Bratwurst and Sauerkraut

Memorial Day weekend and I am back at work and I miss Lucas with a physical ache that I did not know grandmothers could feel. I knew about the love — everyone tells you about the grandparent love, the love that is different from parent love because it is love without the daily exhaustion, love without the 3 AM feedings, love that gets to hand the baby back. But nobody tells you about the ache. The ache when you leave, when you drive home from your grandchild house and the car is quiet and your arms are empty and the baby smell is fading from your shirt and you want to turn around and go back and hold him one more time, just one more.

Eduardo grilled for Memorial Day because Eduardo grills and I have stopped fighting it and started appreciating it because life is short and Eduardo at the grill is Eduardo at his happiest, and a happy husband is worth a hundred charred chicken wings. I made all the sides. Arroz con gandules. Ensalada de coditos. Tostones. Pinchos. The standard summer spread, the Delgado-Ortiz Memorial Day tradition, unchanged since 1990 except this year there is a baby.

Miguel Jr. and Jenny brought Lucas. He was two weeks old, dressed in a tiny onesie that said My First BBQ which Jenny mother bought and which I found adorable and unnecessary because Lucas cannot eat barbecue and will not be able to eat barbecue for at least a year and by then the onesie will not fit but the sentiment is correct. His first barbecue IS at Abuela Carmen house and all future barbecues will also be at Abuela Carmen house until further notice.

Mami held Lucas on the porch while the grill smoked and the salsa played from the speaker Sofia set up and the backyard was full of people and food and noise and life. Mami looked at Lucas and she said, to nobody in particular, to the air, to Bayamon, to the memory of Abuela Consuelo: We did it. We fed them and they grew and they made more and we will feed them too. She said it in Spanish. She said it in the voice of a woman who has lived through everything and survived everything and is now holding proof that the surviving was worth it. I heard her. I will remember it. I will write it down so that Lucas, someday, will know what his bisabuela said on the porch at his first barbecue, which was not really about barbecue. It was about everything.

The food was good. The baby was perfect. The family was together. The grill was Eduardo. The sofrito was mine. The love was everybody. Memorial Day 2018. The table has a high chair now. We are growing. We are always growing. Wepa.

Eduardo ran the grill that Memorial Day — he always does — and while my heart was full of sofrito and arroz con gandules, the grill itself needed something bold and satisfying to anchor all those sides. Bratwurst and sauerkraut has that same festive, feed-a-crowd energy that a backyard full of family demands: it is simple, it is generous, and it smells like celebration the moment it hits the heat. On a day when Mami was holding Lucas on the porch and telling the sky that all the feeding and growing had been worth it, this was exactly the kind of food that belongs at the center of the table — unpretentious, abundant, and made for sharing.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 40 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

6 bratwurst sausages
2 cups sauerkraut, drained
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 cup beer (lager or amber ale)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard (plus more for serving)
6 hoagie rolls or bratwurst buns, toasted

Instructions

Prep the grill. Heat your outdoor grill or a grill pan over medium-high heat. Lightly oil the grates to prevent sticking.
Sear the bratwurst. Place bratwurst on the grill and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 6–8 minutes. They do not need to be fully cooked through at this stage.
Build the sauerkraut base. In a large cast-iron skillet or disposable foil pan set on the grill (or on the stovetop over medium heat), melt the butter. Add the sliced onion and cook, stirring, until softened and lightly golden, about 5 minutes.
Add sauerkraut and beer. Stir in the drained sauerkraut, beer, caraway seeds, garlic powder, black pepper, and whole-grain mustard. Stir to combine.
Simmer the bratwurst. Nestle the seared bratwurst into the sauerkraut mixture. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover loosely with foil, and simmer for 15–20 minutes until the sausages are cooked through and the liquid has reduced by half.
Finish on the grill. Optional but recommended: remove the bratwurst from the pan and return them to the grill grates for 2–3 minutes to re-crisp the casings.
Serve. Place each bratwurst in a toasted bun and top generously with the sauerkraut and onion mixture. Serve with extra mustard on the side.

Nutrition (per serving)

Bratwurst and Sauerkraut — The Grill Was Eduardo’s, But the Table Was Ours