What can I do with italian brats?

[PeterPan]

More specifically they're italian DEER brats. What can I do with these? I think they'll be too lean to eat straight. I was thinking to simmer them in spaghetti sauce. I also thought about making some kind of red beans and recipe type dish, throwing beans and the brats into the instant pot. Any suggestions?

[regentrude]

If they're brats, I'd put them on the grill. Can't imagine them being too lean. Simmering seems such a waste of a good brat.

[Katy]

I’d boil them then slice & simmer in pasta sauce. With the Italian seasoning I don’t find them to be much different than other sausage, and lean venison might be fairly strong. 

[Drama Llama]

I thought this was going to be about poorly behaved Italian children.  I would have had advice then.

Aren’t the edible kind of brats German by definition? 

[itsheresomewhere]

Just now, BaseballandHockey said:

I thought this was going to be about poorly behaved Italian children.  I would have had advice then.

Aren’t the edible kind of brats German by definition? 

My mind thought the same. Lol

[regentrude]

2 minutes ago, BaseballandHockey said:

I thought this was going to be about poorly behaved Italian children.  I would have had advice then.

I am sure you would have advised against simmering them in sauce.

[Ditto]

I read this title twice and was so was befuddled as to what you wanted to do to horribly misbehaved Italian children.

[PeterPan]

24 minutes ago, regentrude said:

If they're brats, I'd put them on the grill. Can't imagine them being too lean. Simmering seems such a waste of a good brat.

I don't know. Venison itself is *exceptionally* lean. The processor may have blended in some pork to make them moister, dunno. I am just trying to use things in my freezer and there they were. 

[Junie]

I would put them on sub rolls with spaghetti sauce and melt mozzarella cheese on top.

[Lady Florida.]

I don't know much about deer meat but my recommendation would be to grill them. Put them on a nice bakery sub roll and add grilled onions and peppers. If they're a bit dry you can cover them with some Italian pasta sauce or even pizza sauce. Usually the onions and peppers produce a tasty liquid but red sauce is good too.

Edited October 23, 2020 by Lady Florida.

[Terabith]

29 minutes ago, BaseballandHockey said:

I thought this was going to be about poorly behaved Italian children.  I would have had advice then.

Aren’t the edible kind of brats German by definition? 

That's exactly what I clicked on this thread to say.  

[Arctic Bunny]

If they are 100% deer, I would cook them in the instant pot with some chicken broth and add perogies on top. I definitely wouldn’t grill them unless I was going for jerky. Anything we get made with deer is 50% pork, however.

[Tanaqui]

35 minutes ago, regentrude said:

I am sure you would have advised against simmering them in sauce.

Well....

[PeterPan]

5 minutes ago, Arctic Bunny said:

If they are 100% deer, I would cook them in the instant pot with some chicken broth and add perogies on top. I definitely wouldn’t grill them unless I was going for jerky. Anything we get made with deer is 50% pork, however.

Ooo, that's an idea I hadn't thought of! And you're right, he'd even be cool with potatoes thrown in.

I really don't know if they have the pork added.

Edited October 23, 2020 by PeterPan

[Bootsie]

Slice and broil, then add to a black bean soup

[Lecka]

I made a casserole-type thing one time with Italian sausage, cabbage, and potatoes.  It was good.  I was looking to use up cabbage 😉

[cintinative]

I am almost ashamed to say this since I live in Cincinnati, but I think, but can't be sure, that some people simmer them in beer.  Not sure if that appeals or not.

[Guest]

Grilled on a crusty roll with sauerkraut. Mmmmmm...

[Katy]

To answer the German question, I don’t know anything about authentic brats, but I’ve learned plenty about midwestern German-inspired brats. They come in almost every flavor other sausages do, and you definitely want to use the Italian flavors in an Italian dish. And Apple Pie or Pineapple brats should be grilled and served in a bun. But others boiled in beer is delicious. High in histamine and fat but tastes really good. 

[Farrar]

I think I'm confused. Bratwurst and Italian style sausages are just different seasoning and prep styles if you buy sausage at the store. They're just the same size. This is somehow BOTH? Or it's actually Italian sausage but you call everything in that size a brat?

