I always like to have a warm or room temperature vegetable salad or side dish on my holiday buffets. This one feature smoky charred grill raosted Brussels sprouts and one of my new favorite things… pheasant sausage. The pheasant sausage is a mild sausage similar to a veal or chicken sausage, but the game fowl gives it a fuller, richer flavor. However, you could certainly substitute chicken or veal sausage in this recipe.
I came up with a slightly sweet and tangy vinaigrette from pomegranate molasses to compliment the smoky, slightly bitter flavor of the sprouts and the richness of the sausage. The added pomegranate seeds, dates, and pecans ad a festive touch.
If you live in an area where you don’t have a specialty retailer to get pheasant sausage, give my friends at Fossil Farms a call and they can have it delivered direct to your door.
Note: this is not a sponsored post. I paid full retail, but the folks a Fossil Farms are so helpful that it is worth the mention.
- ¼ medium red onion, cut into thin slivers
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 pound pheasant sausage (or chicken sausage)
- 2 pounds medium Brussels sprouts, trimmed
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ⅓ cup sliced pitted dates
- ¼ cup pomegranate seeds
- ¼ cup chopped toasted pecans
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- Pomegranate Vinaigrette
- 3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 7 to 8 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- -
- Extras:
- Grilling grid
- Place onion slivers in a small bowl and add the vinegar, a pinch of salt and enough water to cover; set aside.
- Skip this step if your sausages are fully cooked. Add 3- or 4-inches of water to a small stock pot or Dutch oven; enough water to cover the sausages. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat until there is barley a simmer. Drop in the raw sausages and poach for 10 minutes. Remove sausages, cover and set aside until ready to grill. Reserve the poaching liquid.
- Add enough water to the pot to blanch the sprouts and bring to a boil. When the water comes to a boil add a big pinch of kosher salt and blanch the sprouts for 5 minutes. Drain and plunge the sprouts into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain on paper towels and then slice them in half through the stem end. Toss with with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
- Set up grill for indirect cooking over medium-high heat. Heat the grilling grid over the indirect side.
- Place sprouts on grill grid in a single layer. Close grill cover and roast for 10 minutes, flip sprouts and continue cooking for another 10 to 15 minutes and for tender and slightly charred. Remove and set aside.
- Grill the sausages over direct heat for 10 to 15 minutes until marked and golden brown.
- While the sausages rest make the vinaigrette by combining the pomegranate molasses, vinegar, and mustard. Whisk in the oil 1 tablespoon at a time until emulsified.
- Slice the sausages into ¼-inch rounds and add to a large mixing bowl, add the sprouts, pomegranate seeds, dates and pecans. Drizzle with vinaigrette and toss to combine. Serve at room temperature.
Cheers and Happy Grilling!
~Jeff
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