Homemade Breakfast Sausage
by Chungah
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
Easy, no-fuss breakfast sausage, made in 30 minutes or less! Make-ahead or freeze for later. You’ll never want to go back to store-bought!
Featured Comment
We have been making a lot of things from scratch as of late. We’re talking pizza dough, rosemary bread, sourdough biscuits, pasta and hamburger buns. Now I can add breakfast sausage patties to the growing list! And believe me when I tell you that it is so hard to beat homemade (and to go back to store-bought patties!).
why you’ll love this homemade breakfast sausage recipe
- Short ingredient list. We have a very short ingredient list here. And if you don’t have fresh herbs on hand, dried herbs (pantry staples) can easily be substituted instead.
- So much better than store-bought. With complete control over the ingredients (and fully customizing to suit your personal preferences), homemade breakfast sausage is far superior than store-bought, tasting so much better and fresher!
- Freezer-friendly. These sausage patties freeze oh-so-beautifully (before or after cooking) up to 1 month, giving you 100% breakfast insurance down the road.
- Versatile and flexible. This can easily be made mild, spicy or sweet, or added to breakfast casseroles, omelettes or breakfast sandwiches. You can also swap out the ground pork for ground turkey, or ground chicken as a leaner option.
how to make the easiest homemade breakfast sausage
- Make the spice mixture. Combine all the herbs for the spice mixture. If fresh herbs are not available, swap out fresh for dried using a 3:1 ratio (dried herbs are much more concentrated).
- Mix. Toss together the rest of the ingredients – ground pork, bacon, maple syrup and seasoning mix – working carefully not to overwork the mixture.
- Shape. Shape the sausage mixture to form 2- or 3-inch patties, about 2 ounces each. Freeze up to 1 month for later use.
- Cook. Cook in a hot cast iron skillet until browned, about 2-3 minutes per side. Avoid overcrowding the pan for proper browning.
- Serve. Serve with eggs, in a breakfast casserole, or in a breakfast sandwich – there’s no wrong way to serve sausage patties!
Freezing and Storing Homemade Breakfast Sausage
Make ahead
The uncooked seasoned sausage mixture can be made ahead of time, kept in the fridge, covered, 1-2 days in advance.
Storage
Leftover sausage patties can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Reheating
Reheat in the microwave (30-35 seconds, covered with a paper towel), stovetop (over medium high heat, turning often, until heated through) or oven (350°F, covered in aluminum foil until warmed through, about 5-10 minutes).
Freeze before cooking
Place the uncooked sausage patties between two sheets of wax paper or parchment paper to prevent sticking, freezing for 1 hour until solid. Transfer the patties to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date and freeze up to 1 month. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge and cook as directed, adding 1-2 minutes additional cook time as needed. Do not thaw.
Freeze after cooking
Let the sausage patties cool completely. Place the patties on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper, freezing for 1 hour until solid. Transfer the patties to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date and freeze up to 1 month. To reheat, cook over medium high heat, turning often, until browned and cooked through, about 5-10 minutes. Do not thaw.
what to serve with homemade breakfast sausage
tools for this recipe
Large cast iron skillet
Homemade Breakfast Sausage: frequently asked questions
Ground pork (80/20) is generally the gold standard for breakfast sausage. For a leaner version, use ground chicken or ground turkey.
The fat from the bacon will help prevent the sausage patties from falling apart and drying out, adding smoky, salty goodness and keeping the sausage juicy, moist and so flavorful.
Absolutely! But because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
Temperature and overmixing are typically the main culprits for dry, crumbly patties. Always keep the sausage mixture well-chilled when prepping, and avoid over working the mixture.
Yes! The raw sausage mixture can be seasoned and mixed beforehand, and stored in the fridge 1-2 days ahead of time.
Yes! Breakfast sausage freezes very well, and can keep up to 1 month in the freezer, flash-freezing (instructions above) and transferring the patties to an airtight, resealable freezer bag.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Homemade Breakfast Sausage
Video
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds ground pork
- 3 slices bacon, diced
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup, optional
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
For the spice mixture
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine pork, bacon, maple syrup and spice mixture; be careful not to overmix.
- To shape the patties, scoop out 1/4 cup (about 2 ounces) of pork mixture and flatten to create 2 1/2- to 3-inch wide patties, forming about 16 patties.*
- Heat canola oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add sausage patties and cook until browned, about 2-3 minutes per side.
For the spice mixture
- In a small bowl, combine sage, thyme, fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, nutmeg, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.
Equipment
Notes
- Keep it cold. Ensure that the meat is well-chilled prior to prepping, keeping the sausage mixture cold throughout to create a proper bind. When the mixture gets too warm, the fat will begin to “smear”, yielding mushy, greasy patties. Chilled mixtures are also much easier to handle and form into patties.
- Add bacon. The fat from the bacon is key here, adding smoky + salty flavors, and will ensure that the sausage patties are juicy and moist throughout the cooking process.
- Use fresh or dried herbs. If fresh herbs are not readily available, substitute dried herbs as needed, using a 3:1 ratio (ex. 1 tablespoon fresh = 1 teaspoon dried).
- Mix gently. Avoid overworking the pork mixture as it can lead to tough, crumbly sausage patties.
- Prevent sticking. Use wet hands to keep the pork mixture from clinging when shaping the patties.
