This easy sausage plait is pure comfort food. Sausage meat and veg encased in delicious warm flaky pastry It can also be chopped up and eaten cold on a summer’s day picnic. Dairy, egg and gluten free options available.
This retro classic takes me right back to my school days. We had a project in Home Economics to create a pastry dish and sausage plait is what I chose. I don’t know why, but it is the only dish that stays in my mind from school cooking days. (Apart from the soup I cooked but then dropped all over the pavement on the way home!)
I loved it then and still love it to this day. This is so much more than a giant sausage roll! In my mind, there is nothing better than hot flaky, crispy pastry wrapped around flavourful sausage meat, especially with some tomato sauce!
I have added some hidden vegetables (like I have in this hidden veggie tomato pasta sauce) to this recipe, which is great for fussy eaters. Find out below how you can easily adapt this dish to be dairy, egg and gluten free!
For more puff pastry recipes, take a look at my puff pastry pizza and gluten free ham & cheese pinwheels too.
Jump to:
- 🥘 Ingredients Needed & Substitutions
- ⚡ Variations
- 🌾 To Make This Recipe Gluten Free
- 🥛 To Make This Recipe Dairy Free
- 🥚 To Make This Recipe Egg Free
- 🤔 Do I need to cook the sausage before filling the plait?
- ✏️ How to Make A Sausage Plait
- 💡 Tips & Tricks
- 🍴 Serving Suggestions
- 💬 Recipe FAQs
- 📖 More Sausage Recipes..
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
🥘 Ingredients Needed & Substitutions
✋ Be sure to double check all packaging for allergens. ✋
- Puff Pastry Sheet - You could make your own homemade puff pastry, but life is too short! Jus Rol do a great ready-made puff pastry sheet. To make the recipe gluten free, use the Jus Rol gluten free puff pastry.
- Sausages - I love Heck sausages as they are gluten free and taste great. If you are following a gluten free diet, be sure to check the packaging as some cheaper sausages contain wheat as it is used as a filler. Lincolnshire sausages and Cumberland sausages are also good options. You can also use sausage meat if you prefer.
- Carrot - This is grated and mixed into the sausage meat. A great way to sneak veg into the kids!
- Red Pepper - Grilled until soft, this adds a delicious sweetness to the dish. You could also use orange or yellow pepper too.
- Tomato Puree - This is mixed into the sausage meat for added flavour.
- Dried Thyme - Adds a herby undertone.
- Egg - Used as an egg wash to give the pastry a golden, crispy finish. For an egg free version, simply use regular or plant based milk instead.
- Salt & Pepper - You may want to omit the salt if cooking for small children.
Scroll to the recipe card at the end of the post for quantities.
⚡ Variations
- Vegan - This recipe can easily be adapted to be vegan by using vegan sausages and dairy free milk as a milk wash to coat the pastry.
- Sundried Tomato - Mix in chopped sundried tomatoes (rehydrated if using dried ones) and a sprinkle of dried basil for a burst of Mediterranean flavour.
- Pesto - Spread a layer of pesto, like this nut-free basil pesto over the pastry before adding the sausage mixture.
- Apple - Combine diced apples (peeled and cored) with sausage meat for a sweet and savoury combination.
🌾 To Make This Recipe Gluten Free
Swap standard puff pastry for a gluten free puff pastry sheet. Check the packaging on the sausages to make sure they don't contain gluten, as some sausages use breadcrumbs as a filler.
🥛 To Make This Recipe Dairy Free
Make sure that the sausages you are using don’t contain milk. Heck sausages are both gluten and dairy free. Use an egg for the egg wash or a dairy free milk alternative instead.
🥚 To Make This Recipe Egg Free
Instead of using an egg for the eggwash, use cow's milk or a dairy free milk to brush over the pastry. This will give you that gorgeous golden brown finish.
🤔 Do I need to cook the sausage before filling the plait?
No, you usually don't need to precook the sausage meat before filling the plait. The sausage meat will cook as the plait bakes in the oven. Just make sure the sausage meat is mixed well with other ingredients and properly seasoned.
✏️ How to Make A Sausage Plait
⬇️ Here you will find an overview of how to make the recipe. For full information on ingredients and quantities please see the recipe card at the bottom of the page ⬇️
Step 1: Take the pastry out of the fridge and un-roll it at least 15 minutes before using it to bring it to room temperature. This makes the pastry easier to work with.
Step 2: Slice the pepper into two segments lengthways and place skin side up under a hot grill for 15 minutes until the segments start to soften and the skin goes black. Leave to cool.
Step 3: Whilst the peppers are grilling, skin the sausages. I find the easiest way to do this is to score down one side of the sausage with a knife and then peel back the skin to reveal the sausage meat inside
Step 4: Next, once the peppers are cool, peel off their skin (it should come off really easily) and chop the pepper into small bite-sized pieces.
Step 5: Grate the carrot using a box grater. You won’t even notice the carrot once the plait is cooked. It’s a great way to sneak some vegetables into the kids!
