12 Types of German Sausages

Bratwurst

Bratwurst and Rostbratwurst is a sausage made from finely minced pork and beef and usually grilled and served with sweet German mustard and a piece of bread or hard roll. It can be sliced and made into Currywurst by slathering it in a catchup-curry sauce.

Thüringer Rostbratwurst features spices like marjoram and caraway, sometimes garlic. The sausage, which is large and usually grilled, is formed using casings from pig intestines.

Nürnberger Rostbratwurst

Nürnberger Rostbratwurst–smaller (pinkie finger-sized) bratwurst sausages, flavored with marjoram and a source of great national (for the state of Franconia) pride. They're served three at a time in a bun as lunch or a snack, or six at a time, grilled, with sauerkraut and potatoes with a side of horseradish cream.

Blood Sausage (Blutwurst)

Blutwurst, or blood sausage, is made with congealed pig or cow blood and contains fillers like meat, fat, bread or oatmeal. It is sliced and eaten cold on bread.

Frankfurter (Bockwurst)

Bockwurst originated in Frankfurt and is made from veal with some pork or other meats and flavored with salt, pepper, and paprika. It is boiled and eaten with Bock beer and mustard. It looks like a curved hot dog.

Bregenwurst

Bregenwurst comes from Lower Saxony and is made of pork, pork belly, and pig or cattle brain. It is often stewed and served with kale. It is about the size and color of Knackwurst. Nowadays, Bregenwurst does not contain brain as an ingredient.

Knackwurst

Short and stubby Knackwurst, or Knockwurst, sausages are often all-beef and flavored with garlic. They are sometimes smoked and then served traditionally with sauerkraut and potato salad.

Landjäger

Landjäger is a type of dried sausage made from beef, pork, lard, sugar and spices. It is air dried and resembles a small salami. It does not require refrigeration and can be eaten cold or boiled.

Leberwurst

Leberwurst, or Liverwurst, is usually made from pork with some pork liver and flavored in various ways. It is spreadable.

• Kalbsleberwurst–veal liverwurst is made from veal and pork liver.
• Braunschweiger–spreadable, smoked pork liver sausage.

Leberkäse

Leberkäse (literally "liver cheese") from Bavaria is a type of sausage that does not contain cheese or liver. It is similar to a pink meatloaf with very finely minced corned beef, pork and onions. It is spiced with marjoram and baked in a bread pan until a golden crust develops. Served freshly baked in 1/2 inch slices, many people also enjoy eating it cold.

Teewurst

Teewurst is an air-dried or raw sausage (like salami and Landjägerwurst) made from pork, bacon, and beef. After being smoked over beechwood, it then undergoes a fermentation much like yogurt to help preserve it. Teewurst got its name in 1874 from its inventor, Karoline Ulrike Rudolph, and was meant to be eaten at tea-time on open-faced sandwiches. Known for its mild and slightly sour flavor, the recipe is kept secret.

Gelbwurst

Gelbwurst means yellow sausage and takes its name from the saffron-colored casings used to make it. Gelbwurst is mildly spiced with lemon, mace, ginger, and cardamon. While it used to contain brain, it doesn’t today. It can be made from pork, bacon, beef or chicken.

Weisswurst

Weiβwurst (white sausage) is a traditional sausage of Southern Germany made with veal and bacon and flavored with parsley, onion, lemon, and cardamom. This sausage is boiled and eaten without the skin. Because it traditionally contains no preservatives, weiβwurst is usually eaten before noon with sweet mustard, beer, and soft pretzels.