Bavarian Sausage: Crafting The Perfect German Bratwurst

Weisswurst, or white sausage, is a German speciality, and is especially popular in Bavaria. It is traditionally made with pork and veal, though some recipes also include bacon. The sausage is seasoned with parsley, lemon zest, and spices such as mace, cardamom, and mustard seeds.

Weisswurst is typically heated in water rather than fried or grilled, and is usually served with a pretzel and sweet mustard. It is often consumed as a breakfast food, though it can also be enjoyed at lunch or dinner.

To make Weisswurst, you will need a meat grinder, a food processor or Thermomix, and pork casings. The meat is ground and mixed with spices and ice water, before being stuffed into the casings. The sausages are then poached in water for around 30 minutes.

Choosing the meat

Choosing the right meat is crucial to making delicious Bavarian sausage. The traditional meat used in Bavarian sausage, or Weisswurst, is veal and pork. Specifically, you should use veal shoulder and pork backfat. The ratio of veal to pork backfat should be approximately 47.5% to 32.5%. This ensures that your sausage has the right balance of flavours and textures.

If you are unable to find veal, you can substitute it with other white meat such as rabbit, chicken, turkey or even wild turkey or pheasant. However, it is important to note that the sausage should remain white in colour, so choose your meats accordingly. For example, darker meats like beef or lamb would not be suitable as they would turn the sausage grey.

In addition to the meat, you will also need bacon. Bacon adds flavour and fat to the sausage mixture, ensuring that it is juicy and tasty. The amount of bacon you use is flexible, but a good rule of thumb is to include enough so that your sausage mixture has sufficient fat to bind it together.

When preparing the meat, cut it into strips or chunks that will fit through your meat grinder. It is important to ensure that your meat is very cold, even partially frozen, before grinding. This helps to keep the fat solid and prevents it from melting, which can affect the texture of your sausage.

Once you have ground your meat, mix in the spices and other ingredients, and you're ready to start filling your sausage casings!

Preparing the casing

Firstly, rinse the salt off the casing and soak it in a bowl of warm water. This will help remove any impurities and ensure the casing is clean before filling it with the sausage mixture.

Next, wash the casing inside and out with tap water. This step is crucial to ensure the casing is free of any dirt or bacteria that could spoil the sausage or affect its taste. After washing, cover the casing with a lid and set it aside.

Now, you need to prepare your sausage filler or stuffer. Apply a small amount of oil to the pipe of the filler to make it easier to slide the casing onto it. This will also help prevent the casing from tearing during the filling process.

Once the casing is on the pipe, crank the hand crank until all the air is removed from the pipe, and some sausage meat starts to come out. This step ensures that there are no air pockets in the casing, which could cause the sausage to burst during cooking.

Tie a knot at one end of the casing to secure the sausage meat. Then, slowly turn the hand crank to fill the casing with the meat mixture. Be careful not to overfill the casing, as this can also lead to bursting during cooking.

Finally, tie a knot at the other end of the casing. Now you can divide the sausages into your desired size. The traditional weight for a Bavarian sausage is around 80 grams.

Mixing the ingredients

To make Bavarian sausage, or Weisswurst, you'll need the following ingredients:

• Veal (shoulder)
• Pork backfat
• Crushed ice or ice water
• Spices: ground mustard seeds, lemon zest, parsley, and cutter phosphate
• Pork casing

First, grind your spices (except for the cutter phosphate and parsley) to a fine powder. Grate the zest of half a lemon, making sure to only use the yellow part of the lemon zest. Next, cut your meat and back fat into strips, with the size depending on how big your meat grinder is. Add the spices to the meat and massage them in. Put the meat in the freezer for 1-2 hours to help with the grinding process and temperature.

Now it's time to grind the meat. Grind the meat through the finest perforated disc (2mm). Let the meat through the meat grinder twice, as this will make the next step easier. Put the meat mixture into a sausage cutter or food processor, and add the cutter phosphate. Mix the meat and add some crushed ice from time to time to make the mixture nice and creamy. Keep mixing until it forms a cohesive mass. Measure the temperature in between to ensure the meat does not get warmer than 12°C (53.6°F), or the mixture will lose its binding and the sausage will crumble.

Add the chopped parsley to the meat and mix until the mixture is homogeneous. Now, put the pig casing onto your sausage filler. Press the sausage filler down and let the air escape. Stop once the first sausage meat is seen. Tie the pig casing at the beginning, then fill your Weisswurst, ensuring there are not too many air bubbles and that the sausage is not filled too much, or it may burst.

Shaping the sausage

First, you'll need to prepare your meat. Cut your meat and back fat into strips. The size will depend on how big your meat grinder is—the bigger the grinder, the bigger your pieces of meat can be.

Next, add your spices to the meat and massage them in. When the meat is covered in spices, put it in the freezer for 1-2 hours. This will help with the grinding process and the temperature.

Now it's time to grind the meat. Grind the meat through the finest perforated disc (2mm). Let the meat pass through the meat grinder twice; the next step will be easier this way.

Once you've done that, put the meat mixture into a sausage cutter or your food processor. Add the cutter phosphate to the mixture.

Mix the meat and add some crushed ice from time to time. The crushed ice is used to make your mixture nice and creamy. Mix until it forms a nice cohesive mass.

Measure the temperature in between. The meat should not be warmer than 12°C (53.6°F), otherwise, your mass will lose its binding and the sausage will crumble later on.

Now it's time to add the chopped parsley to the meat and mix until the mixture is homogeneous.

Then, put the pig casing onto your sausage filler. Press the sausage filler down and let the air escape. When the first sausage meat is seen, you can stop.

Tie the pig casing at the beginning. Fill your Weisswurst, making sure that there are not too many air bubbles and that the sausage is not filled too much. This can cause your Weisswurst to burst.

Now we will link the sausage. You can decide for yourself how big your Weisswurst should be. The traditional weight is around 80g.

And there you have it—you've shaped your sausage!

Cooking the sausage

Weisswurst sausages are not fried or grilled, but poached in water. The sausages are placed in non-boiling water at around 70°C/158°F for 10-12 minutes. The water should be gently bubbling, not simmering, and definitely not boiling. The sausages can be poached for up to 30 minutes, depending on the thickness of the casings.

Weisswurst should be served hot, so it is recommended to place them in a bowl with some of the cooking water to keep them warm. They can be served with a soft pretzel, sweet mustard, and a glass of wheat beer.

Weisswurst can also be cooked in a pan with other ingredients, such as sliced onions, sauerkraut, and apples. First, the sausages are seared in a pan with vegetable oil for 2-4 minutes, then the other ingredients are added, along with beer, and cooked for 15-20 minutes.

If you want to add a smoky flavour to the sausages, they can be cooked on a grill and basted with beer.

Frequently asked questions