Brawts and Hots for the Fourth of July
It’s the Fourth of July and what better way to celebrate than with a good old-fashioned barbecue of summer sausages. Bratwurst sausages boiled in beer and then grilled accompanied by all-beef hotdogs. The boiling makes sure the brawts are cooked and stay juicy. The grilling gives them a crisp casing which snaps when you bite into one. These babies will be snuggled in toasted buns and blanketed with sweet onion relish.
The brawts and hots will be served with a fresh tomato, cucumber, basil salad with lemon zest and a touch of olive oil; black bean salad made with cilantro, lime juice, cumin and jalapenos; and Asian coleslaw — julienned carrots, snow peas, cashews, cabbage and orange slices tossed with a ginger garlic soy sauce dressing. . For dessert? What else but ice cold watermelon. In case you didn’t notice it’s a melting pot theme for Independence Day — German sausages, Italian tomato salad, Mexican bean salad and the Asian coleslaw.
Poke the brawts with a fork in several places. Put in a sauce pan and cover with beer. Bring the beer to a boil then lower to a simmer for 15 minutes.
Chop 3 cups of onions. That sounds like a lot but it cooks down considerably. Put 1 tbsp. butter in a frying pan on low heat. Add the onions and slowly cook until the onions are a light golden brown. This will probably take 15 minutes. Add 1 tbsp. each apple cider vinegar and brown sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Turn off the heat.
Cut three tomatoes into eight quarters each. Slice one cucumber and add to the tomatoes. Grate 1 tsp. of lemon zest and the juice of half a lemon over the vegetables. Sprinkle with five chopped scallions. You don’t have to add any oil to this dish if you don’t want to. Right before serving add 1/4 cup or a good handful of basil leaves. If you add them before that they have a tendency to turn a dark green unpleasant color.
Drain one can of black beans. Add 1 tbsp. of cumin and 1 tsp. of red pepper flakes. Squeeze in the juice of two limes. Stir in 1/2 cup of chopped sweet red peppers — you can also use orange or yellow peppers. Add from 1 tbsp to 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro.
Combine the ingredients for the Asian slaw. Dress with 1/4 cup rice vinegar, 1/2 tsp each minced ginger and garlic, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1/2 cup of cooking oil.
Grill the brawts and hot dogs until the brawts are golden and the hot dogs expand a bit. While you’re grilling the sausages, toast the buns on the grill.
Put the sausages in the buns with a squiggle of mustard and top with the sweet onion relish. Set up a hot dog bar for the kids. Offer chopped toppings such as tomatoes, lettuce, green peppers and cheese. Add Fritos — seriously they go great with hot dogs — sauerkraut, dill pickles and sweet pickle relish. Finish the bar with ketchup and mustard of course, but also include sweet and sour sauce, barbecue sauce and mayonnaise. Arrange the hot dog bar ingredients in a bed of ice, each in its own container.
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