A Brussels sprout and kale hybrid is expected to make its nationwide supermarket debut this fall.
BrusselKales are the result of 15 years of traditional crop breeding by British vegetable seed company Tozer Seeds. The company says the taste is more subtle than a Brussels sprout, “a fusion of sweet and nutty.”
I’m wondering where this sweetness will be coming from, because in my experience, neither Brussels sprouts nor kale have that quality.
The hybrid is the result of cross pollination between the two vegetables and it is not genetically modified as both part of the cabbage family.
Tozer Seeds lists it as a “Flower Sprout” and it is also being marketed under the name “Kalettte.”
I have very mixed feelings about this. I have come to love Brussels sprouts, but kale and all its religious supporters can leave and never come back as far as I’m concerned. I also remember the time my mom bought grapples—a cross between a grape and an apple—and I wasn’t very impressed.
USA Today touts the BrusselKale as “the superfood we’ve been waiting for.” Although, I’m not sure who exactly they’re referring to. Were you waiting for this? Were your current superfoods not quite super enough for you? And exactly how much butter and salt would you have to cook it in for a BrusselKale to be appetizing?
In some ways, this feels like a wasted opportunity. I much would have preferred something like a cucumber the size of a baby carrot or sweeter broccoli. In fact, since apparently scientists can make a BrusselKale happen, why don’t all our vegetables taste like fruit yet? Science, get on that.
Image via Modern Farmer