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Sausage Mania: Picking the Best Sausages and Grilling Them to Perfection
There’s nothing like the smell sausages on the BBQ in summer---one waft and you're drooling. It’s the ultimate summer dish and once the BBQ is hot, it takes mere minutes to have dinner ready. But what sausages should you pick? And how do you succeed in grilling the perfect sausage? That's what we cover in this blog!
The Number One Mistake People Make When Grilling Sausages
That perfectly crispy on the outside, moist on the inside, sausage is a delight to bite into (and is there anything better than the crackling sound it makes when you take that first bite?!). Slightly smoky salty goodness…a touch of sweetness and spice, too. Is there any other way to describe the perfect sausage?
Probably many. But if you want that crispy and moist perfection, there’s something you need to know: how to grill it properly.
The most common mistake people make when barbecuing sausages? They wait till the grill is smoking hot, then toss the sausages on, close the lid and hope for the best.
The best isn’t going to happen.
If you cook sausages like this, you’ll burn the casing and it will burst, too, so that the juices inside will start to drip onto the grill. It might smell good, but the end result is a charred and dry sausage.
This happens because the high heat makes the juices inside the sausage boil and, as a result, the casing bursts and the juices drip onto the BBQ. The end result is a very dry sausage.
So how do you overcome this issue? It’s actually really simple. Read on to find out.
How to Succeed with Grilling Sausages
If you’re using a charcoal BBQ, simply shove the hot coals (they should be white and glowing) to one side and let the sausages cook on the side with no coals for 8-10 minutes, with the lid closed if you have one. Flip halfway through. This will ensure that the sausages are cooked through without making them so hot they “explode.” Instead, the casings will be intact and the sausages nice and juicy inside.
Then, for the last few minutes of grilling, put the sausages over direct heat (i.e. where all the charcoals are). You need about two to three minutes on both sides. This will give you that nice crispy surface so that you get that ever so satisfying crackling sound when you take your first bite. Delicious.
Using a gas grill? Simply control the temperature! Medium to low first, then medium to high.
Some people like to do this the other way around---they use high heat in the very beginning to brown the sausages, then low heat after that.
Tip: Sausages are made of pork, which should reach 71° Celsius or 160° Fahrenheit inside (so the middle of the sausage).
Picking the Best Sausages for Your BBQ
We read somewhere that the best sausages are the ones you love. Amen to that. Of course, you also have to choose ones that are suitable for being grilled...which, admittedly, is most sausages.
In addition, we recommend you use sausages that have as few additives as possible. Flavorings like cheese, bacon, chili and what have you can be delightful, but lots of preservatives are not.
Some of our favourite sausages come from Per i Viken (Per in the Bay in English!). These are made from "pure" ingredients and several have won gold in Sweden for their incredible taste. And perhaps it's not so strange as the business that transformed into Per i Viken was set up already in 1926! Talk about having a long history of making high-quality charcuterie!
While you'll find many modern (and international) flavors at Per i Viken today, the craftsmanship that goes into making their products is still old-fashioned, if you so like---they genuinely care to ensure that every product on their shelves is made to perfection. This is one of the many reasons we enjoy working with them.
If you're going camping, you might want to try Pilsner Korv (beer sausage). Interestingly, they contain no beer, but were originally marketed by a famous Swedish actor in the 1950s who made so-called "pilsner movies." As you can imagine, the plot centred around beer (and the comedic mishaps you might have if you imbibe). These sausages come in a tin (tinned food was all the rage in the 1950s) and are therefore easy to bring with you on a camping trip. While the quality is not that of Per i Viken, they've reached cult status in Sweden.
Once you have the perfect sausage hot off the barbie, all you need is some great toppings and perhaps some bread. Being Swedish, we like hot and sweet mustard, but there's also bostongurka (a relish made with pickled cucumber), toasted onions, ketchup, or even skagenröra if you plan to eat your hot dog with tunnbröd instead of regular hot dog buns.
Of course we also have some great hot dog buns from Korvbrödsbagarn, including sour dough and gluten free options! And as for sides, potato salad, anyone?
Now for that first bite into that perfectly grilled hot dog...we don't know about you, but our mouth's watering!