Main Course Recipes
Čevapčiči Sausages With Cheese (Skinless Sausages)
4 servings (about 2 PCS per person)
Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese is my take on a flavorful grilled sausage that originates in the Balkans and has become a favorite across Europe. This skinless sausage is known for its rich and savory taste, reflecting the wonderful culinary traditions of the Balkans where hearty meat dishes are truly the star. In my delightful Czech adaptation, I've made cheese more than just a topping; it's a key ingredient stirred directly into the ground beef and pork mixture. This creates a beautiful symphony of flavors in every single bite. Whether you're making this easy sausage recipe by grilling them outdoors or baking them in the oven, my cheesy homemade sausage promises a delicious journey into the heart of European culinary fusion, where Balkan tradition meets Czech innovation. Read More
Main Course Recipes
Gluten-freeLow-carb
Before You Start
Let’s talk about important parts of the recipe before you start…
A Cheesy Twist on a Balkan Classic: My Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese
Hi, I’m Tom Slepicka, and I’m thrilled to share a recipe that’s close to my heart: Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese. If you’ve ever traveled through the Balkans, you’ve likely encountered the traditional, delicious skinless sausage known as cevapcici. I wanted to take that wonderful foundation and add a unique Czech twist. My innovation was to incorporate shredded mozzarella directly into the ground beef and pork, creating an incredibly juicy and flavorful homemade sausage. This isn’t just a sausage with cheese on top; the cheese melts within the meat as it cooks, ensuring every bite is rich and savory. This easy sausage recipe is incredibly versatile—it’s perfect as an oven-baked cevapcici for a simple weeknight meal or as a grilled sausage for your next barbecue. It’s a wonderful blend of cultures and a recipe I know you’ll love.
The Foundation of Flavor: Sautéing the Onion
The very first cooking step in my Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese recipe is to sauté the finely chopped onion, and it’s a critical one for building a deep flavor base. I start by preheating a pot over medium-high heat with a bit of frying oil. Sautéing the onion for just 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally until it becomes glossy, does more than just soften it. This process mellows out the onion’s raw, sharp taste and brings out its natural sweetness. After they’re done, I take the pot off the heat and let the onions cool down a bit while I prepare the other ingredients. This cooling step is important because adding hot onions directly to the raw ground beef and pork could start to cook the meat prematurely, affecting the final texture of your homemade sausage.
Choosing and Combining the Meats for the Perfect Texture
The heart of this Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese recipe is the meat blend. I call for a combination of one pound of ground beef—preferably a fatty blend like 85/15 or 80/20 for juiciness—and one pound of ground pork. This combination provides a fantastic balance of rich flavor from the beef and tender, moist texture from the pork. However, this easy sausage recipe is very forgiving. If you prefer, the ground pork can be substituted with another pound of ground beef, or you could even use ground turkey or ground lamb to create a different flavor profile. The key is to use two pounds of ground meat in total to maintain the right ratio with the other ingredients like the shredded mozzarella and spices.
The Czech Innovation: Incorporating Cheese Directly into the Sausage
What makes my Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese recipe a unique Czech adaptation is the addition of shredded cheese directly into the meat mixture. I use one cup of shredded mozzarella, but the recipe notes that other shredded cheeses will also work well. By mixing the cheese into the ground beef and pork along with the garlic, paprika, salt, and pepper, it becomes an integral part of the skinless sausage. As the cevapcici cook, whether on the grill or in the oven, the cheese melts internally, creating little pockets of gooey, savory goodness. This technique ensures the homemade sausage stays incredibly moist and adds a layer of creamy texture and rich flavor that you wouldn’t get from just sprinkling cheese on top.
The Art of Forming Uniform Cevapcici
To ensure my Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese cooks evenly, I pay close attention to forming uniform portions. The recipe suggests using a 4 fluid ounce disher to scoop the meat mixture. This is a great tool for consistency. If you don’t have a disher, a kitchen scale is the perfect alternative. I specify that each portion should be 4.5 ounces by weight, which is equivalent to the volume of the disher. Once you have your portion, you simply use your hands to roll it into a cylinder shape. I place each formed sausage on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and repeat the process. Working one-by-one and ensuring each sausage is the same size is key to them all being perfectly cooked at the same time.
