Who doesn’t like a nice juicy bratwurst, covered in sauerkraut and stuffed in a sub roll? And is there any better month than October to eat bratwurst? Did you know that you can cook Bratwurst in the slow cooker? This Slow Cooker Beer Brats recipe is a fantastic recipe from Cook’s Country Magazine. I posted it about a year ago on my old blog Fort Mill SC Living and I wanted to repost it here not only because it’s one of my favorite crock pot recipes, but one of my favorite recipes period. 
The brats slow cook on a bed of onions, covered in beer. They stay super juicy and moist, and yes, they are missing the nice char that a grill gives bratwurst, but that’s a small price to pay for the ease of crockpot cooking. You can use pretty much any number of brats you want for this recipe. The original recipe calls for 10, but I used 5. You just want them to fit in a single layer in the crock pot. Make sure you use the full amount of onions though. The onions serve as a buffer between the brats and the bottom of the crock pot and prevent the brats from cooking too fast. You don’t want the brat’s skins to burst because they will lose their juice and dry out. Next time you can’t stomach another crockpot chili, throw a few brats in the pot for a super easy and tasty fall meal.
Slow Cooker Beer Brats
Ingredients
- 1 pound onions, sliced into 1/4-inch thick rings
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 10 bratwurst, I just used 5
- 3 cups beer
- 1/4 cup dijon mustard, plus extra for serving
- 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds if you like caraway, may want to up to 3/4 teaspoon
- 1 cup sauerkraut, I used a whole regular-sized can
- a hoagie roll for each brat
Instructions
- Place onions, soy sauce, and brown sugar in a microwave safe bowl and microwave until slightly softened, about 5 minutes, stirring halfway through. Dump mixture into bottom of a slow cooker. Arrange brats on top.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together beer, mustard, and caraway seeds. Pour on top of brats. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 4. (I cooked them on low so I can’t vouch for the high heat method)
- Transfer brats to a platter and tent with foil to keep warm. Stir sauerkraut into onion mixture and let warm for a few minutes. Strain sauerkraut-onion mixture through a colander or use a slotted spoon to transfer to a serving dish. Discard liquid. Serve Brats and Kraut on rolls if desired with mustard.
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Recipe Source: Cook’s Country Magazine
I love how easy these brats are!
I brown my brats in the skillet first to give them that “snap” . I also don’t heat the onions first and instead make sure there is a nice bed of onions for the brats to rest on and only pour the liquid to the very bottom of the brat so they aren’t submerged in liquid. People request I make these all of the time. Thanks for recipe!
granted the slow cooker is nice but I like using my nuwave oven I never did like brats that are boiled saute onions & peppers in frying pan good to go
Those are not bratwurst.
Oh, and has to be JOHNSONVILLE BRATS!
How did the brats get so brown?
It may have something to do with the brand of brats.
I maid them thy were good but the wife did not like then she shad to mush beer
Alternate version (German style) – substitute apple sauce for brown sugar, pour on top of sauerkraut/onions in crock pot then add sausages and cook.
What kind of beer do you use? Looking forward to trying this!
Really good. Could not throw the remaining juices so made warm German potato salad. Yummy.
Glad you enjoyed it Linda! That was a great idea to use the juices for potato salad.
Is there a way to keep these fresh after they are finished? Would it be okay to leave them in the crockpot either turned off or on warm? They will be ready a couple hours before I will be ready to eat them.
Do you use fresh or frozen bratwursts for this recipe?
I used fresh.
This is making me so hungry, you’re absolutely right, how can you not love this dish, and I have to say the addition of beer….yum!
Beer is almost always a great addition isn’t it? Thanks for stopping by!
My brother would LOVE this, he’s the biggest fan of brats! I’m definitely cooking these for him soon, they look awesome 😀
Always looking for new slow cooker recipes and brats and sauerkraut sound fantastic! My hubby would be over the moon for these especially since they’re simmered in beer 🙂 Thanks for sharing Christin!
It’s easy to sell men on the beer part isn’t it? 🙂
I love slow cooker recipes lately! Never cooked with bratwurst before…I’d definitely be interested to try it out!
It turns out amazingly well Ashley! I was pleasantly surprised!
Beer and brats sound tasty to me, especially since the weather is cold. I love comfort food that fills you up and keep you nice and cozy
Brats will definitely give you that warm and cozy feel 🙂
You’ve got such great slow cooker recipes, Christin! I could live without the char on the brats as I love the simplicity!
Simplicity is worth a lot isn’t Marci? Especially when life is so busy as I know yours is with cooking school!
Mmm, I love bratwurst…and sauerkraut! Yum. This is such a perfect, easy meal…definitely marking this one down.
Simply amazing Christin! I love a good bratwurst, especially when there’s beer involved. 🙂
Just thought I would bring this up. True Wisconsin brat is boiling in beer and sliced green pepper. When cooked, put them on the grill for maybe 5 minutes. Works like a charm every time. Going to try you slow cooker method with just my above stated ingredients.