Sous Vide Sausages

Ingredients

• 3 pounds natural-casing raw sausage links, such as bratwurst or Italian
• 6 ounces beer, optional
• Kosher salt, optional
• 1 tablespoon butter or oil
• Buns and condiments, for serving

Directions

1. Heat your precision cooker to the temperature you want, anywhere from 140 to 160 degrees F (60 to 71 degrees C), using the chart above as your guide. Arrange the sausages in vacuum-sealer bags or zipper-lock bags so they sit in a single layer. If you’d like, pour a few tablespoons beer into each bag and add 2 teaspoons salt.
2. Close the bags carefully. If you’re using a vacuum sealer, seal as soon as the air is gone so the sausages don’t get compressed and the liquid doesn’t travel into the machine. If you’re using zipper-lock bags, use the water displacement method: close each bag nearly all the way, lower it slowly into a large pot of water, and finish sealing just before the top edge goes under.
3. Lower the bagged sausages into the water bath and cook for at least 45 minutes and up to 4 hours. Take the sausages out of the bags, pour off the juices, and pat the links very dry on a paper towel-lined plate.
4. For a stovetop finish, warm 1 tablespoon oil or butter in a skillet over medium heat until it shimmers. Add the sausages and cook, turning them now and then, until every side is nicely browned, about 3 minutes. Serve right away.
5. For a grill finish, cook the sausages over medium heat, rotating them occasionally, until they are browned all over, about 3 minutes. Serve right away.