How to Cook Sausages

Fresh sausages should be cooked through and the casing should be crisp.

Sausage can be a supporting ingredient that brings flavor to a dish, or you can cook it whole and make it the star of the meal. The most common sausages in American cooking are made primarily with pork, occasionally mixed with other meats. Most frozen sausages and breakfast links come with their own cooking directions on the box. But real, fresh sausages take a little more finesse to cook well.

Things You'll Need

• Large, heavy-bottomed stock pot
• Sausages
• Vegetable oil

Instructions

1. Fill a pot with water and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Carefully add the sausages to the water.

2. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the sausages cook through. This will take approximately 30 minutes, depending on the thickness of your sausages.

3. Remove the sausages from the pot. Drain the pot of all water, then add the oil. Increase the heat to medium-high.

4. Place the sausages in the oil carefully and turn them until they are brown on all sides.

Tips & Warnings

• You also can cook sausage in a 400 degree oven for approximately 15 minutes, or until the exterior is golden brown. During the summer, cook them on the grill over moderate to indirect heat until they are cooked through and have beautiful grill marks.

• Bring the internal temperature of pork sausage to at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit for safety purposes. Cook or freeze your sausages within three days of purchasing them.

References

• USDA: Keep Food Safe! Food Safety Basics