Homemade Irish Sausage with Onion Stout Gravy
These easy, homemade Irish sausage links are made from freshly ground pork, all spice and sage, and paired with a savory, onion stout gravy.
Why I love these homemade irish sausage
Food holidays are my favorite. I could skip Valentine’s Day and the fourth of July, although summer barbecue is never a bad thing. If there’s food involved, I want to celebrate. While I’m not obsessive over it, I do like to make something special each year for St. Patrick’s Day.
I’m not a big fan of corned beef, but I’ll definitely eat it – especially if it’s in taco form. But, I would really have more traditional Irish foods, like Irish stew or Irish shepherd’s pie. This has hands down become my favorite, and I’m going to tell you exactly how to make it – from scratch.
I found the sausage recipe (that I adapted to make healthier) in my dad’s cookbook. But, I was still not 100% convinced that I wanted to use these ingredients until I did a decent amount of research to learn the difference between Irish sausage and British bangers. From what I learned, Irish people don’t actually use the term “bangers” even though it’s commonly used to refer to Irish sausage in America and other non-Irish places in the world.
Don’t forget dessert! Try these Lucky Charms cookie ice cream sandwiches to complete your St. Patrick’s Day meal.
If you like this recipe, you have to try this Hamburger stroganoff, and this Cincinnati chili and this Canadian meat pie.
Searching for more sausage recipes? Sausage and kale soup / Sausage and peppers pasta / Sausage rolls / fennel sausage pasta
Ingredients & substitutions
- Egg – Traditionally Irish sausage should contain egg, this acts as a binder – which is quite helpful since these sausages are made with casing.
- Panko breadcrumbs – Just like the traditional ingredient rusk, panko breadcrumbs will act as a binder and filler in this homemade sausage. Make sure to check your labels, as some breadcrumbs contain hidden dairy.
- Stout beer – I know Guinness is everyone’s go-to for St. Patrick’s Day, but I tried a local coffee stout in this recipe, too and it was fantastic. Either way you want a good, dark beer for your stout gravy.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed below are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
The following is a detailed overview of the recipe steps with added tips and tricks for recipe success. For a simplified and printable version, including ingredient amounts and more formal instructions, see the recipe card below.
How do you cook Irish sausage with onion stout gravy?
Combine sausage ingredients. Add all of the sausage ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix until well combined. Separate the sausage mixture into 2-3 ounce portions and shape into links.
You can make your own decision here: links or patties. You could even do meatballs. For looks, I went with the links, but if I make them again, I’ll definitely be doing patties. They take way less time. And, if you make your sausage in advance, this recipe gets super easy.
Brown the sausages. Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Cook the sausages, turning halfway until browned on all sides and the internal temperature has reached 160˚F.
The amount of time will vary depending on the size/shape you choose, checking the internal temperature is really the best way to know if your sausages are cooked through. Remove the sausages from the skillet, leaving the drippings and set aside.
Make the gravy. Add onions, salt and pepper to the hot skillet. Sauté the onions until they are translucent and tender. Sprinkle flour over the onions, giving them a stir to make sure the flour is distributed well. Pour in the beef broth and beer, whisking until smooth.
Thicken and simmer. Lower the heat to medium and simmer until the gravy has thickened. Return the sausages to the pan, allowing them to simmer in the sauce until they have warmed through.
Serve. We had ours with mashed potatoes and we also tried them with baked potatoes (because they don’t make dishes). Both were good. Obviously, the mashed potatoes are way better for having gravy, but it’s your choice.
The peas are a classic choice, but we also had our Irish sausages with my favorite seasonal vegetable – roasted asparagus. Either way, you’ll love these Irish sausages. You honestly won’t find a better choice for St. Patrick’s Day.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground pork
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon coarse salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 sweet onion (sliced)
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups stout beer*
- 1/2 cup beef broth
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine sausage ingredients and mix well.
- Separate meat mixture into 2 – 3 ounce portions and shape into sausage links or patties.
- Heat a large skillet to medium-high and brown sausage on all sides. Continue to cook until sausage has reached an internal temperature of 160˚F. Remove from pan and set aside. (Do not drain fat).
- Add onion, salt and pepper. Sauté, stirring frequently, until onions have softened – about 10 minutes.
- Sprinkle flour over cooking onions, stirring to coat.
- Pour in beer and broth, whisking to incorporate flour, until smooth. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium.
- Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until gravy has thickened.
- Return sausage to pan and bring back to temperature before serving.
