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    Home » Recipes » Appetizers

    Pickled Sausages (Czech Utopenci)

    Published: May 13, 2022 · Modified: Jun 6, 2024 by Petra Kupská | Cook Like Czechs · Leave a Comment

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    Czech-style pickled sausages, known as Utopenci, are a classic pub favorite in the Czech Republic. Anyone who has tried this unique delicacy knows how irresistibly indulgent it is, and you won't find a similar recipe in any other cuisine! Let's make Utopenci sausages together!

    Czech Utopenci food, pickled sausages served with onions and fresh rye bread.

    ➜ What are Czech pickled sausages?

    Czech pickled sausages (utopenci) are a type of soft sausages immersed in sour-salty brine made with water, vinegar, and spices. Sausages are accompanied by sliced onions and chili peppers, all stuffed into a mason jar, and covered with chilled brine.

    Now comes the waiting period of one to two weeks, during which the dish must rest in the fridge in order to soak up the pickling liquid.

    Interested in Czech cuisine? Discover more authentic Czech food!

    ➜ What does mean the Czech word utopenci?

    The word utopenci in the sense of sausages steeped in brine is often translated as drowned men, drownies, or water logs.

    MY TIP: Also try this sausage goulash, in Czech burtgulas (it tastes fantastic!)

    ➜Ingredients

    To make Czech-style pickled sausage at home, you will need:

    • Polish sausage; such as soft short kielbasa/sausage. Czechs use so-called spekacky sausages. You could get this type of sausage in a Polish or European deli if you are based in the US. Another good choice is to buy German-style sausages called „knackwurst“. This type of meat sausage is processed in two steps: first, it is cooked and then smoked. Thus, these are not raw, uncooked sausages.
    • Onions; regular yellow onions
    • Red hot chili peppers; for a spicy taste. The hotness of the chili pepper depends on your preference, follow your taste buds!

    Here is what the Czech spekacek sausage looks like:

    Czech spekacek sausage

    Brine for pickling:

    • Water
    • Salt
    • Sugar
    • White vinegar; I used Czech vinegar, which is light yellow in color and contains 8% acetic acid, so it is quite sour. In the recipe card below, I list white vinegar, commonly available in the USA, which is around 5% acidity.
    • Allspice berries
    • Black peppercorns
    • Bay leaves

    ✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

    ➜ How to make pickled sausages

    STEP 1: First, cook the brine: In a pot, combine water, sugar, salt, bay leaves, allspice, and black pepper. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for about three minutes until everything comes together. Remove from the heat and let the hot vinegar mixture cool almost wholly; the brine may be lukewarm but not hot.

    Pickling liquid with spices for sausages, with a laddle in a pot.

    STEP 2: In the meantime, start preparing the sausages. Peel off a thin casing layer and cut them lengthwise, but do not finish the cut. The sausages should open up enough to insert the onion rings and peppercorns into the cut.

    TIP: To make the sausages easier to stuff into the jar, cut them into quarters or slice them.

    STEP 3: Peel the onion, and cut lengthwise. Then thick-slice the halves of onions into half-rounds.

    Clean the hot chili peppers, cut off the stem part, and cut them in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds, or leave them if you want a spicier result.

    Carefully open the sausages. Insert a piece of hot pepper and onion rings into the cut.

    Polish sausages filled with onions and red hot chili peppers.

    STEP 4: Prepare a two-quart glass bottle (2 liters), such as a pickling jar with a screw cap or clip-on lid. Wash the jar properly with hot water and dry it.

    Place onions in the bottom of the jar, then start putting the filled sausages on them. Gradually pour the brine over sausages and add some onions between each layer. Stuff the sausages into the jar to avoid unnecessary gaps in-between.

    Cover the top with the rest of the onions and pour in the brine to submerge the sausages, including the onions.

    A mason jar full of pickling sausages, onions and spices.

    STEP 6: Close the jar with a lid and put it in a fridge to mature. Let the pickled sausages sit in the refrigerator for at least a week, preferably two, before you dig in.

    ➜ Serving

    Enjoy this special dish served cold on a plate with a spoon or two of the pickling liquid. Pickled sausages go great with a slice of fresh bread. Experts add a glass of well-chilled beer!

    Czech pickled sausages

    ➜ Useful tips

    • Always pickle sausages without casings, even if they are only thin. Peel them carefully with a knife. Otherwise, the brine will not have a chance to flavor the sausages properly. The casing acts as a barrier.
    • The brine is quite spicy soon after cooking, but much of the taste is taken away by the sausages that will pickle in it. The result will be a wonderful blend of meat sausages and pickled vegetables, dominated by a delectable sour and spicy flavor.
    • It's a good idea to put the jar of pickled sausages in the refrigerator somewhere in the back, so you're not tempted to start digging in before their time comes!

