Austrian Käsekrainer Sausage
Prep Time - 12 Hrs
Cook Time - 1 Hr
Difficulty - 6/10
This recipe is well suited for home cooks who enjoy traditional sausage styles and want to explore classic regional flavors. While the ingredient list is straightforward, the technique reflects time-tested sausage-making methods that reward careful preparation and patience.
If you’re new to sausage making, it helps to understand the fundamentals first, including meat selection, seasoning balance, and proper handling. Our Beginner’s Guide to Making Sausage at Home is a helpful place to start before trying more traditional recipes like this one.
Käsekrainer is a type of Austrian sausage that is stuffed with small chunks of cheese. It is typically made using pork or a mixture of pork, beef, and various spices. Generally, Swiss Emmental is the cheese used to stuff the sausage. Although käsekrainer can be boiled, baked, or grilled, they are typically slightly smoked over Applewood.
In many parts of the English-speaking world, the terms "Emmentaler" and "Swiss cheese" are both used to refer to any cheese of the Emmental type, whether produced in Switzerland or elsewhere.
Ingredients:
- 600 grams Beef chuck
- 400 grams Fatty pork trim
- 28 grams Salt
- 2.5 grams InstaCure #1
- 4.0 grams Paprika
- 2.0 grams White pepper
- 2.0 grams Allspice
- 1.0 gram Ground nutmeg
- 3.0 grams Garlic powder
- 2.0 grams Sugar
- 10 milliliters Milk
- 100 grams Emmental Cheese in 1/4 cubes
Steps:
- Cube meats and weigh. Then add spices, sugar and cure.
- Grind meats through ¼” plate. Add milk and grind again after cooling.
- Mix meat and cheese together.
- Stuff into 32 mm pork casings forming 15 cm (6″) links.
- Hang sausages overnight in a cooler.
-
Smoke at 60° C (140° F) for 60 minutes.
Poach at 75° C (167° F) for 25 minutes.
Recipes like this highlight how versatile homemade sausage can be. Once you’re comfortable with traditional sausage recipes, many home cooks choose to expand their skills by experimenting with different cooking methods, smoking techniques, or regional variations.
For those interested in taking the next step, learning how to smoke sausage or trying a beginner-friendly recipe like breakfast sausage patties can be a natural progression.
