Bratwurst Soup is a hearty, brothy pot of crumbled brats, potatoes, carrots, celery and onion simmered in beef broth. The sausage comes out of its casings and browns right in the soup pot, so all that flavor stays in the broth. It serves 6 and is ready in about 45 minutes, and leftover grilled brats work too.
How to make it: Crumble fresh bratwurst into a hot pot with a little olive oil and brown it until it reaches 160°F. Spoon off most of the fat, soften the onion, celery and carrots, then add garlic, beef broth, water and diced potatoes. Simmer with the lid slightly open for 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender, and season to taste.
Why You’ll Love It
- Big flavor, few ingredients: the brats season the whole pot.
- One pot: the sausage browns, the vegetables soften and the soup simmers in the same pan.
- Fresh or leftover brats: use raw links or cut up the ones left from a cookout.
- No cream: it’s a clear, brothy soup that stores and reheats well.
Ingredient Notes
Bratwurst: about 1 pound of fresh, uncooked links. Squeeze the sausage out of the casings and crumble it; anything around a pound works.
Vegetables: half a medium onion, 2 medium carrots, 3 stalks of celery and 3 cloves of garlic.
Beef broth and water: 4 cups of beef broth adds richness; chicken broth works too. A cup of water rounds out the liquid.
Potatoes: 2 large russets, peeled and diced. Russets soften nicely in soup, but any potato works.
Salt and pepper: brats are salty, so taste the soup before you add any salt. Seasoning salt also works.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound bratwurst (fresh, uncooked), casings removed
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 cups beef broth
- 1 cup water
- 2 large russet potatoes, peeled and diced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
How to Make Bratwurst Soup
1. Brown the bratwurst. Add the olive oil to a soup pot or Dutch oven. Take the sausage meat out of the casings and crumble it into the pot. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sausage starts to brown and crisp up, about 8 to 10 minutes. The crumbles are done when they read 160°F on a food thermometer.
2. Spoon off the fat. Spoon out the excess fat, leaving about 1 to 2 tablespoons in the pot.
3. Soften the vegetables. Stir in the onion, celery and carrots and sauté for about 5 minutes.
4. Add the garlic, broth and potatoes. Stir in the garlic and let it cook for about 30 seconds, then add the beef broth, water and potatoes.
5. Simmer. Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. Cover the pot with the lid slightly open and reduce the heat so it simmers. Cook for 20 minutes, until the potatoes and vegetables are tender.
6. Season and serve. Season with salt and pepper as needed.
Can You Make Soup with Bratwurst?
Yes, and brats are made for it. With fresh links, take the meat out of the casings and crumble it into the hot pot. Break it up with the edge of a wooden spoon as it browns. Let it brown as much as you can without burning; those browned bits are where the flavor comes from. Browning first also makes sure the sausage is fully cooked before the liquid goes in.
Fresh brats are raw sausage meat, so check the crumbles with a food thermometer rather than going by color: 160°F for pork or beef brats, 165°F for chicken or turkey brats.
What to Do with Leftover Brats
Leftover grilled or cooked brats from a cookout are perfect here. Slice them into rounds and add them after the onion, celery and carrots, then build the soup as written. Because they’re leftovers, make sure the soup brings them to 165°F.
Prefer chunks to crumbles? Cut fresh brats into 1-inch pieces, brown them, set them aside and drain the fat, then return them to the pot for the last 5 minutes so they heat through.
Variations
- Beer: after the onion softens, pour in 12 ounces of a light beer such as a pale ale or lager, scrape up the browned bits and let it cook about 3 minutes before adding the broth.
- Sauerkraut: stir some in for a German feel.
- Greens: add kale or spinach near the end, or any vegetables you need to use up.
- Other sausage: Italian sausage, kielbasa or smoked sausage all work.
- A little heat: add hot sauce, cayenne or crushed red pepper flakes to taste.
- Cheesy bean version: a richer brat soup uses navy beans, pickled jalapeño, milk thickened with flour and American or cheddar cheese stirred in at the end.
Storage & Reheating
Refrigerator: Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours. Divide a big pot into smaller shallow containers so it cools quickly. It keeps 3 to 4 days.
Freezer: This brothy version has no cream or milk to separate, so you can freeze it for 3 to 4 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator.
Reheating: Reheat covered on the stove or in the microwave, bringing the soup to a rolling boil, to 165°F. Don’t reheat leftovers in a slow cooker.
What to Serve With It
Serve it with something to dip: homemade cheesy garlic breadsticks, a loaf of German bread, crusty French bread or dinner rolls. A big green salad keeps it balanced.
More sausage and potato dishes: oven-braised beer brats with caramelized onions and slow cooker Polish sausage, sauerkraut and potatoes. For another hearty soup, try creamy potato and hamburger soup or Irish bacon, cabbage and potato soup.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can bratwurst be used in soup?
Yes. Crumble fresh brats out of their casings and brown them in the pot, or slice leftover cooked brats into rounds.
How do you crumble bratwurst for soup?
Squeeze the sausage out of the casings into the hot pot and break it up with the edge of a wooden spoon as it browns.
What temperature should the bratwurst reach?
160°F for raw pork or beef brats and 165°F for chicken or turkey brats, checked with a food thermometer. Reheated leftovers should reach 165°F.
Can you freeze bratwurst soup?
Yes, for 3 to 4 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator and bring it to a rolling boil when you reheat it.
Do I need to add salt?
Taste first. Brats are salty, so the soup may need only a little pepper.
Final Notes
Brown the brats well, keep a spoonful of the fat for flavor and let the potatoes simmer until tender. If you try it with a splash of beer, tell me in the comments how it turned out.
Bratwurst Soup
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound bratwurst fresh (uncooked) links, casings removed and the meat crumbled; anything around a pound works
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 2 medium carrots peeled and chopped
- 3 stalks celery chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups beef broth
- 1 cup water
- 2 large russet potatoes peeled and diced
- salt and pepper to taste; seasoning salt also works
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a soup pot or Dutch oven. Take the sausage meat out of the casings and crumble it into the pot. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sausage starts to brown and crisp up, about 8 to 10 minutes. The crumbles are done when they read 160°F on a food thermometer.
- Spoon out the excess fat, leaving about 1 to 2 tablespoons in the pot.
- Stir in the onion, celery and carrots and sauté for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and let it cook for about 30 seconds, then add the beef broth, water and potatoes.
- Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. Cover the pot with the lid slightly open and reduce the heat so it simmers. Cook for 20 minutes, until the potatoes and vegetables are tender.
- Season with salt and pepper as needed.
