Cooking brats and peppers in an air fryer is incredibly fast and simple. You’ll be amazed at how quickly your brats can be cooked when you air fry them!
You can cook them alone or with peppers and onions (our favorite way!) in just 15 minutes, making it one of the quickest cooking methods around.
Air Fryer Bratwurst and Peppers
You don’t have to wait for warm weather to savor grilled brats. By learning how to air fry bratwurst with bell peppers, you can enjoy them any day of the year.
Since my husband is German, we eat a lot of sausage in our home, especially bratwurst. We also love to air fry smoked sausage and breakfast sausage too. And if you thought brats were cooked best in an air fryer, they’re pretty darn delicious as Ninja Foodi brats too!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe!
- Quick and easy: Air frying brats and peppers is a super-fast cooking method that doesn’t require much prep. You can have it ready in just 15 minutes.
- Healthier option: Air frying is a healthier cooking method compared to pan frying brats, since it doesn’t added extra oil for cooking.
- They’re Delish! You get super crispy and juicy brats with tender peppers and onions.
- Versatile: Brats and peppers can be served in various ways, such as on their own, on a bun. Feel free to mix in other veggies!
🍗 Ingredient Notes
An advantage of air fryer brats is that they require only one ingredient – bratwurst! Our preferred brand is Johnsonville or the large packs from Costco, although you can use any brand you like.
- 1 package raw brats – standard size (the jumbo deli size take longer to cook)
- Bell peppers – any color will work here, green, red, orange, or yellow
- Yellow onion – red onion or sweet white onions are also great
- Olive oil – Any mild neutral oil works well, we also recommend avocado oil
Supplies You’ll Need
- An Air Fryer- We have a Cosori XL basket style air fryer, an Instant Pot Omni Plus oven style air fryer, and a Ninja Foodi air fryer grill. The Cosori air fryer was used in this recipe.
- Rubber Tip Tongs
🥘 How to Cook Air Fryer Brats With Peppers and Onions
Air fryer brats with peppers and onions are super speedy, faster than preheating an oven or grill. While baking brats in an oven can take up to 10-15 minutes of preheating and 20-25 minutes of baking time, air fryer brats are ready to eat in less than half the time.
Slice the bell pepper and onion. Toss them with olive oil, salt, and ground black pepper.
Preheat the air fryer to 360 F for 5 minutes.
Add the bratwurst, peppers, and onions to the air fryer basket spreading the veggies around the sausages.
How long to air fry bratwurst?
Cook the sausage until the internal temperature reaches at least 160 F, which will take 11-15 minutes to cook. The time can vary depending on your air fryer model and such.
Feel free to cook them longer to get them browned to your liking, brats stay juicy up until an internal temperature of 190 F.
Since brats are a quick-cooking recipe, there’s no need to flip them over but you can if you prefer!
Serve the air fryer brats with peppers and onions with your favorite German sides or perhaps French fries or tater tots. Enjoy!
💡Brats and Peppers Air Fryer Recipe Tips
- If you skip preheating the air fryer, the brats will take longer to cook.
- Cooking times may vary depending on the air fryer model you’re using, so we recommend checking the doneness with a digital meat thermometer.
- While bratwursts are considered cooked at an internal temperature of 160 F, they may not be fully browned on the outside. Brats can be cooked up to 190 F and still retain their juicy texture due to their high-fat content.
🧂 Recipe Variations
- Cheesy Brats and Peppers: Add shredded cheddar cheese on top of the brats and peppers during the last few minutes of cooking.
- Spicy Brats and Peppers: Add sliced jalapeños or red pepper flakes to the peppers and onions mixture before air frying.
- Italian-style Brats and Peppers: Use Italian sausage instead of bratwurst, and add sliced garlic, cherry tomatoes, and fresh basil leaves to the peppers and onions mixture.
- BBQ Brats and Peppers: Brush the brats with your favorite BBQ sauce before air frying, and serve with extra BBQ sauce on top.
- Cajun Brats and Peppers: Add sliced Andouille sausage to the peppers and onions mixture, and season with Cajun seasoning before air frying.
- Hawaiian Brats and Peppers: Add sliced pineapple to the peppers and onions mixture, and brush the brats with teriyaki sauce before air frying.
🍽️ Sides for Brats with Peppers
- Sauerkraut: a classic German side
- Mustard
- Beer
- Buns: to make bratwurst sandwiches
- Bell peppers and onions: sautéed or air fried alongside the brats
- French fries: air fryer French fries of course!
- Potato salad
- Coleslaw
❓FAQ’s
It typically takes about 11-15 minutes to cook bratwurst in an air fryer at a temperature of 360°F. However, the cooking time can vary depending on the size of the brats and the model of the air fryer. It’s always best to use a digital meat thermometer to test for doneness, and cook the brats until their internal temperature reaches at least 160°F.
Uncooked bratwursts can last in the fridge for up to five days if they’re in an airtight container. Cooked bratwursts can last in the fridge for up to 5 more days if they are stored in the same way. If you want to store bratwurst for longer, they can be frozen for up to two months in the freezer.
Bratwurst shouldn’t be pink in the middle. Bratwurst should be cooked until the internal temperature reaches at least 160°F (71°C) to ensure that any harmful bacteria are destroyed. If bratwurst is still pink in the middle, it is not fully cooked and should not be eaten. This is why we highly recommend a digital meat thermometer!
😋 More Air Fryer Sausage Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Brats and Peppers
Equipment
Ingredients
- 5 bratwurst raw
- 1 green bell pepper
- ½ yellow onion
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Slice the bell pepper and onion. Toss them with olive oil, salt, and ground black pepper.
- Preheat the air fryer to 360 F for 5 minutes.
- Add the bratwurst, peppers, and onions to the air fryer basket spreading the veggies around the sausages.
- Air fry for 11-15 minutes, or until the internal temp when checked with a digital thermometer is at least 160 F. Since brats are a quick-cooking recipe, there's no need to flip them over but you can if you prefer! Feel free to cook them longer to get them browned to your liking, brats stay juicy up until an internal temperature of 190 F.
Notes
- If you skip preheating the air fryer, the brats will take longer to cook.
- Cooking times may vary depending on the air fryer model you’re using, so we recommend checking the doneness with a digital meat thermometer.
- While bratwursts are considered cooked at an internal temperature of 160 F, they may not be fully browned on the outside. Brats can be cooked up to 190 F and still retain their juicy texture due to their high-fat content.
Nutrition
© 2023 Whole Lotta Air Frying
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