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Grilled Beer Brats and Sauerkraut

Easy beer brats and sauerkraut cooked in one pan on the grill with beer, butter, onions and sauerkraut. Delicious on buns with a swipe of mustard or melted provolone and perfect for summer grilling and fall Oktoberfest celebrations!

Brats and sauerkraut in white serving dish.

One of my husband's favorite things in the whole, wide world is sausage ~ any kind, cooked any way.  He makes really good brats on the grill, with beer and butter and onions and sauerkraut.  I just hand over a dozen brats to Meathead and he takes over.  This grilled sausage and sauerkraut dish has become his specialty.

Close up of grilled brats in sauerkraut.

We got the recipe out of our newspaper and it's from a local meat market.  It's all cooked on the grill in a disposable pan, so easy and so damn good!

The sausages are grilled first and then submersed in a mixture of beer, butter, onions, sweet banana peppers and sauerkraut.  Cover and simmer on the grill until all the flavors meld and the brats are super tender and flavorful.

Brats on buns in pan with disposable pan in background.

These brats are great on toasted buns with the sauerkraut mixture piled on and a swipe of spicy brown mustard.  But we skipped the buns and opted for a plate of beer brats and sauerkraut, with mustard on the side ~ and we promptly wolfed down two brats each!

Grilled brats with tongs in disposable pan of sauerkraut.

Next time you get a hankering for brats, fire up the grill and try Meathead's specialty,  you will love this dish, I promise. Prost! ~ Kelly🍴🐦

Closup of brats on buns with mustard and melted cheese.

Looking for more fall inspired Oktoberfest food?  Then check these recipes out, too!

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Close up of grilled brats in sauerkraut.

Grilled Beer Brats and Sauerkraut

Easy bratwurst and sauerkraut cooked in one pan on the grill with beer, butter, onions and sauerkraut. Perfect for summer grilling and fall Oktoberfest celebrations!
4.80 from 5 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: German
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 581kcal

Ingredients

  • ½ cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
  • 12 ounces beer (pale ale, lager or summer seasonal beer)
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped yellow onion
  • 2 sweet banana peppers, seeded and coarsely chopped or green bell pepper
  • 2 pounds sauerkraut, drained
  • 12 brats
  • 12 bakery buns, hoagie-style or pretzel style, optional
  • Dusseldorf mustard or other mustard

Instructions

  • Prepare grill, either gas or charcoal.  If charcoal, set up coals to one side.
  • Melt 1 stick of butter in a disposable aluminum pan (at least 2 quart capacity, preferably 10-by-13-by-3 inch).  Add beer, onions, peppers and sauerkraut; mix well.  Place the pan on the cool side of grill.
  • Place the brats on grill and sear on all sides, being careful not to pierce the casings.  When they're seared and have good grill marks, transfer to sauerkraut mixture in aluminum pan; nestling each brat down into mixture and covering with the sauerkraut.
  • Cover the pan tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil, close lid, and cook for 40 - 45 minutes.  Remove from grill and serve: either plated or on buns, with mustard and sauerkraut piled on.  Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

  • Recipe works with fewer brats also, anywhere from 8-12 brats.
  • We usually omit the green pepper but this time we used some sweet banana peppers and really liked it.  Green pepper is optional, use it if you like or try with seasonal banana peppers.
  • Sweet banana pepper rings in a jar works great in this recipe, use about half a cup.
  • We like sweet Bavarian-style sauerkraut in this recipe and used two 16-ounce cans.
  • My husband melts the butter on the stove and mixes the sauerkraut mixture off the grill.  If you're doing on a gas grill, place the aluminum pan over the off flame, we use a M-O-M setting.
  • This recipe is adapted, with a few slight changes, from Kendrick's Meats and Catering.

Nutrition

Calories: 581kcal Carbohydrates: 44g Protein: 20g Fat: 35g Saturated Fat: 14g Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g Monounsaturated Fat: 15g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 83mg Sodium: 1572mg Potassium: 545mg Fiber: 4g Sugar: 7g Vitamin A: 262IU Vitamin C: 14mg Calcium: 155mg Iron: 4mg
Did you make this recipe? Please comment, rate it and share! And mention me on Instagram @thehungrybluebird or tag #thehungrybluebird so I can see!

*Adapted from Kenrick's Meats and Catering

Recipe Rating




Megan

Sunday 4th of June 2023

These brats were amazing! Super easy to make and not a lot of clean up which is a win in my book. I made homemade hoagie rolls to serve the brats on and it took the meal to the next level. Highly recommend!

Kelly

Monday 5th of June 2023

Homemade hoagie rolls sound fantastic!

Dan

Friday 19th of August 2022

My family loves these. It makes eating them so much easier as well. Sometimes when you cook brats the skin is so tuff but these come out perfect every time.

Monica

Friday 20th of May 2022

Made these last summer but never thought to review them. Grilling season is here and I'm planning on definitely making these again. I like brats but I'm never happy with how mine turn out for some reason. These were amazing and SO simple! I can't wait to make them again! Thanks!