Styling by Mary Jane Sawyer.

Texas Smoked Sausages

Name: Texas Smoked Sausages
Total time: PLACEHOLDER
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Southern, US & Canada
Ingredients: 3 cups wood chips, soaked in water for 15 minutes and drained; 2 pounds hot Italian sausage (8 to 12 links); 8–12 (6-inch) sub rolls

By America's Test Kitchen

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

Ingredient check list

3 cups wood chips, soaked in water for 15 minutes and drained

2 pounds hot Italian sausage (8 to 12 links)

8–12 (6-inch) sub rolls

Why This Recipe Works

Smoked sausages are a staple of Texas barbecue, a legacy of German butchers who settled in the area. These pork sausages are seasoned with cayenne pepper and garlic and smoked until the casing is wrinkled. At home, most people don't want to make their own sausages, nor do they have a smoker. Could we get the same deep smoky Texas flavor on a grill with store-bought sausages? After we examined the sausage options at the grocery store, hot Italian sausage stood out as the best choice. We set up soaked wood chips on the hotter side of a half-grill fire and then cooked the sausages on the cooler side. To get great smoke flavor, we left them on for 45 minutes; despite the long cooking time, they were still extremely moist and juicy. Best of all, their skins deepened to a dark, slightly wrinkled red, like the sausages from a real Texas barbecue joint.

Before You Begin

If you'd like to use wood chunks instead of wood chips when using a charcoal grill, substitute three medium wood chunks, soaked in water for 1 hour, for the wood chip packet.

Instructions

Using large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil, wrap soaked chips in 8 by 4½-inch foil packet. (Make sure chips do not poke holes in sides or bottom of packet.) Cut 2 evenly spaced 2-inch slits in top of packet.

FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent halfway. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (6 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over half of grill. Place wood chip packet on coals. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent halfway. Heat grill until hot and wood chips are smoking, about 5 minutes.FOR A GAS GRILL: Remove cooking grate and place wood chip packet directly on primary burner. Set cooking grate in place, turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot and wood chips are smoking, about 15 minutes. Leave primary burner on high and turn off other burner(s).

Clean and oil cooking grate. Lay sausages on cooler side of grill, away from coals and flames. Cover (position lid vent over sausages if using charcoal) and cook until sausages are well browned and cooked through, about 45 minutes, turning every 15 minutes. Serve with rolls.