Brat seasoning suggestions/favorites

[twilliams]

Mschmidt i dont want to get you in a state of confusion on what flavors to get, however the flavors i haven’t seen that my buyers are raving about are apple with hi temp cheddar cheese added and philly cheesesteak that i have diced up onion, green pepper, red pepper then sauteed them and added to my meat block.

[lkrfletcher]

I recently did the Philly cheese steak and they were very good.

[pr0wlunwoof]

We did the chicago brat and are having it again for dinner defrosted from the freezer. I want to cook them after defrosting to make sure quality isnt lost… I simmer them in beer over the fire and then sear them on the grill. My inlaws are from Chicago and they say they are the best they have had since moving to the south. I will be getting the blue ribbon next.

[Jonathon]

lkrfletcher Thoughts on the cheese whiz topping? Or have we covered that elsewhere?

[lkrfletcher]

Jonathon
I really liked the cheese wiz in a jar for these brats.

[Jonathon]

twilliams Thank you for pointing out Apple Brat doesn’t get nearly the love it deserves.

[Clyde Johnson]

I’m kinda stuck on Jerry’s. Not hot and flavorful,

[Jonathon]

Clyde Johnson I ruined a batch of Jerry’s. I tried to make it cured and added sodium erythorbate and then had problems with the smokehouse and had to hold it overnight which wouldn’t;t have been the worst thing but then humidity control stopped working (read that as I never checked to make sure it was working!) and they ended up way too tough! Overall though, nice brat seasoning, it has a good flavor like you say with nothing too crazy or anything that anyone would object to.

[Clyde Johnson]

I’ve never tried to smoke 'em. I just load them up, eat one or two and freeze the rest. I have noticed that the collagen casings sort of just slough off when they are cooked. Maybe I should get the H instead of the T type collagen casings ???

[Jonathon]

Clyde Johnson I’d use the Fresh casings any time I am not smoking them, they have a better bite for a bratwurst style sausage. The TF is the clear collagen (I believe, I don’t go by that Austin will make fun of me as he has tried to get my brain to remember that information numerous times) so, if you aren’t hanging it in a smokehouse I’d go fresh.

So, are you cooking them before you freeze them? Are you vac packing?

[Mschmidt]

Clyde Johnson We use the collagen casings as well( also what do you mean by H type or T type collagen casings). And agree that they just ‘peel’ off by themselves as they cook. Not sure if I have overstuffed them or did something else wrong. Have only made brats once.

[Clyde Johnson]

Jonathon Don’t cook them, but freeze them solid, then vacuum pack them.

[Clyde Johnson]

Mschmidt The H and T are two different strengths of collagen casings, both are available from Watson’s. See the above from post Jonathon.

[Jonathon]

So TF is Clear collagen which is good for cured sausages and the Fresh is for bratwurst. Mschmidt Did you use the fresh or the clear? Clyde Johnson Can I ask how much water you are adding to your brats and what is your defrost schedule? Ar you popping them in water or letting them sit out overnight in the fridge?

[Clyde Johnson]

My last batch was 2 lbs. only, I added about 1/3 cup of water. I put them in the freezer til well frozen (over night) then vacuum packed with 4-5 in each pack.

[Clyde Johnson]

As for defrosting, usually I pop them in the microwave and using an instant thermometer check til they reach 160 deg.

[Mschmidt]

Jonathon We use Fresh collagen (2301300). We do not add any water. Are we supposed to? Lots to learn. What is the purpose of the extra water? Do you always add it? We do 25 lbs batches(to not waste seasoning)

[Jonathon]

Mschmidt When making a fresh sausage like a bratwurst you don’t necessarily need to add water, I do sometimes to make mixing in the seasoning easier. First, I would take a look through the Meatgistics University stuff on fresh sausage just for a good base of knowledge (though if you are already making good product I would say you probably won’t learn much from it).

I asked on water because this can happen if you add too much water to a fresh sausage so I was making sure that wasn’t the issue. How do you defrost and cook?

Clyde Johnson Do you cook them totally in the microwave or just defrost. I’d guess that we might have hit on the issue there. Microwaves heat up food by exciting the water molucles in the food and forcing them to vibrate. I’d guess that you are forcing small amount of moisture from the collagen but I am going to go put some empty collagen casings into a microwave and see what happens. BRB

[Jonathon]

So, I can’t say for sure that microwaving the casings with sausage inside would return similar results but I can say that collagen doesn’t seem to like to be microwaved?

[Clyde Johnson]

I cook them totally in the microwave. I’ve not had a problem except at seems that the brat appears to swell and push out at the ends. Doesn’t change the shape of the brat or the taste. I just peel off the casing and eat em’ I don’t microwave all my brats, but even when I cook them other ways (boil, grill, fry) the casing acts the same way. I think you have it right about the addition of water.