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Plate of French fries and sliced sausages topped with curry powder, ketchup, and chopped parsley.
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5 from 1 vote

Currywurst

You are making Germany's answer to the chili dog tonight: sausage seared hard, sliced into rounds, and drowned in a warm sweet-tangy curry sauce with fries alongside. This has been a staple of Berlin since the mid-1900's and there's no reason to change it.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time32 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, german
Servings: 4 servings (about 6 oz sausage per person)
Calories: 622kcal
Author: Kita Roberts

Ingredients

For the Curry Ketchup

  • 1 1/2 cups plain tomato ketchup (no smoke, no balsamic flavors)
  • 1/2 cup tomato passata or plain tomato sauce
  • 1-2 teaspoons mild curry powder plus more for finishing
  • 1 teaspoon sweet paprika not smoked
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
  • Salt to taste

For the Sausage

  • 1 1/2 to 2 lbs mild pork sausage skinless if available, or a fine-textured pork bratwurst

To Serve

  • Curry powder for a heavy finishing dust
  • French fries
  • Mayonnaise

Instructions

Make the Curry Ketchup

  • Combine the ketchup, passata, curry powder, sweet paprika, sugar, and vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a bare simmer, reduce heat to low, and cook 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until glossy and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon without running off. Season with salt. The sauce should taste sweet, tangy, and aromatic, never hot or spicy.
    White saucepan filled with dark red sauce, placed on a wooden surface with handles visible on both sides.

Sear the Sausage

  • Heat a skillet or grill pan over medium-high until a drop of water skitters across the surface. Cook the sausages 10 to 12 minutes total, turning every 2 to 3 minutes, until deeply browned on all sides and an instant-read thermometer reads 160F at the center. Do not boil the sausages first.
    Five browned sausages cooking in a white frying pan on a dark wooden surface, with a striped cloth partially visible in the bottom right corner.

Rest

  • Let the sausages rest 2 minutes before slicing so the juices stay in the meat instead of running onto the board.
    Five cooked sausages are arranged on parchment paper with parsley and a bowl of red sauce on a wooden table.

Slice and Sauce

  • Cut the sausages into 1/2-inch rounds. Pile them on the plate, spoon the warm curry ketchup over the top until every round is coated but nothing is swimming, and finish with a heavy dusting of curry powder.
    Plate with French fries, sliced sausage topped with ketchup and curry powder, chopped herbs, and a side of mayonnaise.

Notes

  • Dust the curry powder twice: once when the sauce goes on, once at the table. Curry powder loses its top notes fast in a hot sauce, so the finishing dust is where the aroma comes from.
  • Taste the sauce cool. Warm sauce reads sweeter than it is. Pull a spoonful onto a plate, let it sit two minutes, then adjust salt and vinegar.
  • Curry powder brands vary widely in heat and salt. Start at 1 teaspoon in the sauce and adjust up.
  • Skip smoked paprika and any ketchup with smoke, balsamic, or chipotle in it. Smoke does not belong in currywurst.
  • Make ahead: the curry ketchup is better on day two and keeps 5 days refrigerated or 3 months frozen. Sear the sausages fresh.
  • Serve with fries and mayo. No bun.

Nutrition

Calories: 622kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 20g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 122mg | Sodium: 2044mg | Potassium: 785mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 973IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 3mg