These easy oven baked brats are roasted with sweet red onions until juicy and golden, making a simple, hands-off dinner that's perfect when you don't want to grill. Serve them on buns with your favorite toppings or alongside potatoes, sauerkraut, or roasted vegetables.
For a great addition to your Bratwurst sandwich, try my sauerkraut with bacon.
Recipe Summary: Oven Baked Brats with Roasted Onions
- ✅ Recipe Name: Oven Baked Brats with Roasted Onions
- 🕒 Ready In: 40 minutes
- 👪 Serves: 5 (easy to scale)
- 🍽 Calories: 341 per serving
- 🥣 Main Ingredients: Bratwurst, red onions, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar
- 📖 Dietary Info: Make-a-head friendly, kid-friendly
- ⭐ Why You'll Love It: Skip the grill! These juicy oven baked brats roast alongside sweet caramelized onions for an easy, mostly hands-off dinner in about 35 minutes.
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This is one of my favorite ways to make bratwurst when grilling isn't an option. Whether it's raining, too cold outside, or I just want an easier dinner, these oven baked brats come out juicy every time, while the onions roast underneath until sweet and caramelized.
With just a few minutes of prep, the oven does the rest of the work. Serve them on toasted rolls with my beer bacon sauerkraut or pair them with my Boursin cheese mashed potatoes for an easy weeknight dinner.
Why you'll love this recipe
- Mostly hands-off: Just 5 minutes of prep, then let the oven do the work while dinner practically makes itself.
- Perfect for sandwiches: Pile the juicy brats onto toasted rolls with mustard and sauerkraut with bacon for an easy, flavor-packed meal.
- Complete dinner: Pair with roasted vegetables, Boursin cheese mashed potatoes, or your favorite side for an effortless weeknight meal.
- Sweet and tangy roasted onions: Red onions are tossed with olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and brown sugar, then roasted beneath the brats until tender, caramelized, and packed with flavor.
Jump to:
Ingredients
- German-style bratwurst: The star of the recipe! Use your favorite fresh bratwurst. I found mine at Aldi.
- Red onions: Roast beneath the brats until sweet, tender, and caramelized, adding tons of flavor.
- Brown sugar: Helps the onions caramelize and brings out their natural sweetness. Light or dark brown sugar both work.
- Olive oil: Coats the onions so they roast evenly and develop rich, caramelized edges. Avocado or canola oil also works.
- Apple cider vinegar: Adds a touch of tanginess that balances the richness of the bratwurst and sweet onions.
See the recipe card at the end for the full list of ingredients with the quantities.
Variations
| Swap the sausage | Try Italian sausage or Mexican chorizo in place of Brats. |
| Add veggies | Toss sliced red bell peppers in with the onions for extra color and flavor. Slice them thinly so they become tender at the same rate as the onions. |
How to make Oven Baked Brats
- Step 1: Preheat oven to 425°. Add onions, brown sugar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and apple cider vinegar to a large bowl and toss until well coated.
- Step 2: Spread onion mixture into an even layer in a large cast iron skillet, baking sheet, or casserole dish.
- Step 3: Top with Brats, and roast in preheated oven for 15 minutes.
- Step 4: Flip brats halfway through, and continue roasting for 15-25 minutes, until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the sausage registers 165°.
Expert Tips
- Keep them juicy: Bake the brats in a fully preheated oven and avoid overcooking. If they start to look dry, loosely tent them with foil for the remainder of the cooking time.
- Brown to perfection: For extra color, broil the brats for 2–3 minutes at the end of cooking. Place them about 3 inches from the broiler and watch closely to prevent burning.
- Choose the right pan: A large cast iron skillet works great, but a parchment-lined baking sheet or any oven-safe baking dish will work just as well.
Oven Baked Brats FAQs
Bake them uncovered. The quick cook time ensures they don't dry out, and helps them get evenly browned.
Yes, you should flip the brats over halfway through baking with tongs to promote even browning on both sides.
For fast cooking and even browning, I prefer to roast these brats at 425 degrees. This also helps the onions caramelize without overcooking the brats.
I like to use a cast iron skillet, since it holds heat well, and contains the juices from the Brats and onions well. If you like, you can also use a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or foil.
No! These brats cook to juicy perfection right in the oven. No need to pre-cook.
You know the brats are fully cooked when an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the sausage registers 165 degrees.
1. Flipping them with a fork, which breaks the casing and allows juices to run out. Always use tongs to keep all the juices in the sausage, not on your plate.
2 Not allowing them to rest fully, so the juice runs out when you take a bite, rather than redistributing into the sausage.
3. Boiling before roasting, which toughens the sausages and results in dry and over-cooked brats.
Serving the Oven Cooked Brats
- Make classic sandwiches. Add the brats to sturdy sandwich rolls with mustard and sauerkraut with bacon, and a side of fries or chips for a simple lunch or quick dinner.
- Make it a meal. Serve the brats with simple roasted veggies, or a side of German Spaetzle or hot German potato salad.
- Do Bangers and Mash. Add a side of Boursin cheese mashed potatoes and creamy mushroom gravy for the ultimate bangers plate.
If you tried this Oven Baked Brats recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting today!
Oven Baked Brats with Roasted Onions Recipe
Equipment
- large cast iron skillet
Ingredients
- 5 German-style Bratwurst sausage links
- 2 large red onions, halved and cut into ¾” wedges
- 2 teaspoon brown sugar
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Arrange rack in top position.
- Toss onions in brown sugar, olive oil salt, pepper, and vinegar in a large bowl (or right in the cast iron skillet) until well coated.
- Spread into an even layer in a large cast iron skillet.
- Top with sausages and transfer to preheated oven.
- Roast for 15 minutes, then toss onions and flip sausages, and roast for another 15-25 minutes, until onions are slightly caramelized, and sausages are cooked through and reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees f with a meat thermometer inserted in the center of a bratwurst. Cooking time can vary a bit depending on your oven and the size of the brats, so be sure to check their temperature prior to serving.
- Allow Brats to rest for 5 minutes before serving to allow their juices to redistribute.
Andi says
I made this tonight, but in the crockpot on High for about 6 hours. I’ve had this recipe both ways, and though the original method is definitely better, the crockpot way melted In your mouth. I should note that I didn’t have all red onion. So for 10 beer brats, I used 1 large red onion and 3 medium sized yellow onions, with 6 ounces of Lager.
Sharon Farnell says
Thank you so much, Andi! So happy you enjoyed the recipe!
kierstin crosley says
This is an easy and amazingly flavorful dish ! I would give it 10 stars if I could. You can easily bake this on sheet pan or grill the brats and do the onion mixture in a pan. Great to feed a crowd.
Holly says
This is soooo good! The onions become candy, the brats just blend in. This is a very filling dinner, and full of comfort! Will make this again!
Sharon says
These oven baked brats are my go-to when I want a well-browned and juicy Bratwurst without firing up the grill!