How to Cook Bratwurst

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Whether they are from a German Christmas Market, picked up at our local Aldi, or from my favourite online German food retailer, nothing beats a Bratwurst! When it comes to cooking, there are lots of options, so let’s take a look at how to cook Bratwurst.

I love all sausages. They are gorgeous, and there’s so much that you can do with them from the simple sausage sandwich to a big family casserole.

Sausages are cheap, great for budget family dinners, and incredibly versatile. They also tend to be popular with kids, so ideal for midweek dinners.

Bratwurst, are like the king of the sausages. They are heavy and filled with meat, super tasty, and really easy to cook. 

But there isn’t just one way to cook a brat. In fact, there are loads of ways to cook them and eat them. 

What is a Bratwurst?

Firstly, what is bratwurst, and how does it differ from a normal sausage?

Bratwurst is a kind of traditional German sausage, usually made with pork, but sometimes veal or beef, or a mixture. 

Brats typically contain meat (a much higher meat content than cheap sausages you might buy for a fry up!) and a range of spices, including nutmeg, mace, ginger, and caraway. 

Brats, like most other popular foods, have evolved over the years and Bratwurst is often used as a catch-all term for all of the different flavours of sausages, such as Currywurst, Coburger Bratwurst, Bockwurst and Rote Wurst, even though they all have unique flavours. 

I tend to think Bratwurst are a heavy sausage. They feel heavy and solid in your hand. This is in part due to the high meat content, but also because the meat is fairly coarse, unlike the smoother, lighter frankfurter. 

How do they Cook Bratwurst in Germany?

In Germany, Bratwurst are often boiled in either water or beer, before being finished on the grill for a nice smoky flavour. 

However, brats are also cooked on the stove in a cast-iron skillet or pan with a little butter and water, for about 40 minutes until they are cooked through and the internal temperature reaches (can be measured with a meat thermometer – affiliate link) over 72 degrees C for at least 2 minutes. 

Brats are sometimes also cooked in the oven in Germany, but boiled and grilled or cooked on the stove are the most common options. 

Can You Cook Bratwurst from Frozen?

How you should cook brats depends on the kind that you buy. 

The ones that I get from The Sausage Man are pre-cooked and arrive frozen. 

These can be reheated in the oven in about 15 minutes from frozen. 

If your bratwurst are fresh and raw, then you should ideally thaw them slowly in the freezer before cooking. 

If you do decide to cook your raw bratwurst from frozen, you should either bake them in the oven for around 1 hour, ideally using a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature before serving or boil them for around 20 minutes before grilling or frying to brown the outsides. 

Can You Cook Bratwurst in the Microwave?

I don’t have a microwave, so this isn’t a form of cooking that I’m particularly familiar with.

Precooked bratwurst can be cooked in the microwave, as you are only warming them up, but I wouldn’t recommend cooking raw bratwurst in the microwave. 

If I was going to use a microwave to reheat precooked bratwurst I would:

• Without piercing the sausage skin place the bratwurst in a microwave-safe container
• Cover with water
• Either loosely cover with a lid, leaving a bit of a gap, or cover with cling film and pierce a couple of times
• Cook on high power for 2 minutes, turn and cook for a further 2 minutes
• Leave to stand for 2 minutes before serving

However, the cooking time depends on the size of your bratwurst, how many there are and the power of your microwave. 

You might also still want to briefly fry or grill your bratwurst to brown them, so they look more appealing. 

Reheating Precooked Bratwurst

In England a lot of the Bratwursts that we buy are precooked. Always check the label to see if you are buying precooked or raw before cooking so that you know whether you are cooking, or just warming up. 

Cooking Precooked Bratwurst on a BBQ

If your Bratwurst are precooked and you are just warming them up, the BBQ or grill is a perfect way to do it. You’ll brown them and cook them through nicely. 

• Don’t pierce the skin
• Grill for about 2 minutes before turning
• Keep turning regularly to avoid burning
• They are ready when they are browned on all sides, but check to make sure the centre is piping hot before serving. 

Frying Precooked Bratwurst

Frying is a great option for reheating pre-cooked brats. 

• Don’t pierce the skin
• Fry in a little butter or oil over a low-medium heat
• Turn frequently
• They are ready when they are browned all over, and the centre is piping hot. This takes around 10-15 minutes and a little longer from frozen. 

Baking Precooked Bratwurst

I often bake my precooked bratwurst in the oven from frozen. I’ve made currywurst on a tray from frozen, just by baking them on a tray on their own for 15 minutes. 

I’ve also baked precooked brats in a deep baking tray with beer, sliced potatoes and veg for a yummy family dinner. 

Cooking Brats in the Oven

If your bratwurst is raw, there are still a few different ways that you can cook them. Just remember they need to be piping hot (over 70 degrees C for at least 2 minutes) all of the ways through before you serve them, and that it will take longer to cook fresh bratwurst than it will precooked. 

How to Cook Bratwurst in the Oven

You can still make my beer and bratwurst bake with raw bratwurst. Just put them in the oven at the same time as the potatoes, instead of nestling on later. 

Or you can cook them on a tray on their own.

