Beer Braised Brats with Apple Mustard Slaw

October 9, 2013
Food,Recipes

Even though it’s 70 degrees in LA, I’ve got fall fever! I love all the different types of apples available this time of year and using them in savory dishes. This light and tangy slaw incorporates sour green apples and grainy mustard, the perfect accompaniment to beer and sausages. Beer-braised bratwurst is a dish that I make often on a weekday because it’s so easy. Smother it all in grainy mustard and you’ve got the perfect fall dinner!

Braised beer bratwursts with apple slaw

Ingredients:

  • 4 bratwursts
  • 3/4 cup of beer
  • 1 onion, sliced thinly
  • 1 head of cabbage, shredded
  • 2 green apples, cut into matchsticks
  • 8 green onions, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup of flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
  • 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar
  • juice of 1/2 a lemon
  • 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons of whole grain mustard
  • sea or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

apple slaw 1First, make the slaw by sprinkling a pinch of salt over the cabbage.  Using your hand, gently massage the cabbage for about a minute to soften the cabbage a bit. Make the vinaigrette by whisking the lemon juice and apple cider vinegar together while streaming in the extra-virgin olive oil. Stir in mustard and salt and pepper to taste.

apple slaw 3

Add flat leaf parsley, apples and green onions. Dress the cabbage and set aside.

To make the bratwursts, heat a pan with a little vegetable oil over medium high heat. Brown the sausages. Remove sausages and saute onions until softened and just starting to brown. Deglaze the pan with the beer scrapping up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan.

apple slaw 4

Turn the heat down to simmer and place sausages back in the pan nestled in the onions. Cover with a lid and cook for another 5-7 minutes until the sausages are completely cooked through.

apple slaw 5

Place some of the caramelized onions on a bun– or pretzel bun!

apple slaw 6

Top with apple mustard slaw and enjoy with more mustard on the side and a pint of beer!

apple slaw 7

(images by HonestlyYUM)

Conversation

Great recipe! I added some caraway seeds to the slaw for a little extra zing. Yum!

This looks awesome – love the idea of cooking the sausages in the beer…
Thanks
Liz

I almost can not wait to make this meal, but there is one missing point for me:
what are green onions?
I know spring- or bunch onions (they look like tiny leek).
Is that what you meen by green onions?
Hope you can help me out here!
Thnx Anna

This looks sooooo good. It is definitely autumn in the Netherlands.
This must be real good after a long walk…

Suus from the blog Food Bandits

What a great recipe, and surprisingly fast too! I ended up using Irish bangers since that was what was in my fridge and it was perfect braised in the beer. I really loved the flavor profile that all the elements bring together. I found the dressing quite a bit tart for my taste though, so next time I would use maybe only 3-tbsp of vinegar/lemon juice total. A pinch of sugar helped to even out the acidity this go-around. I’m sure this will be a standard fall meal for us!

Glad to hear! I love my salad dressings sour so I can imagine it may be too tart for some, but glad you adjusted to your own taste.

My husband would beg for these! We’re enjoying great fall weather here in Virginia. And that slaw – yum!

Yes please! I love meals like this. They just scream fall. And I’m with you- I love using apples in savory dishes this time of year as well. Of course, I always have to have a little apple crisp, too!

The ultimate tailgating/Fall dinner! We spent a lot of time in Chicago when I was a kid, and brats there are like religion. I love the apple slaw here with grainy mustard, yes please.

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