Grilled Polish Sausage & Sauerkraut

Here’s how to cook great grilled Polish sausage with sauerkraut and onions! Grill, then simmer with beer and caraway seeds for more flavor. It’s a perfect summer BBQ staple.

Sauerkraut and sausage are great summer grilling party food because you can keep those polish sausages simmering for a couple of hours on the grill, ensuring you have hot food ready throughout the party.

From what I understand, this dish is a summer standby in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Dad thinks it’s pretty common in Nebraska too.

I’m just happy it made its way to Northern California. My patio, to be specific. Enjoy!

Grilled Polish Sausage and Sauerkraut

PREP TIME5 mins

COOK TIME60 mins

TOTAL TIME65 mins

SERVINGS4 to 6 servings

We recommend jarred fresh sauerkraut (like Bubbies), which you can find in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. If you don’t have a grill, or this isn’t grilling season, you can also put all ingredients into a casserole dish and bake in a 350°F oven for 1 1/2 hours.

2 to 3 pounds sausage, either kielbasa or bratwurst
1 to 2 (12-ounce) cans light (not dark) beer
2 to 3 cups sauerkraut
2 medium yellow onions, thickly sliced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1 tablespoon caraway seed
Mustard, for serving

Prepare the grill:

Heat the grill to medium heat.
Grill the sausages:

Place sausages on the heated grill and allow them to brown well. Be patient; do not be tempted to grill the links over high heat or they will break open and the juices and fat will drain into the grill. (They may break open anyway, but they’ll break less if you cook them slowly.)
Heat the beer with celery seed, caraway seeds, and salt:

While the sausages are cooking, put an aluminum grilling pan on a cooler part of the grill and pour in the beer. Stir in the celery and caraway seeds and salt. Bring to a simmer. (This may require covering the grill.)
Add the sausages and sauerkraut:

Once the sausages are browned add the sausages, sauerkraut, and sauerkraut juices to the pan with the beer.
Grill the onions:

Paint the sliced onion with the vegetable oil and grill on direct heat. If your grates are too wide, and you think you will lose too much onion through the grates, you can either skip the grilling part and put the onions directly into the beer bath.

Or, you can cut the onions in halves or quarters and grill them that way. Then slice them and add them to the beer.
Cover the grill and simmer:

Simmer (not boil) for 30 minutes to 2 hours before serving. Cut the sausages into serving sized pieces before serving.

Serve as is in a bowl or on a plate, or in a sandwich roll. Serve with mustard on the side.