil. Cook until the brussel sprouts are browned and softened. This will take about 15-20 minutes. Remember to stir occasionally to prevent burning.
- Stir in the ranch seasoning mix and bacon bits. Toss well to combine.
- Remove from heat. Serve warm
Notes
- To prepare the brussel sprouts, wash them all well in a colander in the sink under cool running water.
- Then transfer to a towel to drain as you work your way through the batch, chopping off the wooden-like bottom ends of the sprouts.
- After the bottoms have been removed, sit the brussel sprouts upright on the cutting board and use your knife to slice them into quarter sized pieces.
- If the brussels are smaller than a quarter, simply cutting them in half is sufficient. You can either discard or keep and use the loose leaves that fall off of the sprouts.
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