Step 6: Put the sausage meat into a bowl with the grated carrot, chopped red pepper, thyme, tomato puree and seasoning. Mix well with your hands until all the ingredients are combined.
Step 7: Place the sausage meat mixture down the centre of the pastry, leaving a gap at the top and bottom.
Step 8: Cut 1.5 cm strips at a 45 degree angle into the pastry down each side of the sausage mixture.
Step 9: Start folding the pastry strips over the sausage filling, alternating sides to create a braided pattern. This will encase the sausage mixture in a neat plait.
Step 10: Brush the outside of the pastry with an egg wash or dairy free milk to glaze.
Step 11: Bake in a hot oven on a baking tray until golden brown and the sausage meat is cooked through.
💡 Tips & Tricks
- Make sure the oven is pre-heated so that the plait cooks evenly. Turn the oven on before you start prepping the ingredients.
- Use a big spatula to help lift the sausage plait on and off the baking tray.
- You don’t need to peel the carrots, just give the skin a good scrub with a scourer. A lot of the goodness is found in the skin!
- Avoid overloading the plait with filling, as it can lead to leaks during baking and make it difficult to shape the plait neatly.
- Allow the sausage plait to cool slightly before slicing. This helps the juices redistribute and prevents the filling from spilling out.
🍴 Serving Suggestions
This puff pastry sausage plait is delicious eaten hot or cold!
When you are in need of comfort food, serve it hot with baked beans or mashed potato and vegetables like roasted carrots & green beans.
If you make the vegan version this would be great to serve as the main event of a Christmas dinner, alongside these slow cooker roasted potatoes and braised red cabbage with red wine.
Speaking of the holidays, you can also slice it up and serve it as part of a Thanksgiving or Christmas buffet.
It is also a great lunch on a summer day, hot or cold served with my dairy free coleslaw.
You can even chop it up and put it in the kid’s school lunch boxes or take it with you on a picnic.
💬 Recipe FAQs
Yes. It is best reheated in the oven at 180˚c / gas mark 4 for at least 20 minutes until piping hot throughout. You can place foil over the top to stop the pastry from browning too much.
If reheated in the microwave it will make the pastry go soggy, so I wouldn’t recommend this.
You can freeze the plait uncooked for up to 3 months. Assemble but don’t egg wash and wrap in clingfilm or put in an airtight container. Defrost in the fridge overnight & when ready to eat, egg wash the top of the pastry and bake as per the recipe card.
📖 More Sausage Recipes..
Check out these other sausage recipes below
If you loved this recipe, please leave me a 5🌟 rating or comment below. I really do appreciate it. 😊
📖 Recipe
Sausage Plait
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Sheet puff pastry I used Jus Rol for this recipe - substitute for gluten free pastry if needed.
- 6 sausages check packaging if gluten is required.
- ½ medium Carrot grated
- ½ medium Red Pepper
- 1 tablespoon Tomato puree
- 1 teaspoon Dried thyme
- 1 medium Egg for glazing. Alternative plant based milk can be used
- Salt and pepper to season
Instructions
- Take the pastry out of the fridge 15 minutes before using.
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees/gas mark 4 and the grill to medium heat.
- Slice the pepper into two segments lengthways and grill, skin side up for 15 mins.
- Skin the sausages and put the sausage meat into a bowl with the grated carrot, dried thyme, tomato puree and seasoning. Discarding the sausage skin.
- Once cool, peel the skin from the cooked peppers, then chop the segments into small pieces and add to the bowl with the other ingredients.
- Mix the ingredients together well.
- Place the sausage meat mixture down the centre of the pastry, leaving a gap at the top and bottom.
- Cut 1.5 cm strips at a 45 degree angle into the pastry down each side of the sausage mixture.
- Start folding the pastry strips over the sausage filling, alternating sides to create a braided pattern.Fold in the top and bottom, cutting any excess pastry from the sides.
- Brush the pastry with the egg wash or dairy free milk to glaze.
- Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes until golden brown and sausage meat is cooked through.
Notes
- Swap standard puff pastry for a gluten free puff pastry sheet. Check the packaging on the sausages to make sure they don't contain gluten, as some sausages use breadcrumbs as a filler.
- Instead of using an egg for the eggwash, use cow's milk or a dairy free milk to brush over the pastry. This will give you that gorgeous golden brown finish.
- Make sure that the sausages you are using don’t contain milk. Heck sausages are both gluten and dairy free. Use an egg for the egg wash or a dairy free milk alternative instead.
Julie
Followed recipe to the letter but cooked in air fryer @ 180 for 20-25 mins. Absolutely delicious 😋. And yes, I do think I cooked this in the 70’s Domestic Science class but never thought of it since until my sister-in-law produced one recently. We have so missed out but , rest assured, this is now a fam staple 😋☺️
Lauren Woodger
I really need to jump on the air fryer band wagon, they seem to be great for so many recipes! Glad you enjoyed the plait, it's one of our family favourites too, sometimes the classics are the best!