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Home » Charcuterie » Fresh Sausage » Homemade German Bratwurst

Homemade German Bratwurst

October 9, 2018 by Victor @ Taste of Artisan 19 Comments

Homemade German Bratwurst frying in a pan.

Bratwurst is a type of German sausage that everyone knows. Meat-loving Germans adore brats. I was fortunate enough to spend a year in Germany where I got a chance to try a variety of bratwurst sausages. There are so many of them that every region, every city, even every butcher has own bratwurst recipe. It's a bratwurst lover's paradise.

The taste of bratwurst is largely determined by the use of different spices and spice proportions. In Nuremberg, for example, marjoram dominates the flavor of the sausage. Similarly, other regions may favor garlic or caraway. In general, the following spices are typically used for making bratwurst: salt, pepper, nutmeg, cardamom, allspice, garlic, caraway, marjoram and sometimes lemon zest.

Unlike bockwurst, bratwurst favors more pork and less veal in its recipes, and the meat is not emulsified.

This particular bratwurst recipe comes from Stanley Marianski's Home Production of Quality Meats and Sausages book. It's customary for bratwurst recipes in Germany to take on the names of specific regions of where a recipe comes from.  For example, there is Thuringer Bratwurst, Nurnberger Bratwurst, Rheinishe Bratwurst, etc.  This recipe is fairly generic so it doesn't have a specific region name attached to it. Nevertheless, I've made bratwurst using this recipe a number of times with great results.

Taste-wise, this is one of the best bratwurst recipes I’ve tried. It's well rounded and should appeal to a wide range of tastes.

German bratwurst frying with onions in a cast-iron pan.

Homemade German Bratwurst Recipe

5 from 4 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: dinner, lunch
Cuisine: German
Keyword: brats, bratwurst, bratwurst recipes, fresh sausage, how to make bratwurst, sausage
Prep Time: 1 hour
Calories:
Author: Victor

Ingredients

  • 700 g pork
  • 300 g veal
  • 13 g kosher salt
  • 3 g white pepper
  • 1 tsp marjoram
  • 1 g caraway
  • 0.5 g ginger (ground)
  • 1 g nutmeg
  • 2 egg whites
  • 100 g cold water

Instructions

  • Grind meat through 3/16” (3 mm) plate.
  • Whisk the egg whites.
  • Mix the ground meat and all ingredients together.
  • Stuff into 32-36 mm hog casings forming 4” (10 cm) links.
  • Keep in a refrigerator or freeze for later use.

Notes

Cook before serving. Adding white of an egg is optional. It is common in Germany to add eggs into fresh sausages to increase the binding of ingredients.
Marianski doesn't specify what pork cut should be used in this recipe. In general, pork butt is commonly used for making brats. It has just the right ratio of meat to fat.
I adjusted the salt content down from 18g per 1000g of meat. Marianski's recipes tend to be on the saltier side. If you like your sausage saltier you can always add more. I find that 13g per 1000g of meat is right where I like my salt content to be.
The recipe is for 1000g of meat. You can easily scale it up or down as needed.

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  1. Molly

    December 03, 2022 at 3:03 pm

    Victor, thanks so much for sharing these recipes! We raise our own hogs on pasture and we are always looking for homemade sausage recipes. Is it best to allow the meat with the spices to rest for some period of time before cooking them or are they ready to cook right away? We are looking forward to trying this one today or tomorrow. If you have other bratwurst and sausage recipes would you please share?
    Thank you!

    Reply
    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      December 16, 2022 at 5:56 pm

      Hi Molly, my apologies for the late response. Letting the meat rest with salt and seasonings would be beneficial as it will allow the salt to penetrate the meat better and the seasonings to meld together. In Italy, they let fresh sausage ferment for 4-5 days to get a nice tangy flavor going; I do that too every now and again. I treat pasture raised heritage pork a little differently. I buy mine from a local farm, it's a cross between Berkshire and British Spotted, which they call Berkspot. It doesn't need a lot of seasonings, and most often all I use is salt, pepper, and a little bit of garlic-infused wine. That said, I have several good bratwurst recipes, I will email them to you.

