How to Cook Pigs in Blankets Like a Real Pro
Written by, Bojana Atanasovska
Updated November, 10, 2021
To be frank, you can’t have a cocktail party or a Christmas roast without pigs in blankets. So whether you’re having a black-tie event or a casual game night with friends, this quintessential appetiser is a must-have. Plus, given how easy it is to make them, there’s no reason for you to leave them off your table.
Stay put as the gourmet chefs at Don’t Disappoint Me reveal the best method to cook pigs in blankets, so you have something to show off during the holidays!
However, before learning the secrets of the trade, stock your cabinet with all of the following:
- 12 pieces of smoky bacon
- 12 chipolata sausages (or another kind if you prefer)
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1–2 teaspoons honey
- Sprinkling of olive oil
- Sage, thyme, and rosemary
The above ingredients are enough for 12 servings, and it will take you around 10 minutes to prepare them for a total cooking time of 40 minutes.
The Ultimate Pigs in Blankets Recipe
Homemade pigs in a blanket are among the easiest and tastiest Christmas foods you can cook at home. Just follow these steps to make these little bites of heaven before you know it:
- First, slice the bacon into thin strips.
- Next, cut the chipolatas (or other sausages) into smaller pieces, if needed.
- Wrap the bacon around the sausages.
- Put the rolls on a baking tray.
- Sprinkle olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, honey, and herbs, per taste.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C/350°F for 30 minutes or until golden.
- Once baked, put them on a paper napkin to soak the excess oil.
- Et voila! You just made your first pigs in blankets.
If you would like to truly impress your guests, creatively arrange your pigs in a blanket on the plate. Maybe add some veggies on the side? Or simply prick them with toothpicks and let their deliciousness do the talking.
How to Make Them Even Better
The best pigs in a blanket recipe may be easy to pull off, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t improve their taste even further. The following tips focus on alternative ingredients that you can use to put your spin on this already delectable dish.
Finding The Right Sausages
While the best sausage in a blanket is definitely the chipolata, since it’s the perfect size for a recipe of this sort, you can also use certain alternatives. For example, you can cook with the spicier Vienna sausages or the smaller cocktail sausages. Keep in mind that these are all suggestions and everything depends on your personal preferences.
The Spice Must Flow
When you think sausage wrapped in bacon, herbs do not typically come to your mind since the meat provides enough flavour already. However, you should reconsider using herbs that can enhance the pigs in a blanket taste.
You can improve the taste of Christmas sausages with anything from sage (according to Jamie Oliver) to rosemary. Since taste is subjective, you can try different combinations to see which one caresses your taste buds the best.
Black Pudding in Blankets
Another bold take on this superb recipe is substituting the chipolatas with black pudding sausages. If you believe this choice is risky, you can also use both chipolatas and black pudding in equal numbers since they go well hand-in-hand with your homemade pigs in a blanket. You can even prepare them and serve them together.
Bacon-Wrapped Butternut Squash and Chestnuts
Bacon suits just about anything apparently, so why not throw in some bacon-wrapped butternut squash or bacon-wrapped chestnuts too? They take mere minutes to prepare, and you can bake them together with your Christmas sausages. That way, you’ll get a much more diverse serving in both form and taste.
Other Roasts of Meat and Vegetables
So what else can complement the fantastic taste of the sausage in a blanket? Well, you can mix in some roasted turkey and/or veggies too. While roasted turkey crown and pigs in a blanket make for a delightful flurry of meaty taste, you can also use roasted brussels sprouts and parsnips to balance this protein extravaganza.
Sauces
You can improve our pigs in blankets recipe by infusing their rich meaty taste with certain sauces as well. You can experiment with anything from ketchup to ranch dressing, comeback sauce, aioli sauce, BBQ sauce, or various mustards. We prefer using the garlicky, decadent aioli dip. Careful though. You should probably avoid it before going out on the town.
Vegan and Veggie Pigs in Blankets
Our vegan and vegetarian readers can also cook amazing pigs in blankets with a doughy crust and plant-based meat and dairy products. For this non-meat alternative, follow these steps:
- Cut the dough into triangles as you would when making croissants.
- Cut the plant-based sausages into smaller pieces and put them on the dough.
- Sprinkle regular or plant-based cheese on top and roll the dough.
- Place them on a roasting tray and bake for 10–20 minutes or until golden brown.
- You’ve just made vegan or vegetarian pigs in blankets!
As we’ve already suggested above, you can pair these non-meat piggies with crunchy roasted veggies for a complete lunch or dinner.
Alternatives to Cooking
If you cannot find the right ingredients, or you are short on time, you can always buy vegan frozen pigs in a blanket, let them defrost briefly, and put them in the oven at the recommended temperature. Look for the following brands:
- Morrisons
- M&S Plant Kitchen
- Quorn
This frozen alternative might not be as tasty as homemade pigs in a blanket, but it’ll still save you some time to focus on dessert.
How to Store Leftover Pigs in Blankets
Christmas is over and you’ve gorged yourself on truly scrumptious Christmas sausages, but you’ve got leftovers? No problem. We’ll tell you how to store them and finish them off later.
Storing
To preserve a sausage wrapped in bacon, place it in an airtight container and put it in the refrigerator. While sausages stored in this manner keep good for up to 3 days, they will begin tasting dry if left inside for longer than that. Thus, if you want your pigs in blankets to retain their taste for an extended time period, let’s talk about freezing.
Freezing
Pigs in blankets can handle freezing well, and they stay delicious, too, for that matter. If you’re planning on putting them in the freezer right after cooking, allow them to cool down to room temperature first. However, store them in an air-tight container or a zip-bag before freezing.
However, you must remember that frozen pigs in a blanket cannot handle the frost for longer than six months, so defrost them and share them with your friends and family before that. You can also date your freezing container to remind you how long they’ll stay edible.
Reheating
Once you take the sausages in a blanket out of the freezer, you can either microwave them for a few minutes or even defrost them for a bit and heat them in the oven. Should you opt for the latter, bake them in a preheated oven at 350°, no more than 10–12 minutes.
Dinner’s Ready!
Pigs in a blanket are arguably the tastiest holiday appetisers, and even those on a veggie or vegan diet can enjoy them thanks to our recipe alternatives. As you can see, you can quickly cook pigs in blankets to perfection with little effort. Now buy the ingredients you need to amaze even the harshest critic: your mom.
Sources
How to make pigs in a blanket?
You make pigs in blankets by placing small sausage pieces onto bacon strips and rolling the bacon around the meat. Then simply bake them in a preheated oven at 180°C/350°F for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
What are pigs in blankets?
Pigs in blankets are a type of appetiser. They come in a few different varieties: the UK version takes the form of bacon-wrapped sausages, whereas those in the U.S. cook pigs in blankets as dough-wrapped hotdogs.
Bojana is my name and writing is my game. I am a content writer from Bitola who is always interested in the latest research in almost all areas of life. I have a Bachelor’s degree in English literature and a perfectionist character, both of which help me find the most accurate data and information available. Although I have my head stuck in studies and reports most of the time, I still have a bit of free time during which I enjoy knitting and watching classic 90’s Disney movies.