Sauerkraut and Weenies
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This is an old-fashioned Southern main dish. As the name suggests, all you need is sauerkraut and weenies to make this tangy yet delicious dish.
This sauerkraut and weenies recipe was one of my dear favorite meals as a girl and still is. It is a prime example of a budget meal (very common in the South back in the day) and so very good! Oh goodness, I’m getting hungry.
Now, I realize some folks are just not sauerkraut fans. Chances are, I lost about half of you in the title of this post. But I know some folks saw that photo and your stomach started growling, and chances are pretty darn good that you’ll be having this for supper tonight. Those who don’t fit into this category, feel free to think of the rest of us as weird. We won’t mind and there will be more sauerkraut for us! Everyone has their preferences and it’s all good either way.
This is one of those meals that is great with slices of polish sausage. But I still like to cook it how Mama did growing up; just by chopping up a few weenies and cooking until the sauerkraut and weenies brown a bit. That’s all there is to it. You can add as many weenies or sausage as you like and if you’re vegetarian, just get some vegan hot dogs and keep on keeping on. If you want to take it up a notch, you can make your own sauerkraut as I do in this post. Put it on your Classic Reuben Sandwich and you will crave it every day.
Recipe Ingredients
- Sauerkraut
- Weenies
- Salt and pepper
Helpful Kitchen Tools
How to Make Sauerkraut and Weenies
Slice your weenies and put them in a large skillet.
Add in about two cups of sauerkraut.
Cook this over medium to medium-high heat, stirring often.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
You can start with 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper and then adjust to make it just right for you.
Cook this until your weenies and sauerkraut get a little brown or you can just cook it until everything is heated through.
Now here is a supper from the old days!
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. I recommend reheating on the stovetop on low heat until heated through.
Recipe Notes
- How many weenies you use is up to you. We used to have to determine this based on how many we had, so to be able to use as many as you want is a big step up nowadays.
- I have a friend from Germany ~waves to Gudrun~ who swears by the bagged sauerkraut so I started buying it and now I’m a convert, too. You can get it in the refrigerated section near the weenies usually and sometimes near the deli if they have a refrigerated section there as well. Mama likes the kind you get in a glass jar and we’ve both used the kind that comes in a can (which you get on the vegetable aisle). Overall, they are all good and there isn’t a lot of price difference so it is up to you to pick your favorite.
- As mentioned, you can use a different type of sausage with the sauerkraut. For example, sauerkraut and brats (bratwurst) is a popular dish in Germany. Kielbasa or franks also work.
- For extra flavor, add 1 diced apple to the skillet as well.
Recipe FAQs
What goes well with sauerkraut and weenies?
Here are some serving suggestions for your sauerkraut and weenies:
- Dinner rolls (with mustard)
- German potato salad
- Mashed potatoes
- Fried potatoes
- Freshly fried corn (or creamed corn or baked corn on the cob).
- Baked beans
- Broccoli salad
- Fresh green beans
- Cornbread
Do you drain sauerkraut before cooking?
If you’re using jarred sauerkraut, you’ll want to drain it before using it.
What condiment goes well with sauerkraut?
Mustard, ketchup, green tomato relish, and hot sauce (like sriracha or tabasco sauce) all pair perfectly with sauerkraut.
How do you season sauerkraut?
Besides salt and black pepper, if you want a touch of sweetness add up to a tablespoon of brown sugar. If you want a more savory flavor, add a teaspoon of caraway seeds. Alternatively, for a kick, add a dash of red pepper flakes or a teaspoon of paprika.
What food goes well with sauerkraut?
Here are some other dishes that pair well with sauerkraut:
- Hot dogs or hot dog chili
- Pork chops
- Reuben sandwich
- Grilled cheese sandwich
- Polish sausage or kielbasa sausage
You may also like these recipes:
Southern Fried Cabbage With Bacon
Ingredients
- 2-4 weenies or polish sausage
- 2 cups sauerkraut
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Slice weenies into small pieces and place them in a skillet over medium to medium-high heat.2-4 weenies or polish sausage
- Add sauerkraut. Cook, stirring often until kraut and weenies brown slightly. Salt and pepper to taste.2 cups sauerkraut, salt and pepper to taste
- Serve hot.
Nutrition
This was originally published in 2010. I updated the post and photos in 2020.
Life is really simple,
but we insist on making it complicated.
Pinto beans cooked with a ham bone, potatoes fried with onion and white bread and butter under the pintos, yummmm! We didn’t grow up with cornbread, and now days I never eat white bread, but still like whole grain under the beans.
Mom called hamburger, onion, elbow roni and canned tomatoes goulash, my apologies to the real stuff, but I still love it and make it often.
White rice with milk, sugar and butter and cinnamon when you were too sick for regular dinner. still a treat!
Im way late but we had this and SOS. 🙂 both were my favs too and I have not made these for my boys.. getting on that this week! Thanks for the reminder of what real life should be like. Also one of our midwest poor foods was a can of vegetable beef soup dumped into cooked elbow macaroni. learned to hate it as a kid but oddly crave it once in awhile as an adult! lol
my paw would feed me saltine crackers and ketchup. we loved it. Mom used to make us a treat on Saturday mornings of white bread dotted with butter and sprinkled with brown sugar and toasted under the broiler. Aunt Sue used to make the best tomato sandwiches from tomatoes from the garden, Sunbeam bread and Dukes mayo, we called them Sue Sandwiches. The tomatoes were from grannies garden and the 1″ thick, red and yellow slices were bigger than the bread slice. MMMMMMMMM!
Oh my goodness, you have me drooling Barbara!!
Ya gotta be a Tar Heel! Sunbeam bread and Dukes Mayo for mater sandwiches…YUM
My late father, we called him Pappy, was from North Carolina. He introduced us to all kinds of fun stuff from his Appalachian upbringing. Soggy ‘mater sandwiches were the best, in the summer when our tomatoes were coming on strong. White bread, lots of mayo, sliced fresh “maters, salt, and plenty of black pepper. Had to let them set just a bit to get good and soggy, dripping down your chin! 🙂 Also, Sauerkraut straight out of the jar. Souse meat(head cheese) soaked for a bit in vinegar and served on saltines. Me and Mama loved brains (canned) and eggs, Yuck. Poke Salad (wallet) from wild poke weed. Squirrel and rabbit, quail and pheasant, all fried with gravy. I could go on and on. Love all that stuff and the memories it brings back to me. And yes, sauerkraut and weiners, about once every two weeks, buttered potatoes, and green peas, never varied.
Can’t believe I said ME and Mama, I hated brains. I meant HE and Mama loved brains and eggs.
Mom always added a bit of sugar to give it a sweet & sour flavor. Added water as needed until sauerkraut took on on a caramel color. Made for my family, too, but haven’t made it for years. Son ~ now 42 yrs old ~ loved it so much he make in his own home.
A big bowl of potatoe soup and cornbread. Now that is good eatin’!!! My aunt wouldn’t eat it. She said it made her feel poor. Funny… to me there’s nothing any better.
Tina
I have to agree with you Tina, good eatin indeed!!
Pork and beans and wienies,mac n cheese,and corn bread is a good one. Another one is Salmon patties and pintos, YUMMMM Good eatin.
An additional idea to make the sauerkraut more family friendly ……. rinse the kraut to reduce the sour and drop in a sliced apple during cooking.