Chicken sausages are versatile. You can cook them in many different ways: on a pan, grill, oven, or boil them. They come in many different flavors; however, to make them delicious, it’s best to cook them in a pan with a bit of oil. Boiling them is an alternative; however, not the best one. Boiled sausages lack flavor and texture, but it’s a quick and easy way to make them without spending too much time looking after them.
In this article, I’ll show how to cook chicken sausage on the stove using a pan or pot with boiling water. Be sure to follow it step-by-step because there are plenty of valuable tips.
How to cook chicken sausage on the stovetop
You can cook chicken sausage on the stovetop in a pan, pot, or griddle. Below I’ll show you how to cook juicy and tender chicken sausage using the cookware I mentioned above.
How to cook chicken sausage in a pan
- Bring chicken sausage to room temperature. Bringing meat to room temperature allows it to cook evenly throughout;
- Preheat the pan over medium-high heat. It’s the same cooking process both for the griddle and pan. Preheating the pan is essential to get a crispy crust on the sausage exterior;
- Pat sausage dry. Remove excess moisture from the chicken sausage exterior. It’ll help to achieve a golden brown crust more effectively;
- Cook sausage. Add a few tablespoons of light olive oil to the pan before frying. Carefully place chicken sausages one by one and sear until golden brown crust forms. It should take no more than 3-4 minutes. Turn the heat to medium and continue cooking until the internal temperature is 165° Fahrenheit. Add a pinch of kosher salt to taste, and turn sausages frequently. Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temp;
- Rest. Take sausage from the pan and let them rest for a minute or two. Resting will allow meat juice to redistribute throughout the sausage’s interior.
How to boil chicken sausage in a pot
- Take a medium size pot and fill it with water enough to cover the sausages. Place it on a stovetop over medium-high heat and add a few teaspoons of kosher salt;
- Place chicken sausages into boiling water and boil for 5-8 minutes, depending on the sausages you’re using – pre-cooked or raw.
Chicken sausage temperature chart
Raw chicken sausage: 165 degrees Fahrenheit;
Pre-cooked chicken sausage: 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
According to the USDA, fully cooked chicken sausage should reach 165° Fahrenheit. The same applies to all poultry products.
Chicken sausage cooking times
Pre-cooked and raw chicken sausage cook at different rates. While pre-cooked may take 5 minutes, raw chicken sausage can cook double the time. It also depends on the thickness of the sausage. The thicker it’s, the more time it takes to cook. Below are the cooking times for chicken sausages; however, these times are only estimates. Always use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the meat.
Here’s how long it takes to cook chicken sausages on the stove:
- Cooking raw chicken sausage in a pan: takes about 8-10 minutes;
- Cooking pre-cooked chicken sausage in a pan: takes about 5-7 minutes;
- Boiling raw chicken sausage: takes about 10 minutes;
- Boiling pre-cooked chicken sausage: takes about 6 minutes.
