5 things you shouldn’t do if you want delicious sausages

It seems so easy, right, frying a sausage? Just take it straight from the fridge and put it in the pan, sear it nice and hot, wait a little, done. But just because sausage has such a humble appearance doesn’t mean preparing a delicious, juicy bratwurst doesn’t require some love and attention. So here’s a list of mistakes many people make when preparing fresh sausage—and, of course, how to do it properly.

As a big fan of sausage company Brandt & Levie, I’m also happy to embrace their motto: eat less, but better meat. Their little shop next to their own sausage factory in Amsterdam’s Houthavens is one of my favorite places to do my ‘grocery shopping’; you’ll find fresh sausages in unusual flavors, hot dogs with a real ‘snap’, and a huge selection of their famous dried sausages. The good news: they also deliver the dry sausages by mail!

And once you have those delicious bratwursts from them—or from another sausage maker—in your hands, it would of course be a shame to ruin them. So, for these and all other fresh sausages you’re going to fry or grill, please avoid the following mistakes:

Mistake 1: You marinate the sausages

Marinating is great, and can really give all kinds of meat, fish, and vegetables a boost, but it’s actually not necessary for sausages. If all goes well, all the flavor is already inside, and besides, the casing around the sausage meat generally doesn’t let much additional moisture or flavor in. That said, you can pre-cook sausages that are going on the grill or barbecue in a little liquid first.

Mistake 2: You put the sausage in the pan cold

If you’re impatient, this is a very obvious move. But just as with any other piece of fish or meat, the same applies here: let it come to room temperature first. The longer your meat needs to cook, the more time the outside has to burn or dry out. So the inside of a sausage that spends less time in the pan (because it isn’t cold) cooks faster, allowing it to stay deliciously juicy.

Mistake 3: You start over high heat

In principle, you can choose between two options: either you start over high heat and do the actual cooking over low heat, or you do it the other way around. But with the first option, you risk ending up with a burnt sausage whose inside is still undercooked: what a waste. It’s better to do it the other way around: first cook a sausage over low heat until it’s almost done, then give it a lovely crisp, caramelized crust over higher heat. This also works best on the BBQ: cook it over indirect heat first, then finish it directly over the fire for a smokier seared layer. It’s just a little easier to control than doing it the other way around.

Mistake 4: You fry the sausages in a dry pan

You sometimes hear that sausages are fatty enough on their own, so you don’t need to add any extra fat to the pan to fry them. But if sausages are indeed cooking in their own fat, that means it’s leaking out somewhere, which is a shame (so don’t prick them)! Otherwise, you’ll end up with a dried-out, crumbly sausage. So do add some oil or butter to the pan, or even a tiny bit of water. That way, you keep all that precious moisture and fat inside.

Mistake 5: You overcrowd the pan

To brown and cook food evenly all around, you shouldn’t fill the pan (or baking sheet) completely. Make sure there is always some space between the sausages (or whatever else you’re frying or roasting). Otherwise, the heat from underneath can’t circulate and only creates steam (and an overly hot bottom), meaning you’ll just be steaming everything a little instead of getting delicious brown edges all around.

Well, we certainly do love sausage. Are you now craving a delicious, juicy bratwurst too? Then check out these recipes: lentils with bratwurst, or pasta with bratwurst!

Also read:

• Bad news: every hot dog costs you 35 minutes of your life
• This is the winner of the Great Grilled Sausage Test 2021
• Q&A with Samuel Levie