      Reply
  2. Gladys

    July 08, 2022 at 11:10 pm

    Yes, please…post all the recipes you have!
    I will make them all! Growing up my mom considered commercial sausages full of dubious ingredients,,,, if she could see me now! She would love these and approve!
    Thank you,
    Gladys, Toronto🇨🇦

    Reply
    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      July 09, 2022 at 3:23 pm

      Lol... ok, I will. I have a few really good regional ones. Not sure if a whole post would be warranted but I can email them to you.

      Reply
  3. julian

    January 23, 2022 at 11:35 am

    excellent,my 11 year old is asausagespecialist and loves these

    Reply
    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      January 23, 2022 at 2:55 pm

      Well, the specialist has spoken 😉 Glad you guys liked them... I have a few more regional German bratwurst recipes, very good... if enough folks are interested, I can write them up and post them on the blog here.

      Reply
  4. John

    May 07, 2021 at 2:29 am

    Who in there right mind would only make2.20 lbs of sausage at one time?

    Reply
    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      May 08, 2021 at 12:34 pm

      This is a base recipe that can be scaled as needed. Most sausage recipes are written like that.

      Reply
    • Gladys

      July 08, 2022 at 11:06 pm

      I did…on the first try to get a feel for it! Delicious, delicious!
      Next time minimum of 4 pounds of meat!
      I am spreading the word to anyone who will listen as to how great home made sausages are and how clean the ingredients are too. No MSG, no gluten, no soy, no seed oils, no milk powder, no HFCS, no binders, fillers or junk. I love the fresh taste and the ease of prep. Some of my friends are starting to listen! Saves lots of money, too! Really saves money! I love it.
      Next stop…pepperoni!🍕

      Reply
      • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

        July 09, 2022 at 3:22 pm

        Glad you enjoyed it... and thank you for your feedback. Enjoy!

  5. Shaun Gray

    November 24, 2020 at 8:01 pm

    Greetings from Michigan city, IN.
    Would you have a recipe for a "Polish Brat?"
    If so would you please it to me.
    Thank you
    I hope you and your family have a Blessed Thanksgiving.
    Stay Safe
    Shaun Gray

    Reply
    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      November 26, 2020 at 9:00 pm

      Hi Shaun, I've never made one and I don't recall ever coming across a Polish brat but I will look through my books, perhaps I can find it... will let you know if I do.

      Reply
  6. Cindy Kocol

    November 10, 2020 at 5:36 pm

    I made these brats this morning. I used my stand mixer to grind the meat. Formed patties because I don't have a machine for stuffing sausage. Cooked up two patties. Reheated Brötchen I baked two days ago. Added German mustard to the cooked patty on the bun. Delicious! I didn't follow the recipe to a tee as I was leery about the amount of caraway seeds (only used 1 tbsp), etc. That was fine. I will make this again.

    Reply
    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      November 10, 2020 at 6:09 pm

      Thanks for the feedback, Cindy. You must try my other fresh sausage recipes, I have a feeling you will like them as well.

      Reply
    • Gladys

      July 08, 2022 at 11:12 pm

      Thank you for sharing that you prepared these without casings!
      Very good to know!
      Gladys, Toronto🇨🇦

      Reply
  7. Cindy K.

    November 03, 2020 at 4:44 pm

    I want to make this but don't have the ability to stuff the meat into casings. Could I just make a patty, fry it and put it into a bun?

    Reply
    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      November 03, 2020 at 5:01 pm

      Absolutely. I always fry any leftover meat that I scrape off the bottom of the stuffer and from inside the stuffing tube. Delicious.

      Reply
  8. Lisa

    October 13, 2020 at 9:39 pm

    Can't wait to try this recipe thanks

    Reply
  9. Golden Goose

    October 29, 2019 at 2:58 pm

    Wonderful, great recipe, I've made it three times already.

    Reply

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