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This bratwurst soup recipe is loaded with potatoes, vegetables, and a flavorful broth. It’s simple to make, and you can definitely clean out the fridge with this recipe!
Try my Sausage and Vegetable Soup or Sausage and Sweet Potato Soup next.
Why you’ll love it
I often buy brats, and using them in soup is a fantastic way to make it extra hearty and comforting. I keep some in my freezer at all times so I can whip up this easy soup with bratwurst sausages any time I have a craving for it, which is pretty often!
This brat soup is actually fairly healthy, yet it’s also nice and filling and cozy and warming. It’s also super flexible, so you can toss in any veggies that you have kicking around that need to be used up. For how few ingredients it has, this bratwurst soup is very delicious.
What you’ll need
- Olive oil – for pan frying
- Bratwurst sausages – I use Johnsonville brand brats. Their blend of herbs and spices is so tasty! I like to brown the sausage pieces as much as I can (without burning them, of course) to eke out as much flavor as possible.
- Onions, carrots, celery, and garlic – base aromatics and veggies in any good soup
- Beef broth – it adds another layer of richness
- Potatoes – I prefer russets because they fall apart nicely in soups, but any kind of potato works
Pro tip
You could even use leftover brats that you’ve grilled. Just cut them up and throw them in the soup!
How to make bratwurst soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Heat up the oil in a soup pot. Crumble the sausage, and cook until it browns and crisps up. Spoon out excess fat, but leave some behind for extra flavor. Add in the onion, celery, and carrots, and sauté until they start to soften. Stir in the garlic, and cook until fragrant.
Add the beef broth, water, and potatoes. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes and vegetables are cooked through. Season with salt & pepper (or seasoning salt/Tony’s seasoning).
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- Here is the Dutch oven pictured. Cooking with cast iron is my fave. I also recommend this sturdy ladle.
- Mince the garlic with a quick squeeze of a garlic press.
- Chop your veggies with a quality chef knife.
Substitutions and variations
- This bratwurst sausage soup is very forgiving. You could throw in other veggies that you need to use up. Kale or spinach would be delicious too. If you wanted to give it a bit of a German feel, throw in some sauerkraut!
- I love the richness the beef broth gives to this soup, but you can replace with chicken broth if needed.
- Don’t have brats? Try using Italian sausages or another kind of sausage instead.
What to serve with bratwurst soup
- Round out the meal with a dinner roll, slice of fresh bread, or some of my Extra Cheesy Garlic Bread.
- For a salad, try one with my 10-Minute Caesar Dressing and Garlic Parmesan Croutons. A couple of lighter options are my Easy Cucumber Tomato Avocado Salad or simple Parmesan Arugula Salad.
Leftovers and storage
- Store leftovers of this soup in an airtight container for 3-4 days in the fridge.
- Reheat over a low heat until warmed through.
- You can freeze this one for up to 6 months.
If you made this brat soup, talk to me in the comments below! Star ratings and reviews are so helpful. You can also tag me on Instagram.
Simple Bratwurst Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound bratwurst sausages
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 2 medium carrots peeled & chopped
- 3 sticks celery chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups beef broth
- 1 cup water
- 2 large Russet potatoes peeled & diced
- Salt & pepper to taste, see note
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a soup pot or Dutch oven. Take the sausage meat out of the casings and crumble it into the pot. Cook it, over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sausages start to brown/crisp up (about 8-10 minutes).
- Spoon out the excess fat, leaving about 1-2 tablespoons in there.
- Stir in the onions, celery, and carrots. Sauté for 5 minutes or so.
- Stir in the garlic and let it cook for about 30 seconds, then add the broth, water, and potatoes.
- Increase the heat to high. Bring the soup to a boil, then cover the pot with the lid slightly open and reduce the heat so it's simmering. Cook for 20 minutes or until the potatoes and veggies are tender.
- Season with salt & pepper as needed.
Notes
- Served 4-6 depending on how much people eat (and if you serve something like bread with it).
- Anything around a pound of sausages will work. Here in Canada Johnsonville brats come in 500g packages, so I will typically just use the whole pack.
- I love to season this soup with Tony’s seasoning or seasoning salt vs. regular salt & pepper.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This recipe was originally published on April 27, 2020. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
I LOVED this – ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
I was looking for a quick way to use some Brats I had defrosted after plans changed. I thought ok it’s raining – windy and cold out – this sounds comforting. I didn’t expect the soup to be so flavorful without adding herbs – it’s so simple and going into a normal rotation at my home. Definitely try – I’ll be perusing your blogs for more recipes!
Yay!! I’m so glad it all worked out. 😀 Let me know what else you try!
Awesome, simple and fast. Those in my family who typically turn up their noses at Brats love it and are asking for it all of the time. I subbed beer for water and used a beer infused brat in the recipe and it was a nice add for us. Also used beef bone broth for an even richer flavor.
That makes me so happy!!
Hi do you add the garlic with the onion and celery and carrot? Guessing so but don’t see it mentioned, thanks!
Hi! Garlic is mentioned in step 3.
I made this on 01-27-2023. I had a 5 lb bag of sliced pre-cooked brats in my freezer and 2 qts of home canned beef broth. It was easy to put together. Next time I may add some sauerkraut and caraway seed. Thanks for the recipe.
You’re very welcome!!
I made this with a few modifications: keep a few chicken bouillon cubes on stand by in case you need some extra flavor
5 mins after putting in the potatoes I put in some southern style drop dumplings (easy recipe)
It’s amazing. Remember to build a fond with the meat and deglaze with the water before the beef stock so that you can see that you lifted all the fond up.
Love the dumplings idea, Dave!!
Great recipe. Very much like another soup recipe I use w/ sausage – but I’d never used brats & beef broth in mine – loved it! Also, I sprinkled in some caraway seeds as the meat was coming to the point it’s cooked through. Thank you for posting this.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for your comment!
I use a morter and pestel on seeds like caraway or rosemary… you can add flavor without the seeds or hard pieces…
This is absolutely delicious and so easy to make!
So glad you liked it, Cheryl!!
So easy and so so adaptable. I used chorizo sausages and what a HIT !!!!
Yay!! That’s great!
Made this soup. Son ate it for supper and had it for lunch the next. Granddaughter tried it ,liked it and asked for some to take home. I doubled the recipe because I knew it would be eaten. Will be trying your other recipes as fast as I can. So glad I happened up on your site. It’s like a book I know from the first paragraph if it is going to be interesting or not. I bookmarked your site and shared it also. Thank you
Hi Carol! Natasha and I are thrilled to hear you and your family enjoyed the soup. Thank you so much for sharing our site, and please let us know what else you try! 🙂
I’m a little confused… are you supposed to use bratwurst, as is indicated in the title, or Italian Sausage, as listed in the ingredients? The two have very different flavor profiles.
Oh gosh… I can’t believe I/no one else noticed that error before. *facepalm* Yes, it should be brats and I will update the recipe card. You could use Italian sausage as this is a pretty basic soup and would work with either, but yeah, it should be brats. My apologies!