Sausage Hotpot is a brilliant budget meal, perfect for feeding the whole family while trying to save some money. And there are baked beans in it, which is always a win with the kids!
**Recipe updated January 2022**
Update includes a bit more information, and I’ve extended the time that you simmer the Sausage hotpot with baked beans on the hob from 10 to 30 minutes.
The last time I made it I found that my potatoes sank, so I just wanted to make sure the sauce reduced enough to sit them on top of.
I’ve also had some feedback from someone that their carrots weren’t cooked.
This isn’t a problem that I’ve ever had, but simmering for 30 minutes reduces the risk of this too.
Everything else is still the same though.
I love sausages, they are super versatile and this is an incredibly budget-friendly recipe that my kids absolutely love.
What is Sausage Hotpot?
Sausage hotpot with potato topping is a simple Sausage Casserole Recipe, with a sliced potato lid, baked in the oven.
It’s basically that potato top that turns a casserole into a hotpot.
Meals like this Easy sausage hotpot recipe are I think the perfect mid-week family meals. They are quick, easy, cheap and super tasty.
There’s not much washing up, and my kids always love meals with sausages and baked beans.
Sausage Hotpot Ingredients
I like to keep things as easy as possible, so for my best sausage hotpot recipe I use:
Cooking Spray – You can use oil if you prefer
Pork Sausages – I brown these in the pan before everything else. You can use a frying pan for this if you prefer.
Red Onion
Chantenay Carrots – I absolutely love these and use them a lot. If you prefer you could swap them for regular carrots, just make sure you peel and slice them as they’ll take longer to cook than chantenay.
Chicken Stock Cube
Chopped Tomatoes
Baked Beans
Cannellini Beans – These aren’t essential, but my kids love all of the beans!
Bay
Salt and Ground Black Pepper
Potatoes – Any large white potatoes like a King Edwards is great. Peeled and thinly sliced to around 2mm
Butter
What Kind of Sausages Should You Use in a Sausage Hotpot?
My kids aren’t fussy eaters, so we can use any kind of sausage, from Brats to Cumberland, in our Sausage Hotpot with sliced potatoes.
But you might want to stick to a plain pork sausage.
They don’t need to be anything fancy, but if you can afford to spend a little more on sausages with a higher meat content, that’s great.
Can You Add Other Beans?
I tend to use either butter beans or cannellini beans, as well as my tin of baked beans.
You don’t need to, though; you can skip this bit if you prefer.
I think adding more beans really enhances the flavor, and it is especially useful if you are hoping to feed six people with your hotpot.
I’d imagine other beans would work, too; use what you’ve got if you are cooking on a budget.
How Many Sausages in a Portion?
Lol. Well. I’ve said that this Sausage and Baked Bean Hotpot will serve 6 people, and it really really should.
With two sausages each and plenty of beans, carrots, and potatoes, you should be full.
I’d normally say three sausages are a portion, certainly if you were having sausage and mash. But, with all the beans, two should do.
But if you want three sausages each, it will serve four of you!
How to Make Sausage Hotpot
This recipe for sausage hotpot is so simple.
I cook it all in one big casserole dish, first on the hob to simmer the sauce and then in the oven to cook and brown the potatoes.
See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for full instructions.
Should You Prick Sausages Before Cooking?
There’s a lot of debate around the pricking of a sausage. Some people advise against pricking the skin before cooking, while others insist upon it.
Really, there’s no right or wrong.
I do usually prick mine a few times with a sharp knife.
Not in any attempt to make them healthier. It does release some of the fat, but that’s not the primary reason for doing it.
Sausages are a fatty food; they are meant to be, and a lot of the flavour is in the fat.
But, as they cook, the fat and other juices expand and move around, which can cause the skin to burst.
I usually prick mine carefully, just to avoid the skin splitting too much.
In this Hotpot, I’d prick them before browning, but if you are happy with a split skin, leave them, totally up to you.
How Long to Cook Sausage Hotpot?
I simmer my sausage hot pot recipe on the hob for around 30 minutes to thicken the sauce, so that the potatoes don’t sink and all of the flavours come together.
I then bake in the oven for around 50 minutes, until the potatoes are golden brown.
What to Serve with Sausage Hotpot?
This sausage casserole has it all. Meat, vegetables, beans, potatoes and a lovely sauce. You can serve it on its own straight out of the cooking pot.
You can add extra veg if you want to, or serve with bread to mop up all of the lovely tomato sauce, but it isn’t necessary.
How Long Will Sausage Hotpot Last?
If you’ve got any leftovers from your Sausage Hot pot, they’ll last in the fridge for a few days in an airtight tub or covered dish.
Just make sure you heat them thoroughly until the sausages are piping hot throughout before serving.
If you’ve got sausages left but not much else, serve with some extra veg and mash, or even bread or chips.
Can You Freeze Sausage Hotpot?
You can freeze Sausage Hotpot, but freezing and thawing will cause some cell breakdown. The texture of the sauce might change, and the beans might break down.
