Name: Gourmet sausage rolls
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 60 min
Ingredients: 450 grams ground pork (5% fat content); 1 shallot; 2 cloves garlic; 3 tbsp sage leaves; 320 grams puff pastry; ½ tbsp dried minced garlic; ½ tbsp sesame seeds; ½ tbsp poppy seeds; ½ tbsp black onion seeds; 1 egg; 1 tbsp butter; Salt and pepper

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Looking for party food ideas? This luxury sausage roll recipe works well as make ahead finger food for when you are having guests over and want to free up some time. There's nothing better than a plate of homemade sausage rolls with puff pastry dipped in mustard and enjoyed whilst still warm and these have been made extra fancy to up the ante.

What makes these gourmet sausage rolls gourmet? The simple combo of sausage wrapped in pastry gets an upgrade in this recipe - we flavour the sausage with sage and garlic, wrap it in flaky puff pastry and sprinkle a mixture of seeds and spices on top of an egg wash before baking to get a light and crisp exterior and a juicy, delicately flavoured interior. Et voila, a luxury sausage roll recipe and the best party food your guests won't be able to get enough of.

BUT because I am all about recipes that taste delicious and high end but don't take over your life with prep time, I make these homemade sausage rolls with ready made puff pastry from Jus Rol who I have been using for years (not sponsored, just a huge fan!). It just saves so much hassle, and I am a huge fan of siphoning stress out of your life. Cooking is meant to be enjoyable after all! Don't get me wrong, there is always a time and place for making your own puff pastry but the quality of the ready made stuff on the market is great in my opinion.

Gourmet sausage rolls with mustard dipping sauce

This luxury sausage roll recipe is easy, takes under an hour to make and the feedback I always get from everyone who tries one (or several) is fantastic.

I love cooking with pork mince as the fat content makes it so juicy. Although with this recipe we need to be mindful of the fat content in the pork mince we buy as coupled with the butter in the puff pastry, it can end up too greasy. More on the ingredients for this luxury sausage roll recipe below...

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Ingredients
Instructions
How to make a sausage roll
Equipment
Storage
Top tip
Recipe Card
Food safety

Ingredients

Pork mince

Buy pork mince with 5% fat content or lower for this luxury sausage roll recipe. I did a lot of testing to get this recipe right and any more fat ends up making them greasy and the puff pastry struggles to cook properly.

Ready made puff pastry

Use the ready made puff pastry that is made with butter - everything tastes better and more luxurious with butter. You can buy the frozen pastry, just thaw it before use.

Shallot

Shallot has a more delicate flavour than onion which is why I prefer cooking with it, dice it small.

Garlic

I don't go overboard on garlic in the pork mince as there is dried minced garlic in the topping too, but it does need it for flavouring.

Sage

I use fresh sage leaves, but you could use dried sage. When switching dried for fresh herbs, divide the quantity by half. So two teaspoons of fresh sage for one teaspoon dried and so on.

Egg
Sesame seeds
Black onion or nigella seeds
Dried minced garlic
Poppy seeds
Kosher salt
Butter
Salt and pepper

See the recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Finely dice the shallot, sage leaves and garlic.

Heat the butter in a frying pan and add the shallot. Once it has softened and gone translucent, add the garlic and sage leaves for another minute before removing it to a bowl and place them in the freezer for five minutes to chill it down quickly.

Now mix it with your pork mince and season with salt and pepper. You can mix it with utensils but really it's easiest using your hands. You'll get messy but hey, that's what hand wash is for, right? Cover the bowl in cling film and chill for 30 minutes to let the flavours combine.

Preheat the oven to 400 F / 200 C. We need a hot oven for baking.

Grease an oven tray or line it with baking paper.

Now we assemble our sausage rolls.

How to make a sausage roll

Wondering how to make a sausage roll with puff pastry? Well, the difficulty is the puff pastry develops a mind of its own and it, well, puffs. Which can cause it to come undone and you end up with a convertible sausage roll with the roof hanging off.

So in this luxury sausage roll recipe, we use two layers of puff pastry, one as a base under the pork mince and one on top and we crimp together the edges using a fork. It keeps everything together and looks pretty too.

Cut the puff pastry sheet into strips that are 4 inches / 10 centimetres wide.

puff pastry cut into strips to make gourmet sausage rolls

Take the pork mince with sage and garlic out of the fridge and form a sausage long ways down the middle of the pastry running from end to end. Be sure to leave a small gap on either long side.

Crack an egg into a cup or glass, mix the yolk and white together and brush it along the pastry on either side of the pork mince.

Take another layer of puff pastry and place it on top, forming it around the pork mince.

Fold the edge of the bottom layer over the edge of the top layer on the long side, and then crimp the two layers together by pressing a fork into them. This, and the egg wash will keep the two layers of puff pastry together whilst baking.

Make the crunchy topping by mixing the dried minced garlic, sesame seeds, black onion or nigella seeds and poppy seeds together in a small bowl.

Brush another layer of egg wash over the top of the sausage roll and sprinkle the seed mix over the top.

crunchy seed mix topping for gourmet sausage rolls

Now cut the sausage roll into small pieces using a sharp knife that are around 2 inches or 5 centimetres long.

Place them on the oven tray and bake in the oven for 15 minutes, and check to see how they are doing. They should be toffee coloured golden brown on top. Depending on your oven they might need up to another 5 minutes.

Serve your gourmet sausage rolls with a bowl of mustard to dip them in and enjoy!

Hint: If you're making this luxury sausage roll recipe as make ahead finger food, leave them to cool before wrapping in foil and putting in the fridge. When you're ready to serve, simply pop them in the oven for 15-20 minutes in the foil parcel to warm them up.

Looking for more pork mince recipes? Try this Belizean pork chilli or Cypriot Pastitsio that I've picked up on my travels around the world.

Equipment

You will need a frying pan, a large mixing bowl and a couple of smaller bowls, a baking tray and a sharp knife.

Storage

Got leftovers? Leave them to cool before wrapping in foil and store in the fridge. They'll be good for 2-3 days, and when you're ready to eat, either enjoy them cold or put them in the oven for 15-20 minutes in the foil parcel to warm them up.

These ingredients don't stand up well to freezing.

Top tip

If you want to test the seasoning on the pork mince before you make the sausage roll, take a tiny piece of it and either fry it or put it in the microwave for 20 seconds. Check the taste to see if you need more salt and pepper and season accordingly.

Recipe Card