Flaky British Sausage Roll Recipe

If you have ever eaten a classic British sausage roll, then you likely understand the hype. These humble snacks are fiercely loved by the people of Britain, and are treated with a reverence matched only perhaps by soccer and queuing. In fact, the largest bakery chain in the UK, Greggs, sells more than two million sausage rolls every week; by far their most coveted menu item (via Bakery Info). These pastries can be found on the table at any children's birthday celebration, at picnics, parties, and on most Christmas spreads. In short, sausage rolls are a national treasure, but they certainly don't have to be limited to just one nation.

For those of you who have yet to sample a sausage roll, you may be wondering what all the fuss is about. They may not look fancy, and they certainly aren't elevated cuisine, but they absolutely don't need to be. What sausage rolls lack in looks, they more than make up for in flavor. Sausage rolls are simple by design: deliciously seasoned sausage meat baked inside a flaky puff pastry casing. Our resident British recipe developer, Jennine Rye, has created this sausage roll recipe so that you can fall in love too. Read on to find out just how easy they can be to make at home.

To make these flaky British sausage rolls, you will first need to gather the ingredients. Start with sausage meat, wholegrain mustard, nutmeg, salt and pepper, ready-rolled puff pastry, a beaten egg, and nigella seeds. If you cannot find nigella seeds, these can easily be substituted for sesame seeds or fennel seeds. 

To achieve the beautiful flaky quality that makes sausage rolls so delicious, you will want to make sure that you use puff pastry specifically, no other pastry will do. And, while other types of pastry, such as shortcrust pastry, can be easily made at home, there's no shame in using store-bought puff pastry for baking; it works wonderfully well and will save you a whole lot of time!

To begin, combine the sausage meat in a bowl with the wholegrain mustard, the nutmeg, and the salt and pepper. The easiest way to mix this is with your hands, this way you can ensure that the flavors are evenly spread throughout the sausage meat.

Most good butchers will be able to sell you sausage meat, but if you find yourself coming up short, there is a simple solution. You can buy your favorite sausages at the supermarket, and simply squeeze out the sausage meat. For this route you will need to use sausages that are not parboiled; only raw sausage meat will work.

To prepare the puff pastry, lightly flour a surface and then unroll the ready-rolled pastry onto the surface. Using a sharp knife or a pizza roller, slice the pastry in half lengthwise to make two long, thin strips of pastry. Then, divide the sausage meat into two equal sized portions. Spread out half of the sausage meat evenly along the center of one of the strips of pastry, then repeat this process with the other half. Brush a little of the beaten egg down one side of the pastry, then gently fold the other side of pastry over the top of the sausage meat. Roll it over until the sausage meat is fully encased in the pasty, and the egg brushed side will create a seal on the underneath of the pastry roll.

Slice each long pastry roll into eight evenly-sized sausage rolls, giving you 16 sausage rolls in total. Transfer the sausage rolls to a baking paper-covered oven tray, and then brush each of them with more of the beaten egg. This will ensure that they have beautifully shiny and golden tops. Sprinkle a few nigella seeds on the top of each sausage roll, before placing them into the oven to cook for 30 minutes, until they are risen and golden.

It is also possible to freeze the uncooked sausage rolls, and they will simply need 10 minutes longer in the oven to cook from frozen. These flaky British sausage rolls can be enjoyed either hot or cold. Once they reach room temperature they are best stored in the fridge in an airtight container, and consumed within three days.