We love cooking BRATS IN THE AIR FRYER! The bratwurst cooks perfectly throughout and leaves the outside of the brat just a little crispy. The beer cheese sauce really takes these brats over the top!
Having brats on the grill is a summer favorite of course. But what do you do when you planned on grilling and weather gets in the way? Bust out the air fryer.
This bratwurst recipe is even easier in the air fryer! No need to wait for the grill to heat up, braving the weather, scraping things down after cooking. Just pop them in the air fryer and devour!
Take these air fryer brats over the top with a special topping: Beer Cheese Sauce!
The beer cheese gives a nice thick cheesy sauce to put on the sausage and the combo just works great!
How to cook the brats in an air fryer:
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There isn’t much to this! Preheat your air fryer to 360 degrees Farenheit.
Put your brats in the air fryer. Be sure to use uncooked brats for this recipe, not the precooked kind that you can just microwave. 😉
Don’t stack them, and leave room around the brats for air to move around them.
Then cook them for 15 minutes flipping halfway through. When done the internal temp should be 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
How to make beer cheese sauce:
Add the butter to a sauce pan and let it melt over medium heat.
Next whisk in the flour and continue to cook for one minute.
Now whisk in the milk and beer and keep whisking over medium heat as the sauce thickens. It should be the consistency of a thin gravy and take about 5 minutes.
After that, turn off the heat and stir in your cheddar and paprika.
Adding the cheese to the sauce while it’s still on the heat is what contributes to a grainy, gritty cheese sauce. No bueno.
Important Air Fryer Notes:
The first thing to note is that you want to take care of your air fryer. Don’t spray non-stick spray on your air fryer basket, it will damage it over time. Instead, put cooking oil in a mister and pump spray out normal cooking oil.
Secondly, I get asked which air fryer I recommend all the time. I don’t have a great opinion on this, as I have only used a couple different ones and there are many dozens on the market. I can tell you that I use the OMORC Air Fryer XL It works great, is dishwasher safe, and is the perfect size for a family of four.
More recipes you might like:
- If grilling is an option for you and you would rather do that. Then try this grilled brat recipe! I would still use this beer cheese sauce recipe though, it is sooooo good!
- I recommend you give these buffalo chicken flautas a shot if you are looking for something with a little heat.
- If you want something to serve with these, try some air fried potato chips!
Air Fryer Bratwurst with Beer Cheese Sauce
Super easy air fried brats are amazing when topped with this thick beer cheese sauce!
Ingredients
For the brats:
- 5 uncooked brats
- 5 brat buns
For the beer cheese sauce:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup beer
- 1/2 milk
- 2 cups shredded Cheddar
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
Instructions
For the brats:
- Preheat your air fryer to 360 degrees.
- Arrange brats in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
- Cook for 15 minutes, turning halfway through, or until brats reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees.
For the cheese sauce:
- Add the butter to a small saucepan over medium heat and let melt.
- Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Whisk in the beer and milk until the sauce thickens, about 3-5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in the cheddar and paprika.
To serve:
- Place the brats in the buns and drizzle with the cheese sauce. Sprinkle with chives.
Notes
Leftover cheese sauce makes a great dip for french fries, chips, and pretzel nuggets! Store in the fridge and reheat on the stove over low heat, whisking constantly.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 5 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 754Total Fat: 48gSaturated Fat: 21gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 23gCholesterol: 122mgSodium: 1440mgCarbohydrates: 47gFiber: 2gSugar: 6gProtein: 31g
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13 comments
Made cheese brats in my air fryer today,with sauteed onions I fried seperately.OH SO GOOD.
Sounds delicious!!
i just love this blog
Thanks, Crystal!
When making the cheese sauce avoid the pre-shredded cheese in a pouch, that also will give you a grainy, nasty sauce. It’s always best to use cheese freshly grated from a block.
What could be used instead of beer ? Would a soda of some type work ? Coke or Dr Pepper or Sprite or 7up? Just asking
I’d just double the milk and you’ll have a thicker, creamier cheese sauce. Soda would make the cheese sauce sweet and that doesn’t sound super appealing. 🙂
Hi! Have you tried these with skinless brats, by chance? We love the skinless from our local grocery store but wonder if they would make a huge mess. Love your new website!
Hi Alicia! I’ve actually never cooked a skinless brat, so I’m not sure how the process differs. If you grill them the same, I think they’d cook in the air fryer the same. 🙂
That’s what I was thinking too. Thanks for responding! Can’t wait to give these a try!
Let us know how they turn out! 🙂
We made the skinless tonight and they were SO good!! We cooked them the exact same and they were perfect!
Oh, awesome! Thanks for letting us know! 🙂