Homemade Gluten-free Breakfast Sausages
gluten-free | grain-free | dairy-free option | tree nut free | egg free
by Alexa Lehr | The Pioneer Chicks | March 11, 2021
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Being the meat-lover that I am, I have always wanted to try making my own sausages. This homemade gluten-free sausages recipe has been put on hold for quite awhile now as other recipes took top priority, but now I’m wondering why I didn’t try making this recipe sooner! These sausages were so easy to make, and they tasted fantastic! I felt like a real modern pioneer when I was putting together this recipe, making my own sausages from scratch, using wholesome ingredients, and learning new recipe skills. These sausages were a hit with my whole family and will definitely be something I keep stocked in my freezer!

Modern Pioneer Recipe

While making your own sausages is a very pioneerish thing to do, I still consider this recipe to be a modern pioneer recipe. Mainly because these sausages use ground meat, which is something the early pioneers would not have been able to create easily from the meat they harvested. However, all the rest of the ingredients are wholesome and heritage!

I wanted to create a breakfast sausage link (and patty) recipe to replace the links and patties that my family gets at the grocery store. We love having a breakfast sausage with one of our favorite egg meals for breakfast or dinner, so I wanted to try making my own sausages to replace the store-bought sausages.

At first I was intimated by trying to make breakfast sausage links, but they are actually very easy! The patties were simple too, and both versions turned out delicious!

Not to mention, these sausages are allergy-friendly too! These homemade sausage links and patties are…..

• gluten-free
• grain-free
• corn free
• egg free
• nut free
• dairy-free
• naturally sweetened
• preservative free

Choosing a Meat

The great thing about this sausage recipe is that you can use whatever type of meat you want to make your sausages with, as long as it is ground meat! Obviously, I used ground venison for my sausages because we harvest our own deer and always have a freezer full of venison. However, if you have a different source of home-grown meat on your homestead, then by all means try a different meat in this recipe!

Now, different meats will have slightly different consistencies. Here are a few considerations to think about when choosing a meat to use in this sausage recipe:

• venison- is a dry meat that requires bold flavors
• bison- is moister than venison and has a distinct, delicious flavor of its own
• turkey- is a moist meat that will create a tender, soft sausage
• chicken- is also a moist meat the will create a tender sausage
• beef- can be a somewhat drier meat, however it also tends to be fattier too, requires more flavoring than turkey or chicken
• pork- is a moister meat that will have a distinct, delicious flavor of its own

Venison is a staple in our house, but I want to get more into raising other meat sources as part of my homesteading dream too. For now, it’s more venison meals for us! Two of my favorite venison recipes include this simple grilled venison backstrap and this tamale pie that uses ground venison!

Flavoring Your Sausages

While the type of ground meat you choose to use will definitely play a role in the flavor of your sausages, you can also customize the seasonings in this recipe to pair appropriately with the meat you choose to use. It’s amazing how certain herbs and spices compliment certain meats! Since venison is a dry meat with a somewhat bland flavor, I like to add a variety of herbs and spicy spices to my sausages so that they have a bold, vivid taste.

However, when choosing what spices to include in the sausage recipe, consider these popular pairings!

• chicken and apple
• venison and sage
• turkey and maple
• chicken and maple
• pork and fennel
• beef and rosemary
• venison and rosemary
• bison and thyme

Whether you’re going for sweet and savory, spicy and bold, or mild and pleasing, there are seasoning and spice blends for all tastes and flavors! Personally, I like a mix of herbs, such as rosemary, thyme, and basil combined with some spices like cumin, paprika, onion, and garlic. None of the flavors are too bold, but it gives the meat a nice spice with an underlying herbal flavor.

Serving Ideas

These homemade gluten-free sausages are so versatile, they go with just about anything! Since my family usually has sausage links or patties for breakfast, I usually think of pairing sausages with an egg meal. However, there are some many more options!

These sausages can be used as a protein source for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even as a snack! Here are some of my favorite ways to serve these breakfast sausage links and sausage patties:

• with homemade baked beans and grain-free cheesy quesadillas
• made into a breakfast sandwich with fried or scrambled eggs and my favorite gluten-free or grain-free bread product
• served as a side with a fresh egg omelet
• used in this grain-free biscuit, sausage, and egg casserole

The store-bought breakfast sausages that I would buy would always be frozen, so all I had to do was pull one out of the freezer and re-heat it to go with a breakfast meal. So I knew my homemade sausages had to be just as versatile.

Both the sausage links and the patties can be frozen after they are cooked. Then, when you need a sausage to pair with a meal, just pull them out of the freezer, throw them in a frying pan for a few minutes to re-heat…. and then you have sausages all ready to be served! Quick, easy and simple!

Recipe Tips

Honestly, homemade sausages were so much easier to make than I had first anticipated! I literally combined all the ingredients together, shaped the links and patties, and then cooked them in a skillet. It was so simple and easy! Here are a few tips I took note of while making my sausages:

• The sausage mixture is less sticky to work with if you let it set for a few minutes after combining all the ingredients. I would recommend letting the mixture set while your cast iron skillet preheats.
• Make sure the cast iron skillet is not too hot, otherwise you’ll scorch the outside of your sausages before the insides have cooked.
• To test the readiness of your pan, sprinkle a few drops of water into the pan, if they sizzle, then the pan is ready for cooking.
• I added 1 T. of bacon fat each time I went to fry a batch of sausages. You can also use butter, ghee, or coconut oil.
• The sausage links should be no thicker than 3/4 of an inch. That way they can cook all the way through without the outsides overcooking.
• My sausage patties were a little less than 1/4 of an inch thick, so if you prefer thicker sausage patties, then make sure you let your patties cook for a little longer on each side.
• If you ever question if your sausages are done or not, cut one open and see if the inside is cooked.
• Note: the sausages will cook a little bit after you have removed them from the skillet as they cool down.

These homemade gluten-free sausages were so much fun to make, and the options are endless for trying different flavors! I love that these sausages are a healthy, simple alternative to store bought sausages, perfect for modern pioneers!

Where to Find the Ingredients

• Thrive Market coconut aminos
• Simply Organic onion powder
• Simply Organic garlic powder
• Bragg’s all-purpose herb blend
• Simply Organic cumin
• Simply Organic cayenne pepper
• Supplies: 9″ cast iron skillet, metal spatula

These simple, homemade gluten-free sausages are versatile, allergy-friendly, and super easy to make! Make up a batch for dinner, breakfast, or to freeze for later! As a modern pioneer, I love making my own replacements to store bought items, especially when they are just as easy and economical as their commercial counterparts. This sausage recipe is easily adaptable to whatever ground meat you have on hand, and you can get creative with the flavorings. I love having my homemade sausage links and patties with my favorite egg meals!

And don’t forget, you can get more modern pioneer recipes and heritage pioneer recipes when you join our modern pioneer community! As soon as you sign up we’ll send you our pioneer egg recipes ebook. It’s a cookbook you don’t want to miss!