What Are Brats?
Brat is a term commonly used for bratwurst. German-born fresh link sausages known as bratwurst are a particular variety. The usual ingredients are pork and veal. The seasonings used in the making include ginger, nutmeg, coriander, and caraway.
Cream and eggs are also required for the production of several traditional recipes. Every region in Germany and several parts of the United States has unique bratwurst recipes. A well-known variety from Wisconsin is bratwursts, made in the style of Sheboygan.
The traditional German bratwurst, perhaps, which has a similar appearance and flavor, is where Sheboygan brats got their start. There are many different spices used in recipes. Still, they all frequently include marjoram, ginger, nutmeg, black or white pepper, and occasionally mustard seed, caraway, and other herbs and spices.
We advise using a lower heat for grilling Sheboygan-style brats because adding sugar makes them a touch sweeter and helps them brown more quickly.
What Is the Best Way to Cook Brats?
Bratwurst sausages can be prepared in various methods, including grilling, boiling, roasting, and air frying. The stove is unquestionably one of the most common methods. The secret is to gently brown the brats before adding liquid to steam and cook the insides.
But if you want to spend a little more time and effort to achieve the best taste, we suggest you cook brats on a grill. The grill cooks the brats rapidly so they retain their moisture and tenderness inside and giving them the ideal caramelization and additional smokiness.
Tips on Grilling Brats
First and foremost, we suggest you find the freshest brats for perfect results. You can find brats easily in local markets all over the United States.
While cooking, please try not to damage the exterior skin of the brats. If you accidentally damage the brats’ exterior while grilling them, they will spill all the juice inside, resulting in dry brats.
Before grilling the brats, you should simmer them first but not boil them too much. For the best results, we suggest you simmer your brats on low heat for a couple of minutes only. This way, you will not damage the exterior skin, which is called the casing.
After the brats have finished simmering, grilling them only needs five to ten minutes to achieve a gorgeous crisp char. You do not need to worry if this much short time on the grill isn’t enough time to cook your brats thoroughly because simmering takes care of all the labor-intensive aspects of preparing them.
Tips on Keeping Brats Warm After Grilling
Even though we suggest eating your bratwurst sausages right after cooking, still, there are some tips you can easily follow to keep them warm and juicy at the same time. Here are a few options you can utilize to do so:
- You can wrap the brats in foil and put the covered dish into a closed airtight container. This option has the least keeping warm time compared to the other suggestions.
- You can put the brats in a preheated oven. We suggest you preheat your oven to low heat to keep them as juicy as possible without drying them out during the waiting time. If you need to wait a few hours, we suggest turning the oven on and off to keep the temperature inside the oven stable.
- Last but not least, there is the boiled beer mixture option. This way is the most common version used in many households. We will go through the detailed steps later in this article.
- Another way is simply to warm your slow cooker on the low setting for about thirty minutes before adding the brats if you want to avoid beer. They will cook more uniformly and stay warm as a result of this. Although it is not an absolute must, beer doesn’t harm when warming brats in a slow cooker.
Keeping Brats Warm Using a Boiled Beer Mixture
Brats can be kept warm after grilling by soaking them in a boiling beer mixture. This mixture, which keeps them warm and adds a delightful scent, enhances bratwursts’ qualities.
To prepare this mixture, add onions, garlic, beer, and butter in a deep pan. Afterward, put the pan on the stove on low heat, stirring the mixture during the process until it simmers. When the onions are soft, your mix is ready. We suggest you take out the garlic to prevent the mixture from getting too strong while waiting.
When your mixture is ready, please turn off the stove and put the brats in the mix while making sure they are completely soaked and covered. It would be best if you kept the warmth of the beer mixture around 140 degrees. We suggest you utilize a kitchen thermometer for the best results.
Conclusion
Bratwurst sausages are excellent alternatives to typical plain sausages. Even though they are more time-consuming to prepare, they are well worth the time and effort after tasting them.
After grilling, eating them as soon as possible is the best way to do so. But if you need to prepare your brats beforehand, you can use the tips for cooking the best juicy brats and follow the steps on how to keep brats warm after grilling.