Okay, I’m a native Wisconsinite (Wisconsonian? Sconnie? Ummm, guy from Mi’waukee!) who spent hundreds of hours watching his dad make brats “the proper way”, and it’s how i do mine: Boil in beer with onions, then brown on the grill.
Well, this thread made me realize… we’re all idiots. The good lord has blessed us with the perfect meat, and we’re diluting it. Losing the precious fat ‘n’ flavor before it ever gets near a grill. Pulykamel was right, upthread: “All that brat flavor just goes into the braising liquid. You’re just basically making beer brat soup.”
Next cookout, here’s what I’m going to do… Step One, grill brats. Step Two, eat brats.
That way, I’ll keep all the fat I can in the brat, and get that nice Maillard-Reaction-Crispiness on the outside. Now, I do need to come up with a rationale for the big metal pot on the stove, full of cheap beer and onions. Because it makes the house smell SO great. Wife and kids walk in the door and inhale. “Mmmm, brats tonight!”
Ooh, I’ll put the brats in the beer after they’re grilled, so people will be scooping up onions and brats with the tongs.
Excuse me, i have to go buy some Johnsonville Brats and start the grill in the middle of the night…
I once had a Milwaukee native neighbor who insisted you grill the bratwurst FIRST, and then keep it hot in the beer/onion bath and let guests fish out their own.
Personally, I just grill ‘em, ten minutes to a side on a medium grill. Or five on a side if I split them. And I’d rather use fresh onion (and pickle) than the stuff that’s been simmering in beer. The slight crunch is part of the experience.
Scabpicker: Due to the big pockets of German and Czech immigrants, Texas opinion on Central European cookery should always be respected. Cheryl & Bill Jamieson’s excellent TEXAS HOME COOKING includes several such dishes, and is the source of my own method for chicken and dumplings…
Version 3 is the one you’re talking about. Version 2 is the one that I advocate.
The is also a “Version 4” mentioned which is alternating the grill and bath until they’re fully cooked through, but it’s labeled as the persnickety technique, and I don’t think it’s as widely known.
As much as I like brats, in general, I still prefer the smoked sausage you get at barbecue joints. (descendant of some of those Texas Germans- the ones who stayed in Galveston rather than immigrating to Central Texas).
I agree with those who think that the beer leaches the flavor out of the brat; I read that cooking sausages sous-vide might actually be the best way to cook them- you don’t overcook them, and you don’t lose much moisture either, as the stretch on the grill is just to brown/crisp the outside.
The grill adds a ton of flavor, though, with its browning of the sausage.
Also, in the Sheboygan area, grilling is considered High Art, and a man’s standing in the neighborhood can depend on his skill in grilling and browning a brat with minimal leakage of the juices. My uncle Tom was a master of that.
And I agree that the sentiment expressed earlier is applicable in Sheboygan County;
for there, beer is for drinking, not cooking.
Though the abstemious Calvinist Hollanders in the southern part of the county may try to sneak some forbidden beer into their system via beer soaked brats. Most of them now just go someplace outside their small towns to drink.
Thankya, I’ll try to get my hands on a copy, but I’ll try to avoid the chicken and dumplings. I’ve never gotten over the trauma of being served them from a can. My wife likes them, but she’s not going to make a giant starch bomb if she’s the only one that’s going to eat them.
And oh yeah, fresh onions are almost necessary. Fresh jalapenos are better than canned, too.
Hmm, maybe a squirt of Halal Guy’s hot sauce on it…no, at that point it just becomes a capsaicin transfer device. Scratch that.
When it comes to sausages in Texas barbecue joints, that’s a broad subject. I’ve had heavenly sausages, and I’ve had ones that make me wish I’d ordered anything else. A brat is a narrow target, in comparison.
And yeah, I don’t recommend cooking them in the beer. If you want them really sweet, go nuts and baste them with the beer while cooking under lower heat on a grill or pan. I’ve done similar things while smoking stuff (putting beer, wine, champagne or cider in a pan in the heat flow works when smoking, too, but won’t really transfer sugars), and always liked the results.
Man, we actually have (for the moment, only oldsters speak it anymore) our own dialect of German. Can’t say that for the upper Midwest.
Speaking of books… Robb Walsh’s “Texas Eats - Heritage Cookbook” is terrific. It’s as much history book as cookbook, and goes into the Central European roots of Texas food, as well as other influences on the state’s food, such as the post-war oil boom fine dining stuff happening in Houston and Dallas.
I mostly agree (as a Chicagoan who’s spent a lot of time in northern Wisconsin and eaten more than my share of brats).
The boil-in-beer method is a decent tailgate and party food, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it DID improve the flavor of low-quality brats. And maybe that used to be a valuable trick. But it’s so easy to buy really good sausages these days, with any supermarket selling some decent ones and nearly any butcher selling good to excellent ones.
That said, you CAN make a good version of a beer brat by simmering your peppers and onions in beer. Use just enough to cover, simmer and slow so the beer reduces down, and use a flavorful but not too bitter beer.
I was just going to reply that some of the best brats I’ve had I made just a few weeks ago. I smoked them at 180 for about an hour over Apple and Hickory and then crisped them up briefly over a very hot grill.
Planning to smoke some salmon this weekend so may just have to add a few brats to the plan.
Beer went into my mouth for that part of the equation.
When I make Reubens I doctor my (canned) sauerkraut with a grainy, spicy mustard and a bit of brown sugar. It doesn’t taste sweet at all – the sugar just rounds out the flavors and creates a real depth of flavor. Yum!