Cabin Recipes: Bratwurst With Hot Kraut

Recipe and photo courtesy of Cuisine at Home

As easy as it sounds, there are some definite rules to grilling a good brat. First and foremost, never buy precooked bratwurst. Ever. I’m all for convenience, but these do nothing to enhance one’s brat-eating experience.

Second, simmer the brats before grilling. Precooking the sausages makes them less likely to split on the grill, which means the brat stays moist because juices aren’t leaking out of the casing. So, should you simmer them in water or beer? In my opinion, use water. The alcohol in the beer tends to dry out the meat. You can drink the beer while you’re grilling the brats!

Makes 4 bratwurst

Total time: 30 minutes 

Ingredients: Cook

• 3 strips thick-sliced bacon, diced
• 3 cups sliced onion
• 3 cups chopped green cabbage
• 2 Tbsp. prepared yellow mustard
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• Salt to taste

Ingredients: Simmer

• 4 uncooked bratwurst
• 4 unsliced brat buns, cut lengthwise through the top

Instructions

1. Preheat grill to medium-high.
2. Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp; transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate and pour off all but 1 Tbsp. drippings. Add onion and cabbage to skillet; cook until softened. Stir in bacon, mustard, and sugar; season with salt and simmer.
3. Simmer bratwurst in water in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until nearly cooked through; drain.
4. Grill bratwurst, covered, until lightly charred and no longer pink in the center. Place buns, cut side down, on top of bratwurst to heat through; serve with kraut.

Nutritional Facts per bratwurst with 1/3 cup kraut: Calories: 445; Total Fat: 28g; Cholesterol: 67mg; Sodium: 1106mg; Carbs: 29g; Fiber: 2g; Protein: 17g