Mini chorizo sausage rolls are a handy finger food in the colder seasons but also fit in well with summer patio parties. This is particularly great during the holiday season because it is a very all-hands-on-deck type of recipe and everyone can join in on the fun in preparing these. You can have someone prep the filling, as another gets the puff pastry and egg wash ready. You can totally do these yummy sausage rolls on your own though. Just be prepared to spend close to 2 hours in the kitchen!
The making of a sausage roll
If you want a pastry dough from scratch, you can use what I used to make my hand meat pies. You will get the same flaky, buttery pastry. I used ready-made puff pastry sheets, which I thawed beforehand. What really differentiates a superstar sausage roll from the rest is the addition of fennel to the filling. It adds that classic depth to the sausage rolls and makes it taste just like the ones you find at your local bakery. I chose chorizo sausage because it is spicy and super delicious. A close alternative to chorizo would be hot Italian sausages. These sausages need to be prepped by removing the thin casing (membrane) around the sausages. What you’re looking for is loose meat so you can fry this easily in your filling preparation.
You could also freeze the unbaked sausage rolls in Ziploc bags ahead of time. And then leave them to thaw before baking on the day you are ready to serve these.
Serving the sausage rolls
You can make these the regular long rolls but I opted for mini rolls because they are much cuter. I read somewhere that these go great with ketchup and I honestly thought it was an exaggeration. But you guys, this tastes so good with ketchup, it’s true! Barbecue sauce would also be cool with this I think.
Ingredients
500g chorizo sausages 3 tablespoons cooking oil 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped or minced 1 small onion, finely chopped 1 celery stalk, stems removed and diced 2 teaspoons crushed fennel seeds 4 tablespoons Panko breadcrumbs 1 large egg, whisked 1/2 tablespoon table salt 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped 1 teaspoon dried thyme or oregano 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 2 puff pastry sheets (or you can use a homemade pie pastry dough)
Egg wash
1 large egg, whisked 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Whisk the egg wash ingredients and set aside.
- Remove the casings from all the sausages and discard them. It is the plastic-looking membrane that holds the sausage meat.
- Place the loosened sausage meat into a large bowl.
- In a large frying pan, heat the oil on medium heat and fry the onion, garlic and celery until softened and slightly browned.
- Let this cool and then mix it with chorizo, fennel, black pepper, thyme/oregano, parsley, salt, breadcrumbs and whisked egg. This is your sausage filling.
- Lightly flour your working surface.
- Cut your thawed pastry sheet in half lengthwise and place on a large tray. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.
- Place a long line of sausage filling in the center of each pastry half. Mold into a log shape with your hands.
- Brush egg wash along the edges of the pastry sheet.
- Fold over the hanging sides of the pastry sheet from the left and from the right, meeting in the center.
- Seal the sides together by pressing down with a fork.
- Gently flip over the puff pastry sheet and cut into 2 inch squares for mini sausages. You can cut them into 4-5 inch rolls for regular-sized sausage rolls.
- Brush the tops of all the sausage rolls with egg wash.
- Poke the top of each sausage roll with a fork.
- Line a large baking tray (I used a 17x11 inch cookie sheet pan) with parchment paper.
- Place the sausage rolls on the tray leaving space between the rolls and bake at 375°F/190°C for 30 minutes. You might need to bake all the rolls in batches.
- The tops of the baked sausage rolls should look golden brown.
- Best served with ketchup.
- You can freeze these for up to a month or store them in the fridge for up to a week!