This recipe was shared on the wall of the Sheboygan Brat Days Facebook page. Seeing as how it was both brats and bacon, I couldn’t resist making it. And then reading it, it uses beer. Jackpot.
I made this for dinner one night although it could easily be as an appetizer. I did tweak the recipe slightly, mainly using the whole package of brats (5) instead of only 4. It does give you an uneven number of pieces at the end (thinking of the bacon slices) but that doesn’t matter. I just took a whole package of bacon and cut it in half, using what I needed and saving the rest.
It calls for light beer but you can use any. I used regular MGD. This does come out pretty spicy so you can adjust the cayenne up or down or leave it out. I made a few with just the brown sugar and they were still good.
The only downside was that the sugar dripped off and collected in the pan, burning as we went along. I’m not sure how to prevent that. You could try not using a rack in the pan and flipping them half way. Although the rack kept the food from burning along with the sugar. It resulted in a big cloud of smoke filling the kitchen when I opened the oven. Oh well. The things we do for good food.
5 Johnsonville brats
3 (12 oz) cans of beer
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 TSP cayenne pepper
15 half slices of thick sliced bacon
Poke each brat several times with a fork. Place in a large pot with the beer. Bring to a boil over high heat and then simmer for 15 minutes over medium heat. Remove brats and let cool to room temperature.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on it.
Toss the brown sugar and cayenne in a bowl. Cut each brat into three pieces. Wrap each piece with a piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Toss the brats in the brown sugar mixture to coat and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 25-35 minutes or until the bacon is brown and crisp.