Our go to with Italian sausage is to throw it on a sheet pan with onions, peppers, and potatoes tossed with a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, and Italian seasonings if you like and just have a sheet pan supper.

 

[Katy]

3 minutes ago, Farrar said:

I think I'm confused. Bratwurst and Italian style sausages are just different seasoning and prep styles if you buy sausage at the store. They're just the same size. This is somehow BOTH? Or it's actually Italian sausage but you call everything in that size a brat?

Our go to with Italian sausage is to throw it on a sheet pan with onions, peppers, and potatoes tossed with a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, and Italian seasonings if you like and just have a sheet pan supper.

 

So in small butcher shops I’ve been to “Italian Sausage” may be a different meat mixture and they are generally much larger than an Italian brat, which is the right size for a toasted hot dog bun & a topping in marinara. But you can generally substitute Italian brats for Italian sausage because the spices make a bigger difference to the flavor than whether the meat is pork or a mixture of pork, beef, and lamb. Does that help?

[mom2scouts]

1 hour ago, cintinative said:

I am almost ashamed to say this since I live in Cincinnati, but I think, but can't be sure, that some people simmer them in beer.  Not sure if that appeals or not.

Cincinnati has a large German-American population, so that makes sense!😂

[kbutton]

2 hours ago, Lady Florida. said:

I don't know much about deer meat but my recommendation would be to grill them. Put them on a nice bakery sub roll and add grilled onions and peppers. If they're a bit dry you can cover them with some Italian pasta sauce or even pizza sauce. Usually the onions and peppers produce a tasty liquid but red sauce is good too.

This is what people do with Italian sausage where I'm from, though I've not seen it with sauce before. In Italian restaurants, sometimes the sausage is used with or instead of meatballs in marinara or in lasagna. 

I think you'd just want to be sure not to overcook them, and they'll be lean, but not terribly dry. You can also maybe use a little oil if you cook them inside.

If my family is not grilling them, they toss them in a frying pan/electric with the onions and sausages, let them kind of steam, and then just brown them briefly in the pan. 

The onions and peppers should significantly mellow the venison flavor too.

42 minutes ago, Farrar said:

I think I'm confused. Bratwurst and Italian style sausages are just different seasoning and prep styles if you buy sausage at the store. They're just the same size. This is somehow BOTH? Or it's actually Italian sausage but you call everything in that size a brat?

I think it's that Ohioans from the middle of the state and farther south think all sausages are German sausages until proven otherwise. 🙂 I think everything sausage-like is a brat or met unless it's a breakfast sausage, and then it might be goetta, or it could be Bob Evans. 

I have seen all kinds of sizes of Italian sausages, presumably so they could be cooked in a variety of ways. 

[kbutton]

1 hour ago, Lecka said:

I made a casserole-type thing one time with Italian sausage, cabbage, and potatoes.  It was good.  I was looking to use up cabbage 😉

Always a winning combination regardless of the flavor or style of sausage.

[Ausmumof3]

3 hours ago, regentrude said:

If they're brats, I'd put them on the grill. Can't imagine them being too lean. Simmering seems such a waste of a good brat.

If they’re venison it depends if the makers added fat or not.  Straight deer meat makes very lean sausages.  Most people that make them add some pig fat to even it out.  Otherwise they can be really heavy.

Edited October 24, 2020 by Ausmumof3

[Drama Llama]

So, if an Italian brat is flavored like an Italian sausage, I would suggest cooking it with Granny Smith apples.  Very yummy combo.  

[Melissa in Australia]

4 hours ago, BaseballandHockey said:

I thought this was going to be about poorly behaved Italian children.  I would have had advice then.

Aren’t the edible kind of brats German by definition? 

Me too. Never heard about the edible kind

[Melissa in Australia]

Ah, they are a type of sausage. 

 

Thanks for that. My new fact for the day

[Katy]

1 minute ago, Melissa in Australia said:

Ah, they are a type of sausage. 

 

Thanks for that. My new fact for the day

The pronunciation is also different. Instead of "Brat" it's closer to "Broughts."  At least in American.

