Pork and Fennel sausage rolls
A healthier version of the sausage roll
Okay I’m not usually one healthifying recipes. Mostly I think we should just let food be food, and enjoy it for what it is. What I mean by healthier here is that these little babies are a lot less processed that your average supermarket or bakery sausage rolls. And they taste better of course. Using pork mince pork rather than sausage mince makes these a lot leaner and meatier than regular sausage rolls, and there’s some veggies, herbs and Extra Virgin Olive Oil in there too. These don’t last long in our household, because one particular (teenage, male) family member has been known to have them for breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea on the same day.
Healthier sausage rolls
Swaps and notes
I decided I needed to put these up on the blog because a) they’re just delicious and b) I keep promising to and c) I found 4 seperate pages in my kitchen notebook with variations on this recipe. I decided it was time to do a final test and amalgamate them into one master pork and fennel sausage roll recipe to finally share.
Note that I have never made my own puff pastry, and I can’t see I ever will - I just always make sure there is some of the ready to roll, conveniently packaged version in my freezer. Also, please get the free range pork mince and bacon if you can find it (more expensive - yes, but ethically so much better). You can tone down the fennel if you’re not a huge fan obviously, and I often add bits and piece of other herbs like oregano or sage. You can also swap out the bbq sauce for chutney or relish - anything with some umami salty/sweet flavours will work. And sprinkling some fennel seeds on top with the sesame seeds is nice.
Serve with…
We have these for dinner with veggies or salad. Or you could chop them into smaller portions before baking for party sausage rolls. Or pop them in the lunch box or picnic basket for finger food (these are pretty good cold). They re-heat beautifully in the oven or air fryer, and will last for 3-4 days in the fridge. Well they won’t last because they’ll be eaten, but technically I should tell you about the storage.
Enjoy!
Pork and fennel sausage rolls
Ingredients
Instructions
- Take the pastry out of the freezer to defrost slightly on the bench, while you finely chop the bacon, carrot, celery, onion and garlic.
- Heat the olive oil in a small frypan over medium low heat, and sauté the bacon and vegetables for around 5 minutes until soft and fragrant. Set aside to cool a little.
- Preheat the oven to 190C (175 fan forced) and line 1 extra large or two medium oven trays with baking paper.
- Add the pork mince to a large bowl and add the lightly beaten egg, bread crumbs, sautéed vegetables, fennel, parsley, barbecue sauce and salt and pepper. Mix well with a fork.
- Lay the pastry sheets out on the bench (keep the plastic film on the back at this stage) and cut each one in half down the centre.
- Now divide the pork mixture between the six pastry pieces, forming a neat mound down the middle of each piece (you will need to make sure your hands are clean at this point!).
- To close up the rolls, I pull one side of the pastry over the sausage mix onto the other side so they overlap, then press down along the edge to seal – but you can join it in the middle or do whatever works.
- If you have an edge on one side, use a fork to score the pastry along the joining edge. Then cut each long piece into 3 rolls and transfer to the baking trays.
- Lightly beat the second egg and use a pastry brush to paint the top and sides of the sausage rolls (this step will give them the lovely golden colour and sheen so don’t skip it!). Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
- Place into the oven to cook for about 30 minutes. Keep a close eye on them after about the 25 minute mark – you want to pick the sweet spot when they are nicely golden brown but not starting to burn. If you’re not seeing enough colour at this point, open the oven briefly to let some steam out, and then pump up the temperature or put it on fan oven for another 5-10 minutes.
- Let your sausage rolls rest for 5-10 minutes, then tuck in! If you have leftovers (rare), they do keep really well in the fridge in an airtight container for a few days.