It will still be fine, but it might seem a little…mushy. You might be better off removing the sausages and potatoes from the sauce and freezing them separately in an airtight container.
Other Meals with Sausages
If you like family dinners with sausages as much as we do, you might also enjoy:
- Sausage and Beer Casserole
- Sausage Casserole with Butterbeans
- Spicy Sausage Pasta
- Sausage Burritos
- Traybake with Sausage and Sweet Potatoes
- Sausage Risotto
- Sausage and Mash Pie
- Chorizo and Sausage Casserole
Other Meals with Baked Beans
The kids love it when I put baked beans into meals.
I make Sausage and Baked Bean Traybake lots, and we love a good sausage and bean pasta bake.
Sausage Hotpot
Ingredients
- Cooking Spray or oil
- 12 Pork Sausages
- 1 Red Onion (Diced)
- 500 g Chantenay Carrots (Top and bottomed)
- 300 ml Chicken Stock
- 400 g Chopped Tomatoes
- 400 g Baked Beans
- 400 g Cannellini Beans (Drained)
- 2 Bay Leaves
- Salt and pepper
- 750 g White Potatoes (Peeled and thinly sliced)
- 1 Tablespoon Butter
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large ovenproof dish over medium heat.
- Add the sausages and fry until lightly browned (it might be easier to do this in two batches of six).
- Remove the sausages from the dish and leave to one side.
- Add the onions to the oil, adding a little more if needed.
- Fry for 5 minutes until soft.
- Add the carrots and stir.
- Pour in the stock, chopped tomatoes, baked beans, and cannellini beans, and add the bay leaves.
- Season well with salt and pepper and return the sausages.
- Stir together well and bring to a boil.
- Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, until the sauce thickens, stirring often.
- Remove the dish from the heat.
- Layer over the potatoes and dot liberally with butter.
- Bake in the oven at 180 degrees C (fan-assisted) for 40 minutes.
- Turn the oven up to 200 degrees and bake for a further 10 minutes until the potatoes have browned.
- Serve straight from the oven.
Video
Notes
- It’s normal for the sauce to bubble up over the potatoes, don’t worry.
- Use your favourite sausages.
- Skip or swap the cannellini beans if you prefer.
Nutrition
Any nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate. The information is provided using an online calculator and is specific to my ingredients. Please make your own calculations if you want precise information.
This looks really tasty. Just the thing for this time of year, and with sausages in it I know it would be a winner with my kids!
Thank you. It’s certainly popular with mine!
This looks right up my street. And by coincidence, we were visiting friends in York today and they took us out for a pub lunch at a tiny little backstreet restaurant, where we ordered enornous plates of sausages,beans and chips. Definitely going to pass this recipe on to them :)
Thanks! An enormous plate of sausages, beans, and chips sounds pretty good!
really nice, but the timing is miles off.
says takes 1 hour 30. but if you follow the recipe there is a 30min simmer and 2x 40 + 10mins oven sections so total so that’s 2 hours ignoring other prep. id say you should allow at least 2 hours 20 total
Thanks for your comment. There’s only one 40 mins + 10. I’ve adjusted the prep time, because that was a little off, and I’ll change the wording of the cooking instructions so it’s a little clearer.
I’m glad you enjoyed the meal!
Great recipe I love hotpot and i love sausages. Im also lucky to have a really good local butchers in Suffolk who make top-notch sausages at a very affordable price.
Oh how excellent. I do love a good sausage!
Love a good hotpot! This is making me feel HUNGRY :-D Eb x
It’s certainly a favourite here!
This looks delicious, I love the potatoes on top! I have a sausage casserole recipe that has baked beans in – love them!
Thanks Cat. Anything with beans in is a win for us!
Thank you for providing such a thorough recipe guide. I like potatoes with sausage, and tomatoes are my absolute favorite.
Never made a hotpot in this way……anyway, it worked out very well last night!
Thanks Leo. This is the only way I’ve ever made them. How do you usually do it?
Ohh these pics make me so hungry right now. I’m gonna try this for my supper later!
Was looking for a good recipe to try with my kids, but they are on the spectrum so some things need to be familiar when introducing new things, wondering what your thoughts would be to making a mash potato top for this rather than sliced potatoes, like a shepherds pie topping?
My thoughts are always positive when it comes to mashed potatoes! All I’d say is it might sink a little, so you might want to simmer the base for longer, or use less liquid, so that you’ve got a nice thick sauce, and make a good thick layer of mash, so that it doesn’t matter if it does sink a bit.
I have a sausage and mash pie recipe here – https://donnadundas.co.uk/sausage-and-mash-pie/ which is pretty similar!
Thank you !
great recipe.
only comment. you put preheat oven, then you list ~40mins worth of tasks before oven is needed!
Thanks for the tip Adam, I’ll change that now!
Made this with vegan sausage and veg stock instead
Went down well
Would it work with sweet potato?
hi Chloe, thanks for your comment.
I’ve never tried it with sweet potato, so I can’t say for sure. But, there are recipes for sweet potato hotpots out there, so I think it’s probably worth a try.
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