Homemade Breakfast Sausage
by Chungah
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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 preference), 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, keeping 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?
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I have a question – can you do this with ground Turkey ?
I have substituted turkey for just about every dish I’ve made with great success. also at the store that I shop at, they have turkey sausage right next to the pork sausage in frozen one pound packages.
Thanks for the recipe! I used it to make turkey sausage and it’s delicious!
I made these and was pleased with the out come – however I would decrease the amount of fennel by half – its flavor overwhelmed all the other flavors.
These look delicious! My family will love them. It’s great that they are freezer-friendly too!
Not a review but rather a question that Have not seen answered and asked by many..Cah I substitute ground Chicken or Turkey??
Yes, but it won’t be as good. Fat content is important for consistency in sausages. Expect a more crumbly texture if you do it with poultry. If I did it with chicken or turkey, I’d add an egg yolk to the mixture.
Great recipient. I have made sausage like this often and I thought of using bacon to add some fat and flavor. Worked out great! This is the first recipe I have found online that added the bacon. Kudos! To the author. It is worth.
I’m an American expat living in France. My husband made homemade biscuits with sausage gravy this morning and it was super tasty-sometimes you need a taste of home. We were talking that the sausage we used was not “breakfast” sausage. They were lovely homemade ones we got from our butcher. I thought that there HAS to be a recipe for American breakfast sausage and I found this one! Looking forward to making this soon.
Just made these for breakfast & they were great! My family has asked for them to be a regular.
These look amazing, we don’t eat pork so I may try with a mix of beef and chicken and leave out the bacon, I guess. Will report back if I try!
We don’t eat pork either but I noticed someone suggested adding an egg “yolk” to help bind the poultry or beef (or both) with the spice mix should we decide to omit these two fatty meats, sounds like a great idea so I plan to give it a try:) Diana
What????? Never thought to even try! Thank you for sharing
Would like to try, but can’t eat sage – what would you recommend in it’s place?
Marjoram will give a similar, but milder flavor. Still very good,
I I believe there is a error in directions. The herbs and spices should be mixed into sausage prior to shaping into patties. Thank you for the lovely recipe.
I believe the herbs and spices (Sage mixture) aer mentioned in the text to be added to the ground pork and bacon along with the maple syrup before forming into patties.
I tend to miss things too, but if you look close the recipe is actually correct. Step one instructs us to combine the spices in a small bowl and labels it “Sage mixture.” Step two instructs us to combine the meat and maple syrup in a larger bowl. Then it instructs us to add the “sage mixture” to the meat mixture.
I can’t wait to try it!! Diana
Looks good. Worthy of a try. I find fresh herbs to be so expensive up here in Canada, especially during the winter months. A lot of it would end up going to waste, as I don’t use it often enough during the week. Are dried herbs recommended? Thanks
if you try dried herbs, just cut the amount in half. That is what I would do.
Keep some in pots on your widow sill. Sage, thyme, parsley all do well in pots
Other commenter said half and I tried that. Too powerful. And I used 2 lbs of pork instead of 1.5. Not sure if it was the (rubbed) sage or the thyme, or both, but upon further google investigation, seems guidance is a third, not 1/2, for those two conversions. I would suggest try using 1/3 of the amount to convert the fresh to dry in this recipe. The 1/2 was really, really strong flavor of the herbs. All that said, I think this is going to turn out great if I get the proper amounts of the dry herbs figured out.
I would definitely go 1/3 on the sage. In my experience, it tends to be much finer and denser than other dried herbs in relation to their fresh counterparts.
make sure to only use ORGANIC canola oil, as most canola oil is Genetically Modified !!! bad!!
i always use the best olive oil, or organic coconut oil…
GMO is not inherently bad, educate yourself
I don’t think coconut oil is particularly good for you either. I also think folks get too bent out of shape over GMOs, but to each their own.
Hi Ella, Which particular olive oil do you use or consider to be the best. We just learned the olive oil we’d been using, the company has been adding other impure oils so we are very very disillusioned right now :((
We would appreciate ANY help you can give:))
Thank you so much, Diana & Mike from Texas:D
Can you omit the maple syrup?
If I were you, because I don’t care for sweets, I would omit it!
No you CANNOT omit it!!!
Belinda, the maple syrup is optional according to the recipe.
If you decide to omit the pure maple syrup, perhaps you could add 1/4 tsp maple syrup EXTRACT instead since the flavor of maple works so well with breakfast foods. But if you’re still not interested perhaps adding
1/8 tsp raw honey will balance the flavors.
Diana
So happy to see this recipe and anxious to make it. Have always loved spicy sausage but it’s hard to find good quality at the grocery store. I’m not crazy about sweets in general. Must I use all of the maple syrup? Thanks!!
These look delicious, but wondering if you could use ground chicken or turkey?
Looks Great… I’ll skip Maple syrup though.
BTW:
The ‘ingredients’ are missing “sage mixture”.
What’s the mixture and quantity
“Sage mixture” is step 1 of the Directions that use the first 6 ingredients.
Thanks Robin !
Mea Culpa
Wow they look amazing, definitely making soon.
can i use ground chicken for this recipe?