This is the only way to cook bratwurst in Wisconsin. The brats are incredibly tasty! If you can get fresh bratwurst from a sausage shop, do it... it is worth the extra cost. Serve with brown mustard on substantial hoagie rolls, never on hot dog buns. Mustard is important and must always be stone ground. Add warm sauerkraut and ketchup, if you like. Chow down! Think about those Wisconsin summers! Listen to some polka!

Wisconsin Bratwurst

bratwurst sausages

onions, thinly sliced

butter

(12 beer

black pepper

hoagie rolls

Prick bratwurst with fork to prevent them from exploding as they cook. Place in a large stock pot with the onions, butter, and beer. Place pot over medium heat, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.


Lightly oil grate. Cook bratwurst on preheated grill for 10 to 14 minutes, turning occasionally to brown evenly. Serve hot off the grill with onions on hoagie rolls.


If you want to smother your brats with barbeque sauce, mustard, and sauerkraut to kill the taste, this recipe is o.k.  
I'm 100% German, eat brats once a week - but I like the natural flavor of fresh brats.  
It's actually the poking of the brats with a fork that wrecks this recipe.  It dries out the brats and lets the natural flavors seep out.  You may want to try this recipe without poking holes in the brats to keep the flavor sealed in.

Hubby would probably only rate this as 3-star as he is a bratwurst purist and prefers his brats slow-grilled without parboiling. Occasionally he'll agree to having this brats and beer method, which I just love. As Wisconsinites we know it's a continued debate as to which way is best. No matter which method, we also know brats to be included in nearly everyone's backyard cook-outs or Green Bay Packers or Milwaukee Brewers tailgates. You can smell it in the air! That said, don't poke the brats! Why would you do that?  Also, as for keeping them on hold in a slow cooker, I see this done frequently, particularly at large gatherings, but be forewarned that the beer taste intensifies this way, kind of killing that good bratwurst flavor and softens them, taking away that juicy crunch (from the browned casing) when you bite into them. For those of you living in regions of the country where brats are not available, our Usinger's brand is WONDERFUL and can be ordered online at www.usingers.com. Good, sturdy brat buns, if you can find them in your area, are a must!

I was having a Christmas party and wanted to do something with some frozen Johnsville Brats that were in the freezer for 4 months, so I thought I would give this recipe a try.  I also did not poke holes in them, other than that I followed the recipe.  After cooking the brats in the beer mixture I strained the onions and sautéed them further and then added them to a cola sauerkraut recipe found on this site.  That evening my husband grilled the brats and could not stop eating them, I was afraid I would not have any left for the party the next day. He kept on saying that I must have used some very good brats!   After they were grilled I cut them in half and mixed them in the cola sauerkraut.  The night of the party I warmed the mixture in the microwave and the kept it warm in a chafing dish. I served fresh Italian bread cut to the size of the mini brats for those wanting to eat it on a bun.   The moral of my story is the 4-month-old brats that I wanted to get rid of, turned out to be the hit of the party.  I was asked over and over who made the brats.  Thanks for a good recipe, I am sure I will make this many times over, I might even buy some high quality fresh brats!

this was the other dish I made http://sidedish.allrecipes.com/az/ClSrkrt.asp

Prick the brats? PRICK THE BRATS???  Are you kidding me? You must be a Vikings fan trying to sabotage the parties of young rookie tailgaters! No true Wisconsin brat professional would ever prick a brat for any reason except when they bite into it!  Slowly simmer (NEVER BOIL) in beer, pepper and onions for 20 minutes.  A couple tablespoons of butter is optional and acceptable. Finish on a medium hot charcoal grill just before serving...with Silver Springs Beer and Brat Horseradish Mustard.  Sauerkraut with caraway is also acceptable.  Catsup?  Catsup is only used on Chicago hot dogs when you want to make Bears fans angry.

Awesome brats. I made them for the Super Bowl game. After they were cooked I put them back in the beer brine to simmer until everyone was ready to eat. I also added more onions than was called for. These were just great.

this recipe is very good but i found out that if you prick your brats and soak them over night in the beer they are much better.

These were wonderful. We had a big end of the year party this past Friday at a Boys & Girls Club where I work. Since some of the kids requested brats instead of hamburgers and hot dogs I decided to try this recipe. We had 177 kids attend ranging from age 6 to 14 years show up for the party and the brats were gone in 15 minutes. I wasn't sure how many would be ate so I only made 50 I wish I had made more. I threw them in my electric roaster with one pound of butter and eight finely sliced onions and a 12 pack of Milwaukees Best beer. I DID NOT POKE HOLES IN THE BRATS. I cooked on 300 for two hours. Then we grilled them and the kids many who hadn't had brats loved them along with our volunteer parents. The grilled onions were also great but many of the kids wouldn't try them but the ones who did along with the parents loved them. Thanks for sharing such a great recipe. I will use this one for now on.

We are not "bratwurst" people but these were surprisingly good! Took a tip from another reviewer and made a curry ketchup (6 tbsp of curry 1 tsp of curry) which I'm going to keep in the "spice it up" file! Thanks for the recipe!

This recipe is great! I add yellow and green bell peppers with the onions and beer. The best way to cook these prior to grilling is in the crock pot. Just cook on high for a couple of hours prior to grilling.

These classic brats are boiled in beer and onions and finished on the grill.

wisconsin bratwurst

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total: 45 minutes

Servings: 10

Author : Bob Cody

Ingredients

Instructions

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