A Belgian history of the Brussels sprout
The controversial small green cabbage did not originate from Brussels, but just outside the city walls in the nearby Saint-Gilles.
More potatoes? Only once you have eaten all of your sprouts! is the perennial battle cry of parents heard at Christmas dinner tables whenever Brussels sprouts are involved.
Love it or hate it, the Brussels sprout is a popular vegetable which emerged from the colder climates of Northern Europe, and more precisely from the rural hills just outside the Brussels city walls.
After taking Europe by storm, the boiled Brussels sprout remains today an essential component of the United Kingdom’s Christmas day meal – much to the sustained suffering of generations of British children who often complain about the bitter taste.
However, the controversial small green cabbage – often seen as part of a roast dinner – did not originate from the City of Brussels but just outside the city walls in the nearby Saint-Gilles.
