This mouthwatering Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan recipe has it all. Fresh green veggies, sweet caramelized onions, sauteed garlic, and parmesan all drizzled in hot honey for a sweet, spicy, savory, and delicious side dish.

This is one of those dishes that is aromatic and so much fun to make as all the smells mingle together and waft their way to your nose.
The Brussels sprouts take on an almost buttery flavor sautéed in olive oil. The caramelized onions are hard to resist and the hot honey is such an unexpected sweet addition to a hearty green vegetable. I could eat a bowl full topped with shaved parmesan and flaky sea salt as my main course.
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🍯 Hot Honey
Hot honey is such a popular item these days and is now made by a number of brands. But it's super simple to make at home. Just infuse some simple honey with red pepper flakes by warming it on the stove while you make the Brussels sprouts.
I’ve experimented with various ways to make homemade hot honey using ingredients like Frank’s Red Hot, Sriracha, and spices like paprika and cayenne pepper. But really one of the best ways is to combine honey and red pepper flakes. This simple combination gives you both sweet and heat but doesn’t overpower the dish by adding other flavors.
I love to use hot honey on all sorts of things like this Hot Honey Crispy Chicken or Hot Honey Lemon Pepper Wings, but it is super satisfying on these Hot Honey Brussel Sprouts.
🌟 Why You’ll Love These Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan
Hot Honey: It is made with a simple and approachable hot honey sauce that is easy to make at home with just two pantry ingredients.
Sweet, Spicy, Savory: These Brussels sprouts are sweet from the caramelized onions, savory from the olive oil, garlic, and parmesan, and sweet and spicy from the hot honey.
Fresh Ingredients: This recipe is made with fresh, bright, and colorful simple ingredients for an appetizing dish.
Variations
Below are a few ideas for variations for these Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts to make use of what you may already have in your pantry:
- Cheese: Use feta cheese or goat cheese.
- Nuts: Add toasted walnuts or sliced almonds.
- Hot Honey: Use a few tablespoons of maple syrup with the red pepper flakes, or use Mike's Hot Honey, or your favorite hot sauce with honey if you prefer to skip the step of making it yourself.
- Onions: Caramelized red onions also work really well with Brussels sprouts, or keep it easy and top with green onions.
- Other: Add crispy bacon for an extra flavorful side dish, add garlic powder instead of whole garlic, or add a few cracks of black pepper.
🛒 Ingredients
Below are the ingredients needed to make this Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts With Parmesan as well as a few tips as to where to get the ingredients and what to look for.

- Honey: Regular honey, any brand/type will work.
- Red Pepper Chili Flakes: Add heat to the honey.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I highly recommend using extra virgin olive oil. It is used to sauté the ingredients and imparts so much flavor to the dish. I love to use Trader Joe’s or Costco’s Spanish Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which is flavorful, but not overpowering.
- Yellow Onion: To julienne an onion cut the ends off the onion. Then cut the onion in half starting at one of the exposed ends. Then cut each half into slices by angling a sharp knife into the rounded edge of the onion. This creates slices that are the same size which helps them to caramelize evenly.
- Garlic: Keep it simple by keeping the garlic whole. It adds flavor to the dish, and simplifies the work, but does not overpower the Brussels sprouts.
- Brussel Sprouts: I recommend using fresh Brussels sprouts. Trim the ends and cut them in half, or quarters for really large ones.
- Champagne Vinegar: I love the brand called O Olive Oil and Vinegar sold at Whole Foods. It's used in this dish to cut some of the sweetness given that the caramelized onions and the hot honey are both sweet. The O brand is expensive, but it lasts a while and we use it in lots of dishes and salads, like this Spanish Salad. Otherwise, you can use white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Don’t worry, it doesn’t make the dish taste like vinegar, it just cuts the sweetness slightly.
- Parmesan Cheese: I like to use shaved parmesan to make the dish look extra appetizing. I use a mandolin and shave a wedge of parmesan, but you could use a knife to cut thin slices or grate the parmesan if that’s easier, or buy shaved parmesan at the grocery store.
- Salt: Use salt to season the dish to your preference. If you don’t know where to start add ¼ teaspoon salt. Or if you want to take it up a notch, finish the disk with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt if you have it.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
📝 How to Make Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan
Below are the step-by-step instructions and photos for how to make Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan.
*Note: The recipe card with instructions, ingredient list, and quantities is included further below these step-by-step photos.

Step 1. Hot Honey: Add the honey and red pepper flakes to a small saucepan. Set to a heat setting of warm on the stove. Ensure that it does not simmer or boil. Keep on warm while working on the rest of the dish. Simmering will reduce the water content making it harder to spoon over the Brussels sprouts.
Tip: For a spicier hot honey add additional red pepper flakes up to 1 teaspoon.
Step 2. Caramelized Onions: Bring a large cast iron skillet or sauté pan to medium heat (this should be a setting of 4 out of 10 on an electric stove or the equivalent on a gas stove). Add two tablespoons of olive oil and the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until caramelized about 8-10 minutes. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.