- Make it leaner. Use ground turkey or ground chicken as a leaner option.
- For sweeter, country-style patties, add maple syrup. But watch the heat closely so that the sugar does not burn.
- Use a cast iron skillet. A cast iron skillet retains and transfers heat exceptionally well, perfect for superior browning on the sausage patties and creating a deep, caramelized crust while rendering out excess fat. Cook until the internal temperature is 160°F for pork or turkey and 165°F for chicken.
- Mix it up. Use a different spice blend, swapping out the fennel for rosemary or oregano, or substituting brown sugar for maple syrup.
- Freeze up to 1 month. Homemade sausage patties freeze like a dream. Flash-freeze the cooled patties on a baking sheet until solid (about 1 hour) before transferring to an airtight, resealable freezer bag.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
We don’t eat pork so I’m wondering if I can make this with beef…would I need to change anything?
Yes, you will have to substitute the beef for the pork.
We don’t eat pork either, I use ground turkey. It’s a lighter meat much like pork. Works great!
Priceless!!!!!
Seriously, mixing the spices into ground beef will create an overly tough (chewy?) product
I would try ground turkey
I would like to use ground turkey and make breakfast low-fat sausage how can I do this . Thanks
. Sandy
You can try it as written, just substitute turkey for the pork. The addition of bacon will help keep it moist. If you want to skip the bacon, I would add a bit of high quality broth to the mixture.
I did not have access to fresh herbs. I use dried. The recipe still works! Yum! BTW, this recipe also works with ground turkey.
Oh perfect! Thanks!!
Amazing recipe. I use 1 pound of ground sausage instead of 1.5 pounds, but I don’t decrease the amounts of the other ingredients. I love this recipe with the sweet syrup and savory herbs.
OUTSTANDING! I’ve been making this once or twice a year ( make enough to freeze). EVERYONE loves this sausage; nothing compares.
I used mince chicken instead of pork, and added a few panko breadcrumbs. I also made them bigger for a morning sausage sandwich. A winner in our house. Thank you for the great sausage recipe!
Don’t forget to add the bacon!
HooWoo!!!!
I made this yesterday. I didn’t have fresh sage or thyme, so I used dry. Just half as much. I formed into patties and froze over night. I made breakfast sausage biscuit with homemade sourdough biscuit, this sausage patty recipe, a slice of cheese and an egg over medium. It was fantastic! The maple syrup adds just a hint of sweetness. Way better than McDonald’s and you won’t feel sick after eating. I will be making again. I may try more sage and thyme or make sure I have fresh next time.
“Way better than McDonald’s and you won’t feel sick after eating.” Great statement! There is absolutely no comparison between good homemade breakfast sausage versus the stuff MacDs has. MacD food also makes me feel sick, so I rarely have any.
great combo of herbs. But Canola oil is a GMO. created by MONSANTO
TBF there are non-GMO canola oils. Still not a healthy oil.
All you need to do is substutute it out for avocado oil
This was amazing!!! I cannot eat store-bought sausage of any kind nor can I eat processed meats… I am on dialysis and I have issues with my phosphorus and all the processed meats including sausage has a lot of it… I have been searching for the longest time for a recipe that I would like… I did not expect it to taste like Jimmy Dean sausage but I wanted it to be good and flavorful… I came across this recipe by accident and I pinned two different ones yours and another one… I decided to try yours first and I lost my mind… I made sausage gravy out of it and believe it or not even with the maple syrup it taste amazing… a couple things I did different was I did not have any fresh sage and I used powdered and it was fine… The other thing was I mixed everything up together put it in a baggie squeeze the air out of it and let it sit in the fridge for two days before I cooked it so All the flavors could blend together… I wanna make some more and I started to try that other recipe to see how that was and I’ve just decided I’m not gonna mess with it anymore…. Your recipe is going to be my go to recipe now
Wonderful! I omitted the maple syrup, just started a no sugar diet, added extra fennel (the Sicilian in me), added some oregano, and instead of hot pepper flakes, I used a large, finely diced jalapeño.
Simply delicious!
These are truly so good! I used turkey instead of pork in mine. I would recommend reducing the salt to 1/2 tsp at most. The bacon is already makes the sausage pretty salty and the extra 1 1/2 tsp of salt made this too salty.
Holy Cow! This blew away my expectations.
I did not have fresh thyme so I used ground thyme, just cut it down.
I did not have nutmeg, so I used cinnamon.
Still, when all was said and done it tasted phenomenal. This one is going in my recipe books!
Had breakfast for supper tonight and these exceeded my expectations! Thanks for a delicious and easy recipe
Better than store bought with all the same flavor! How did it take me this long in life to discover the joy of home grinding ? I will definitely be saving and making this recipe again!
So so yummy, thank you! (I only had dried herbs which worked fine, I just lessened amounts a bit. Also, no bacon on hand so just omitted. Also used avocado oil instead of canola.
great taste!!
So good, great flavor, added a little more crushed red pepper because we like spice. Didn’t have breakfast sausage so I made my own with ground pork. I used your buttermilk biscuit recipe also Kids loved it too!
AMAZING! Just made them following your recipe to the point. And It’s so good I can’t stop thinking about having more!
People who omitt some ingredients or don’t properly substitute them don’t know what they’re missing!
And NO, I usually DON’T like maple flavoured meat! This one though – SO GOOD.