Smoking Bratwurst Made Easy

Beech, alder, charcoal or gas grill? Is oak wood also suitable? How do you smoke sausages? These are all questions that those who want to undertake this task ask themselves. So, if you want to smoke sausages - you need a guide. And we'll provide it.

Smoking is a traditional method of preserving food and imparting a smoky flavor. When smoking bratwurst, it primarily involves smoking raw sausage. Cooked sausage is generally not smoked. Contrary to many myths, smoking is not done on a gas grill, charcoal grill, or smoker, but rather in smokehouses or cabinets and smoke ovens. This is especially true when cold-smoking food. For this, you need wood for smoking. This gives your bratwurst a certain smoky note, which complements its spices. There are differences between the various smoking methods. While hot and warm smoking require less time, cold smoking takes longer. However, your materials are important. Both the right wood and the quality of the food to be smoked play a crucial role. You should, however, refrain from using smoking additives that enhance your smoke.

If you need more tips on smoking, then the next sections are just right for you if you want to know how you can do it yourself.

Are you interested in smoking on the grill? Here's a video.

To smoke bratwurst, you need a smokehouse, a smoker, or a smoking cabinet. It must be airtight. This means that no smoke should escape outside the exhaust device. In addition, your smoking equipment needs a way to hang sausage or meat completely so that the smoke can reach your smoked goods from all sides. The bratwursts must then hang in the direction of the smoke flow so that the aroma can transfer to the sausages.

Additionally, you need wood. It is best to use smoking flour, smoking chips, or a cold smoke generator. In theory, wood chips also work, but we advise against them. For better and easier results, it is best to use smoking flour or smoking chips. Important here: Not every type of wood is suitable for smoking.

If you want to make your own bratwurst first, we have a video here for you.

In general, never use treated wood. Wood that has been treated with glue, metal, varnish, or oil is not suitable. So if you recently chopped up a garden shed, you may not use this wood for smoking. Avoid any type of chemically treated wood. Also, avoid wood that shows rot or is infested with fungi. Important: The wood should be dry, so avoid fresh/wet wood.

Ideal woods are from fruit trees or other hardwoods. Here's a brief overview of suitable woods and their smoke flavors:

Maple: mild smoke flavor with a hint of sweetness

Apple tree: fruity and sweet smoke flavor

Birch: woody smoke flavor with a hint of sweetness

Pear: mild smoke flavor with a hint of sweetness

Beech: balanced smoke flavor

Oak: intense smoke flavor with a woody note

Alder: mild smoke flavor with a hint of sweetness

Ash: light smoke flavor

Cherry: fruity smoke flavor with a hint of sweetness

Plum: sweet and fruity smoke flavor

Peach: mild smoke flavor with a hint of sweetness

However, there are also woods that are not suitable for smoking, as they will introduce toxins into your smoked food.

Generally: Do not use chemically treated or rotten/decayed woods. For example, if you have wood scraps from furniture or similar items, you must not use them for smoking. These contain harmful and toxic substances that will settle on your smoked food and poison it. Furthermore, resinous woods such as pine and spruce are taboo. The resin releases bitter substances during smoking, which adhere to your smoked food and spoil it. In addition, some natural woods are also unsuitable. These are the ones that naturally contain oils. However, fresh and wet wood are also not suitable for smoking. Here is a small list of woods you should avoid:

Tropical woods

fresh/wet wood

rotten wood

decayed wood

fungus-infested wood

pine

spruce

larch

eucalyptus

cedar

thuja

Now you know which wood you can use and which you shouldn't - but which sausages are suitable for smoking?

The individual smoking processes differ from one another. Both the temperature and the objective of the methods vary entirely. Here's a brief explanation of the most important differences:

Hot smoking involves both smoking and cooking the food simultaneously. The smoking process takes place in a temperature range starting from 55 degrees Celsius.

When hot smoking, the food is simultaneously smoked and cooked. The smoking process takes place in the temperature range of 25 - 50 degrees Celsius.

When cold smoking, the food is only smoked and not cooked. The smoking process takes place in a temperature range of 20 - 25 degrees Celsius and can last up to 10-12 hours. This means smoking takes time. The process is as follows: First, let the sausages dry for 30 - 60 minutes, then:

1. Smoke for 20 - 30 minutes at 25°C

2. Let dry for 10 minutes

3. Smoke for 20 - 30 minutes at 25°C

4. Repeat until the desired result is achieved

Now you know how to smoke. If you also want to know what's important when barbecuing, we have a video for you here.