How to Cook Fresh Sausages
Sausages are a versatile ingredient. They are already seasoned and cook up quickly, making them the perfect addition to last minute dinner recipes. And with so many varieties of sausages, the possible flavor combinations are endless. But how do you cook fresh sausages to avoid raw bites? Below are multiple ways to cook sausage: grilling, roasting, sautéing, slow cooking, and poaching.
How Long to Cook Sausage
Cook all sausages to an internal temperature of at least 160 degrees and until there is no sign of pink in the meat inside. Cooking times below with each method are approximate as raw sausage sizes vary.
How to Poach Sausage
Poaching raw sausage before cooking is not required, but it is a foolproof way to ensure your meat will be cooked all the way through. Whether you want to grill or sauté sausages, if you gently pre-cook them first, then all they need is a quick browning.
Two ways to poach sausage:
Poaching on the Stove. Place sausages in a pot. Cover sausages with cold water. Bring to a simmer and turn off the heat. Let sausages sit in water until water has cooled to room temp. Remove sausages from water and reserve until ready to cook.
Note, you do not want to boil sausages. Boiling sausages can cause the casings to split which results in the juices and seasonings to leach into the cooking water.
Poaching in the Slow Cooker. Place sausages in a slow cooker. Just cover sausages with cold water. Cover and cook on HIGH for 1-2 hours. Remove sausages from water and reserve until ready to cook.
How long do sausages take to cook in the slow cooker? Our slow cooker takes 1 hour and 15 minutes for raw sausages to reach 160 degrees on HIGH, but slow cookers will vary. The advantage to poaching in the slow cooker is that you do not have to watch the pot to prevent boiling.
How to Grill or Smoke Fresh Sausage
You have a few choices when it comes to grilling fresh sausages:
Poach then Grill. Follow the steps above for poaching sausages. Prepare your grill. Place whole poached sausages over direct heat to just brown each side.
Use Direct and Indirect Heat. Prepare your grill. Grill whole raw sausages over direct low heat for about 2 minutes a side to brown. Move the sausages to indirect heat, close the lid, continue to grill another 15-20 minutes.
Use Indirect Heat. Prepare a hot fire. Place raw sausages on the side of the grill away from the fire, close the grill, cook through.
Alternatively, prepare a low fire with wood chips and smoke sausages indirectly until fully cooked. Note, slow smoking sausages at low temps can result in chewy tough casings — look for natural casings and make sure to include a water pan in the grill.
If you are firing up the grill, see our list of easy BBQ side dishes.
How to Sauté or Pan-Fry Sausage
You have two choices for sautéing fresh sausages:
Poach then Sauté. Follow the steps above for poaching sausages. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add whole or sliced sausages and brown.
Sauté only. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook sausages, turning occasionally, until browned all over and cooked through, about 20-25 minutes. Watch the heat and turn it down if needed.
How to Oven-Roast Fresh Sausage
Roasting sausages in the oven is easy because it mimics the indirect heat of a grill. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat sausages with olive oil and roast for about 25-35 minutes, until cooked through.
How to Slow Cook Sausages
Thanks to the longer cooking times, sausages are easy to cook in a slow cooker without the need for pre-cooking. But you may want to brown the sausages before adding them to the pot. A good recipe to try: white beans with sausages.
Cooking Notes
In general, try not to prick or pierce the sausages as this lets moisture and flavor out.
Always use moderate heat or you risk bursting the casings.
Some sausages will brown more than others, but again, cook all sausages to an internal temperature of at least 160 degrees and until there is no sign of pink in the meat inside.
What to serve with sausage? Due to the fat content, sausages pair well with acidic, tangy foods like sauerkraut, mustards, relishes, pickled onions, pickles, kimchi, or horseradish.
