How do I cook sausages properly?

Low and slow rather than hot and fast, and why pricking, boiling and high heat all make sausages worse.

Difficulty: beginner
Time: 30 min
Read: 2 min
Safety: caution

Short answer

Cook them over medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes, turning regularly. High heat splits the skins and burns the outside before the middle is cooked. Do not prick them — that lets the fat and juices out.

A sausage is a thick cylinder of meat in a skin, and heat has to reach the centre without destroying the outside. That means moderate heat and patience, which is the opposite of how most people cook them.

Safety

Pork and other raw meat sausages must be cooked through — no pink in the middle, 75°C in the centre. Browning on the outside is not an indicator of doneness, since sausages brown long before they are cooked through.

What you'll need

Frying pan or oven tray
Tongs (optional)
Meat thermometer (optional)

Step by step

Take them out of the fridge 15 minutes before cooking.Ice-cold sausages need longer in the pan, which means more time for the outside to overcook.
Use medium-low heat, not high.This is the main thing. Sausages need 15-20 minutes; high heat gives you a burnt outside and a raw middle in eight.
Add only a little oil.Sausages release their own fat as they cook. A teaspoon to start is enough, and pooling fat causes spitting.
Turn them every few minutes.It browns them evenly and stops one side burning. Tongs rather than a fork, which pierces them.
Do not prick them.It lets fat and juices escape, giving a drier sausage. Pricking was advice for a different era of sausage skins.
Check the centre is cooked before serving.No pink, and 75°C if you have a thermometer. Colour on the outside tells you nothing about the inside.
For a batch, use the oven instead.200°C for 25-30 minutes, turned once. Easier, more even, and it frees the hob for everything else.
Rest them for a minute or two.The juices settle. It is a small improvement but it costs nothing.

Tips

Sausages in the oven with onions and potatoes in one tray is a complete meal with almost no attention required.
If skins split, the heat was too high or they went in cold. Neither ruins them but both indicate a change worth making.
Grilling browns the top faster than the inside cooks. If grilling, use a lower shelf position and turn more often.

Common mistakes

Cooking on high heat — The skin burns and splits long before the centre reaches a safe temperature. Medium-low for 15-20 minutes is correct.
Pricking sausages — It releases the fat and juices that keep them succulent, giving a noticeably drier result.
Judging doneness by the outside colour — Sausages brown well before they are cooked through. Cut one or use a thermometer.

Questions people ask

Should you prick sausages before cooking?

No. Pricking lets fat and juices escape and gives a drier sausage. Modern skins do not split if the heat is moderate.

How long do sausages take to cook?

15-20 minutes over medium-low heat in a pan, turning regularly, or 25-30 minutes in a 200°C oven. High heat is faster and gives a worse result.