Homemade Breakfast Sausage
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!
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
Equipment
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.
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.