• Don’t pierce the skin
• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C
• Place the brats on a lightly oiled baking tray
• Bake for 45 minutes, turning halfway
• Check to make sure the centre is piping hot (I recommend using a meat thermometer to make sure they are over 72 degrees C) before serving
• Return to the oven for a further 15 minutes if needed
• If your Brats are XXL, they might need up to 1 hour and 15 minutes to cook. 

Boiling Bratwurst in Beer

Boiling raw brats before frying or grilling is a popular choice. 

It means that you know they are cooked through before you brown them quickly on the grill or in a pan, and as long as you don’t pierce the skin you shouldn’t lose any flavour. 

This can speed up the cooking time and reduce the risks of eating uncooked bratwurst. If you boil them in beer, you might even add some flavour. 

How Long to Boil Bratwurst in Beer?

When we talk about boiling brats, we don’t mean sticking them in a pan filled with liquid and hard boiling them. 

Generally, when you boil bratwurst, you also add onions and butter, and only enough liquid to cover them. It’s more of a gentle simmer, that you can do in a deep-frying pan, cast iron skillet or cast iron Dutch oven. To get a great beer flavour:

• Place a finely sliced onion (red or brown) in a deep pan, skillet, Dutch oven or another flameproof pan/dish
• Add a few knobs of butter
• Nestle the bratwurst on top
• Pour over enough German beer to cover 
• Heat over a medium flame until the beer reaches a boil
• Reduce to a gentle simmer and cook for 15 minutes, adding more beer if it starts to dry out
• Remove from the heat, and remove the bratwurst carefully with tongs
• Grill or fry for a few minutes on each side to brown and finish
• Check that they are piping hot in the middle and the meat is no longer pink before serving

If you are boiling frozen bratwurst, add 5 minutes to the cooking time, and grill for a little longer if needed. 

How to Cook Bratwurst without Beer

Of course, you don’t have to use beef if you don’t want to!

How to Cook Brats in a Pan with Water

Simply follow the instructions above, but replace the beer with water. If you are in a rush, you can also skip the onions and butter and just simmer in a pan of water. 

How Long to Boil Brats?

Generally, you should boil raw bratwurst for around 15 minutes or 20 for frozen. But this will depend on how cold they are and how big they are. 

How to Fry Bratwurst

You might want to boil raw bratwurst before frying them. But if you want to fry from raw, you totally can.

How to Cook Bratwurst on the Stove

• Preheat a cast-iron skillet or large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat
• Add a splash of oil or cooking spray
• Add the sausages (they shouldn’t be crammed together in the pan, so if your brats are large, or there are lots of them, do this in two batches)
• If they are spitting too much, reduce the heat
• Cook for around 5 minutes, before turning
• It should take around 20 minutes to fry bratwurst from raw, depending on the size
• Check the middle is piping hot and there’s no pink meat. If there is, fry for a few more minutes

How to Cook Bratwurst without Splitting

When I cook sausages, I often pierce the skin before cooking, so that it doesn’t split. 

I don’t do this with brats, because I don’t want to lose any of that yummy flavour. 

But generally, I find that because the meat content is so high, brats don’t expand as much as a fattier sausage with more liquid, so they are less likely to split. 

Boiling brats before frying or grilling is a great way to heat them gradually, and evenly, which reduces the chance of them splitting, but just frying or grilling gently can help too. 

So, make sure they are never at a violent boil or cooking too quickly. Medium heat is the way to go. 

Using pre-cooked brats is a great idea if you want to completely get rid of the risk of skin splitting. You are just warming them up, so they shouldn’t split as much. 

Grilling or BBQing Brats

You should Grill brats slowly, over a medium heat, to avoid splitting or burning. 

How Long to Grill Brats?

If your brats are raw, and you haven’t pre-boiled them, I’d expect it to take around 20 minutes with regular turning. The same as frying. 

If you want to BBQ bratwurst, I do recommend boiling them for at least 10-15 minutes first, and just browning them on the grill. It’s harder to control the temperature of a bbq, and you risk uncooked insides, burned outsides and plenty of split sausage skin. 

Cooking Bratwurst in an Air Fryer

I don’t have an air fryer. But as far as I can tell for Air fryer brats you simply spray the tray with a little cooking spray, pop the bratwurst in and cook for around 15 minutes. As usual, make sure they are piping hot before serving. There’s a recipe here.

Top Tips for Cooking Bratwurst

• Always check to see if your bratwurst are precooked, or raw. They won’t be browned so it’s not always easy to tell just by looking at them and raw brats need to be cooked thoroughly. 
• If possible, use a meat thermometer (affiliate link) to make sure the middle of your bratwurst has reached over 72 degrees C. 
• If you don’t have a meat thermometer, make sure the middle is too hot to touch, and there’s no pink meat. 
• Never prick the skin, it releases flavour and moisture. 
• Don’t cook raw brats in the microwave.

What to Serve with Bratwurst?

I love to serve Bratwurst and sauerkraut in classic hot dog buns, or on a plate with ketchup, German potato salad and onions.

Brats always taste amazing, whatever you serve them with. 

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