These Air Fryer Brats are juicy, flavorful and so easy to make! They pair great with your favorite beer and make the perfect easy meal for your next game-day party.
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Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Quick and easy recipe. Cooking brats in the air fryer is so simple, you won't believe how good they come out.
- Perfect cold weather meal. This recipe is perfect for colder months when you don't want to brave the weather to turn on the grill. These brats come out crispy and charred on the outside and juicy in the middle. You will love them!
- Easy to customize. You can easily customize this recipe by using your favorite brand of bratwurst or beer brats and adding your ideal toppings.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Bratwurst- use your favorite brand of bratwurst (German sausage) for this recipe. I've used pre-cooked chicken bratwurst, which is a great option if you don't eat pork. Johnsonville brats are probably the most popular brand and can be found in most grocery stores.
- Onion- this recipe calls for sliced yellow or white onion to be caramelized. You can use bell peppers instead of or in addition to the onion.
- Butter- I always use butter to caramelize onions but you can also cook them in olive oil or avocado oil.
- Ground mustard- this is optional to use to season the onions.
You can find full quantities in the recipe card below.
Instructions
Prep and cook the onions. Cook the onions in butter over low heat until caramelized.
Preheat the air fryer. Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees F.
Air fry brats. Cook the package brats in a single layer in the air fryer basket or tray until they are browned and charred on the outside.
Assemble. Top the brats with the caramelized onions and spicy mustard.
FAQs
Yes! Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F. Cook the frozen brats for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through.
You can use cooked or uncooked, cooking time will vary just slightly. Uncooked sausages will take at least 15 minutes, possibly 20. Be sure to flip them halfway.
You want the sausages to be crispy on the outside and juicy in the middle. Pork sausages are cooked when the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F. Chicken sausages should be cooked to 165 degrees F.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. The onions can be stored in a separate container.
Reheat the bratwurst and onions in the microwave for 1-2 minutes before serving.
Toppings
Onions and mustard. My favorite topping is caramelized onions and spicy or Dijon mustard which I included in the recipe card below.
Peppers and onions. If you love peppers, slice them and add them to the pan to cook with the onions.
Sauerkraut. Sauerkraut makes a great topping and can be paired with good grainy mustard.
More ideas: ketchup, cheese, crumbled bacon.
Top Tips
- Replace the brats with other types of sausages such as Italian sausage or even hot dogs.
- Brats will be done once they reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees F. If you use chicken bratwurst make sure the internal temp is 165 degrees F.
- The cook time will vary depending on your air fryer model. I recommend checking after 10 minutes.
- If you are using frozen sausages, the cooking time will be longer.
- The best way to achieve juicy brats is to not overcook them!
Serving Suggestions
These air fryer brats can be served as is if you are making them as a party appetizer. However, if you are going to be enjoying them as part of a meal you will want to serve them on hot dog buns or hoagie rolls and a side dish such as:
- Coleslaw
- Potato salad
- Green salad
- French fries
- Roasted potatoes
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Recipe
Brats in the Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large yellow or white onion, sliced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard, optional
- 1 package bratwurst
Instructions
- Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sliced onion and cook for 5 minutes. Mix in the salt and ground mustard.
- Turn the heat down to medium-low and cook the onions for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid burning. If the onions look like they are getting too dark, add a tiny bit of water to the pan. Cook the onions until golden brown in color.
- While the onions are cooking, preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F.
- Place the sausages in the air fryer and cook for 12-15 minutes, flipping halfway through. Pork sausages should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F and chicken sausages to 165 degrees F.*
- Take the brats out of the air fryer and let them rest for 5 minutes. Serve in hot dog buns topped with caramelized onions and spicy mustard.
Notes
- Replace the brats with other types of sausages such as Italian sausage or even hot dogs.
- Brats will be done once they reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees F. If you use chicken bratwurst make sure the internal temp is 165 degrees F.
- The cooking time will vary depending on your air fryer model. I recommend checking after 10 minutes.
- If you are using frozen sausages, the cooking time will be longer.
- The best way to achieve juicy brats is to not overcook them!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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