Bierocks with Sausage and Sauerkraut

Serves 10

2880 mins prep

40 mins cook

2920 mins total

These authentic German bread rolls, called Brötchen, are a bakery staple part of an authentic German breakfast and for eating Bratwurst on the go! The crusty German rolls are also super versatile and popular at German fast food trucks called Imbissbuden. You're almost always guaranteed to get one when ordering and eating Bratwurst, Currywurst, Frikadellen, and more.

If yeast scares you, here is a free yeast tips sheet you can download here that's normally found inside my German pastry baking online course.

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Make the Bierock Dough

Start by making your Bierock roll dough, which is taken from my authentic Brötchen recipe. Alternatively, use canned biscuits to speed things up.
Combine all ingredients for the pre-dough (also called a poolish) )and allow to rest in an airtight bowl in your fridge for 48 to 72 hours before finishing the dough. The volume should have at least doubled and the dough should be nice and bubbly.
26 g all-purpose flour
18 g water
⅕ g active dry yeast
⅗ g salt
Combine the warm water, sugar and yeast and allow to get bubbly, which should take about 5 minutes. If it does not get bubbly, consult this yeast tips sheet that you can download here for free and that is part of my German pastry online baking class.
14 g water
1 ⅕ g sugar
⅗ g active dry yeast
Add all other ingredients and predough and knead on the lowest setting for 5 minutes. Then increase to the second setting for another 8 minutes.
61 g all-purpose flour
20 g milk
1 ⅕ g salt
Cover the bowl and let rise for one hour.
Preheat your oven to 230° Celsius or 445° Fahrenheit and place an oven-safe bowl full of hot water on the bottom rack while preheating to create steam.

Prepare the Filling

In the meantime, prepare your Bierock filling. Cut the onion in half and thinly slice it. Heat a medium sized pan over medium heat and add one tablespoon of butter. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes. The onions should be a golden brown color.
⅖ tablespoons butter
⅕ large onion
Medium-dice a green apple (I leave the skin on). Add to a pan with the remaining butter and cook for a minute over medium-high heat or until starting to brown. Mince the garlic and add to the pan. Cook for another minute. Drain the sauerkraut and add to the pan and add the broth. Sprinkle the flour on top. Finally add in the sausages and stir for a couple of minutes or until the sausages are warmed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
⅕ clove garlic
⅕ green apple
50 milliliters vegetable stock
⅕ tablespoon flour
30 grams sauerkraut
30 grams Wiener or Frankfurter sausages

Shape Bierocks

Knead the dough for a couple of minutes and shape 10 dough balls of about 90 grams (3.1 ounces) each.
Using a rolling pin, flatten the balls to be about 5 inch rounds, then fill with the sauerkraut-sausage filling, and the caramelized onions. Pinch the seams together over the filling (see pictures), then place the roll seam side down on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Bake Bierocks

Spray or brush on water and bake in a preheated oven for 10 minutes. At this point, open the oven door wide to release steam. Then continue baking for 5 more minutes.
Now remove the hot water AND the rolls, brush on more hot water, and return to the oven to finish baking for the last 5 minutes or until golden in color. Brushing on the water towards the end of baking helps to give the rolls a shiny finish,
Your Bierocks will bake for 20 minutes in total.
Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool for 10 or more minutes before eating. Serve with some mustard for dipping.