    More tasty recipes:

    • Cevapcici sausages
    • Sausage soup
    • Fried cabbage and noodles (Haluski)
    • Stuffed banana peppers
    • Czech pork knuckle (koleno)
    • Sausages in beer gravy (Czech "burty na pivu")

    ➜ FAQs

    What is the shelf life of pickled sausages?

    You can taste the sausages about one week after you have pickled them. They will keep in the fridge for 3-4 weeks, including the time spent pickling.

    How long does it take to pickle a sausage?

    The pickling process takes at least a week or two for a more tangy flavor. The pickled sausages must be kept in the fridge for the whole time.

    Tried this recipe?

    Leave a review down in the comments! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

    Other readers and I love hearing what you think. Stay in touch by following me on Facebook and Pinterest. For more Czech stuff, subscribe to my newsletter!

    Czech pickled sausages

    Pickled Sausages (Czech Utopenci)

    Author: Petra Kupská | Cook Like Czechs
    Czech-style pickled sausages, known as Utopenci, are a classic pub favorite in the Czech Republic. Anyone who has tried this unique delicacy knows how irresistibly indulgent it is, and you won't find a similar recipe in any other cuisine! Let's make Utopenci sausages together!
    Prevent your screen from going dark
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    Prep Time: 30 minutes mins
    Pickling time: 7 days d
    Total Time: 7 days d 30 minutes mins
    Servings: 4

    Tap or hover to scale

    Ingredients 

    • 5 short sausages soft Polish sausage, about 6 inches / 15 cm long
    • 5 small chili peppers
    • 4 medium onions

    Brine:

    • 2 cups water
    • 2 cups white vinegar 5% acidity
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
    • ½ teaspoon allspices
    • ½ teaspoon black pepercorn
    • 4 bay leaves

    Instructions 

    • First, cook the brine: In a pot, combine 2 cups water, 2 cups white vinegar, 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, 4 bay leaves, ½ teaspoon allspices, and ½ teaspoon black pepercorn. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for about three minutes, allowing the flavors to meld. Remove from heat and let the vinegar mixture cool until it is lukewarm but not hot.
    • In the meantime, start preparing 5 short sausages. Peel off a thin layer of the casing and cut them lengthwise, but do not finish the cut. The sausages should open up enough to insert the onion rings and peppercorns into the cut.
    • Peel 4 medium onions and cut them lengthwise. Then, slice the halves into thick half-rings.
    • Clean 5 small chili peppers and cut off the stems. Slice them in half lengthwise, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder taste, or leaving them in for a spicier result.
    • Carefully open the sausages. Insert a piece of chili pepper and onion rings into the cut.
    • Prepare a two-quart (2 liter) glass jar with a screw cap or clip-on lid. Wash the jar thoroughly with hot water and dry it completely.
    • Place onions at the bottom of the jar, then add a layer of filled sausages on top. Gradually pour the brine over the sausages, adding some onions between each layer. Pack the sausages tightly to avoid unnecessary gaps.
    • Cover the top layer with the remaining onions and pour in the brine to fully submerge the sausages and onions.
    • Close the jar with a lid and put it in a fridge to cure. Let the pickled sausages sit in the refrigerator for at least a week, preferably two, before you dig in.

    Notes

    • The basic recipe makes about 5 portions.
    • Always pickle sausages without casings, even if they are only thin. Peel them carefully with a knife. Otherwise, the brine will not have a chance to flavor the sausages properly. The casing acts as a barrier.
    • To make the sausages easier to stuff into the jar, cut them into quarters or slice them.
    • SERVING: Enjoy this special dish served cold on a plate with a spoon or two of the pickling liquid. Pickled sausages pair perfectly with a slice of fresh bread. For connoisseurs, a glass of well-chilled beer is the ideal accompaniment!
    • SHELF LIFE: You can start tasting the sausages about one week after pickling. They will keep in the fridge for 3-4 weeks, including the pickling time.

    Nutritional estimate pro serving

    Calories: 118kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 320mg | Potassium: 351mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 545IU | Vitamin C: 89mg | Calcium: 47mg | Iron: 1mg
    Servings: 4
    Calories pro serving: 118
    Course: Appetizer
    Cuisine: Czech
    Keyword: Czech pub snacks, Sausage recipes
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    Hi there, I am Petra, born and raised in the Czech Republic, a self-taught home cook with over 20 years of experience. I am on a mission to keep Czech culinary heritage alive by sharing cherished recipes & stories with nostalgic hearts worldwide.

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