[Danae]

4 minutes ago, Melissa in Australia said:

Ah, they are a type of sausage. 

 

Thanks for that. My new fact for the day

Short for bratwurst.  

[Pen]

4 hours ago, PeterPan said:

More specifically they're italian DEER brats. What can I do with these? I think they'll be too lean to eat straight. I was thinking to simmer them in spaghetti sauce. I also thought about making some kind of red beans and recipe type dish, throwing beans and the brats into the instant pot. Any suggestions?

 

Deer sausage ? Hmmm never had that

 

Before being gluten free I liked Italian sausage cooked with onions and sweet peppers (mushrooms optional) in olive oil and put on Italian bread  esp a long roll - or on top of capellini or spaghetti. 

[PeterPan]

3 hours ago, Farrar said:

I think I'm confused. Bratwurst and Italian style sausages are just different seasoning and prep styles if you buy sausage at the store. They're just the same size. This is somehow BOTH? Or it's actually Italian sausage but you call everything in that size a brat?

Our go to with Italian sausage is to throw it on a sheet pan with onions, peppers, and potatoes tossed with a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, and Italian seasonings if you like and just have a sheet pan supper.

 

Ooo, that sounds nice and easy! And don't overthink it. This is meat my dh hunted, and it's what he ordered from the meat processor, lol. 

[PeterPan]

32 minutes ago, Pen said:

Deer sausage ? Hmmm never had that

Caribou might be better. He just ordered some breakfast sausages. Apparently it will have a percentage of pork. One time someone gave him wild boar sausage, which I put into a quiche. That was quite good! 

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, BaseballandHockey said:

So, if an Italian brat is flavored like an Italian sausage, I would suggest cooking it with Granny Smith apples.  Very yummy combo.  

Ooo, he would really like that!! That wins the prize--that's what I'm gonna do. I got so tired I couldn't get them done tonight. I'll do them tomorrow.

Edited October 24, 2020 by PeterPan

[Arctic Bunny]

7 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Caribou might be better. He just ordered some breakfast sausages. Apparently it will have a percentage of pork. One time someone gave him wild boar sausage, which I put into a quiche. That was quite good! 

Caribou will be about the same, ime.... but maybe it depends on where they’re from.

[Lecka]

If this hasn’t been mentioned — brats is short for bratwurst.  In case that helps make a connection 😉

But brats can be almost any kind of encased, ground and flavored meat.  
 

I think of bratwurst as a specific food with a specific flavor — brats can be anything.  

Edited October 24, 2020 by Lecka

[PeterPan]

4 hours ago, Arctic Bunny said:

Caribou will be about the same, ime.... but maybe it depends on where they’re from.

The caribou we had in Alaska was WAY better than our venison, oh my. We must have distasteful grass or something, lol.

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Lecka said:

If this hasn’t been mentioned — brats is short for bratwurst.  In case that helps make a connection 😉

But brats can be almost any kind of encased, ground and flavored meat.  
 

I think of bratwurst as a specific food with a specific flavor — brats can be anything.  

Yes, if someone in our area says bratwurst ,they would mean you went to the german restaurant. But if you just say brats, it's meat in a casing, random whatever flavors, just the shape and size. Bigger than a hot dog and not with the Oscar Meyer flavor, something savory and grown up, lol.

[Lady Florida.]

18 hours ago, BaseballandHockey said:

I thought this was going to be about poorly behaved Italian children.  I would have had advice then.

 

I was an Italian brat! Well, not really. I was a goody two shoes. My brother was the Italian brat. 🤣

15 hours ago, kbutton said:

This is what people do with Italian sausage where I'm from, though I've not seen it with sauce before. In Italian restaurants, sometimes the sausage is used with or instead of meatballs in marinara or in lasagna. 

I think you'd just want to be sure not to overcook them, and they'll be lean, but not terribly dry. You can also maybe use a little oil if you cook them inside.

 

My family doesn't put sauce on them but I've known some Italian-Americans who do. It sounds like this isn't a good option for those anyway because they're too lean. It's hard for me to imagine any kind of sausage being that lean.