Step 3. Garlic: Turn the heat down slightly (to a setting of 3 out of 10), and add another tablespoon of olive oil and the garlic. Sauté, stirring occasionally for 2 minutes.
Step 4. Add Brussels Sprouts: Turn the heat back up slightly and add the Brussels sprouts along with another 1-2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Sauté, stirring occasionally for 10-12 minutes until they turn a light golden brown. Do not allow the Brussels sprouts to burn. Make sure that the Brussels sprouts are in a single layer in the pan. If the pan is overcrowded they will steam rather than caramelize.
Season with salt to taste.
Tip: Add extra virgin olive oil as needed to the pan at each step to ensure the bottom of the pan is not dry, 1-2 tablespoons at a time. As the Brussels sprouts cook they will slowly soak up the olive oil and you'll need to add more as you go along.

Step 5. Add Champagne Vinegar: Drizzle the Brussels sprouts with champagne vinegar and toss. Add the caramelized onions back in and stir to combine.
Transfer to a serving bowl, drizzle with the hot honey mixture, and top with shaved parmesan and flaky sea salt if you have it.
The Brussels sprouts are best eaten the same day while they are warm, but you can store any leftover hot honey in an airtight container to use on another dish.
Tip: The champagne vinegar has a very mild flavor and helps to cut the sweetness of the caramelized onions and hot honey.

✏️ Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts FAQs
This hot honey is in the mild heat to medium heat range. For a super spicy hot honey add a teaspoon of red pepper flakes or more.
Feel free to reduce the amount of honey drizzled on the Brussels sprouts to 2 tablespoons or less depending on your preference.
This is the perfect side dish for plenty of main dishes - anything from chicken like this Crispy Oven Baked Cornflake Chicken, to pork like these Spanish Flamenquines (similar to chicken cordon bleu), or even alongside fish.
💖 If You're Interested in More Side Dish Recipes, You May Love These:
If you've tried these Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan or any other recipe on my site, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. I'd love to hear from you!

Hot Honey Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil plus more as needed
- 1 medium yellow onion, julienned
- 10 cloves garlic ends trimmed, but kept whole
- 1 lb Brussels sprouts ends trimmed and cut in half
- 1 tablespoon champagne vinegar, or white wine vinegar
- shaved parmesan for sprinkling
- salt, or flaky sea salt to taste
Instructions
- In a small saucepan add the honey and red pepper flakes. Place on a warm setting on the stove. Keep the saucepan at warm heat, stirring occasionally while working on the rest of the dish. The honey should not come to a simmer or boil, but just be thoroughly warm. Simmering or boiling evaporates water and thickens the honey, which makes the consistency harder to drizzle on the Brussels Sprouts.
- Bring a large sauté pan to medium heat. This should be a setting of “4 out of 10” on an electric stove or the equivalent on a gas stove. Add 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and the onions and sauté, stirring occasionally until lightly caramelized, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add additional olive oil as needed so that the bottom of the pan is not dry.
- Turn the temperature down slightly to a heat setting of “3 out of 10” on an electric stove or the equivalent on a gas stove. Add a tablespoon of olive oil and the garlic and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reducing the heat helps to prevent the garlic from burning.
- Turn the heat back to a setting of 4, and add the Brussels Sprouts and more olive oil if needed. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until they start to take on a medium brown color, about 10-12 minutes. Drizzle the champagne vinegar over the Brussels sprouts and stir. Add the caramelized onions back in. Season with salt to taste.
- Remove from heat and top with parmesan flakes, hot honey and flaky sea salt if you have it.
Notes
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I highly recommend using extra virgin olive oil. It is used to sauté the ingredients and imparts so much flavor to the dish. I love to use Trader Joe’s or Costco’s Spanish Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which is flavorful, but not overpowering.
- Champagne Vinegar: I love the brand "O Olive Oil and Vinegar" sold at Whole Foods. It's used in this dish to cut some of the sweetness given that the caramelized onions and the hot honey are both sweet. The O brand is expensive, but it lasts a while and we use it in lots of dishes and salad dressings. Otherwise, you can use white wine vinegar. Don’t worry, it doesn’t make the dish taste like vinegar.
- Spicier Hot Honey: For a spicier hot honey add additional red pepper flakes up to 1 teaspoon.
- Sautéing with Olive Oil: Add extra virgin olive oil as needed to the pan at each step to ensure the bottom of the pan is not dry, 1-2 tablespoons at a time. As the Brussels sprouts cook they will slowly soak up the olive oil and you'll need to add more as you go along.
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