An Optional, but Recommended, Chilling Step for Grilling
If you plan on making this a grilled sausage recipe, I include an optional but highly recommended step: chilling the formed cevapcici. To ensure the sausages hold together nicely and don’t fall apart on the grill grates, I suggest placing them in the freezer on the baking sheet for about 10 to 15 minutes before cooking. This brief chill helps the meat and fat firm up, making the skinless sausage much more stable and easier to handle over the high heat of the grill. While the recipe notes you can grill them right away, taking this extra small step makes the process much less challenging and helps guarantee a perfect result for your Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese.
Cooking Methods: Roasting vs. Grilling
One of the best things about my Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese recipe is its versatility in cooking. You can choose the method that works best for you. For oven-baked cevapcici, I preheat the oven to 350°F and roast them directly on the parchment-lined baking sheet for about 15 to 20 minutes, turning them once halfway through. If you opt for a grilled sausage, you’ll preheat your grill and place the cevapcici directly on the grates. For grilling, more frequent turning is needed—I recommend turning them four times, once on each “side,” to get a nice char all around. Both methods will result in a delicious, fully cooked homemade sausage.
Serving Suggestions for Cevapcici
My Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese is wonderfully versatile when it comes to serving. The classic and recommended way is to serve them warm with a side of mashed or boiled potatoes and some good quality mustard. This creates a hearty, comforting meal. For an even more special touch, you could serve them with a homemade tartar sauce. But the possibilities don’t end there! They are also fantastic served cold. One of my favorite ways to enjoy them is in a sandwich with some freshly sliced onion and a spread of mustard. This makes for a delicious and easy lunch with any leftovers you might have from this easy sausage recipe.
Čevapčiči Sausages With Cheese (Skinless Sausages)
Ingredients:
Click any ingredient to learn moreČevapčiči Sausages:
2 TBSP of frying oil (any kind) (adjust if needed)
1 onion - peeled and finely chopped (medium, any kind)
1 LB of 85/15 ground beef meat (or other kind)
1 LB of ground pork (*)
1 cup of mozzarella cheese - shredded (or other shredded cheese)
4 cloves of garlic - peeled and grated (or pressed)
2 TSP of fancy paprika (ground)
1 TSP of salt
1 TSP of ground pepper - ideally freshly ground
Best Served With:
Czech tartar sauce Tatarka (store-bought or recipe here)
* Can be substituted with another LB of ground beef, pork sausage, ground turkey, or ground lamb.
Tools:
Click any tool to learn more1x Chef’s knife
1x Disher (ideally 4 OZ or other size or scale)
1x Baking Sheet with Parchment Paper or Silicone Matt (or grill)
1x Tongs (or grill tongs)
Nutrition per 1 Serving:(recipe split into 4 servings)
EstimatedCalories 1283
Protein 33.2 g
Fat 124.6 g
Saturated fat 43.6 g
Carbohydrate 6.2 g
Sugars 1.8 g
Fiber 2.0 g
Sodium 674 mg
Cholesterol 146 mg
Gluten-freeLow-carb
Estimated. Worked out from the ingredients above using the United States Department of Agriculture’s FoodData Central reference data. An estimate, not a measurement — brands, sizes and how much of a marinade actually ends up on the plate all move it.
Directions:
1.Čevapčiči Sausage with Cheese Mixture:
Let’s start the preparation of Čevapčiči Sausages with Cheese by sautéing the onion.
1.1.
Sauté onion:
1.1.1.
Preheat a pan on medium-high heat with 2 TBSP of frying oil and add:
1 medium onion – finely chopped
Sauté with occasional stirring until glossy (about 3 – 4 minutes).
1.1.2.
Then, take the pot off the stove and let it partially cool while proceeding with the next step.
2.Form Čevapčiči Sausages With Cheese:
Note:
Work one-by-one.
2.1.
3.Optional Cooling Before Grilling Only:
3.1.
To ensure that čevapčiči will nicely hold together and not fall apart during further grilling, it is best to place it in the freezer for about 10 – 15 minutes.
Notes:
- This step is optional, and you can grill čevapčiči right after preparing the mixture—it may just be slightly more challenging.
- If you are performing this optional step, place it in the freezer on the baking sheet.
4.Preheating:
4.1.
Set oven to 350°F or preheat a grill.
5.Roast or Grill:
5.1.
When the oven or grill is fully preheated, place it in and cook until fully cooked * (usually about 15 – 20 minutes based on the thickness of the čevapčiči sausage).
Important:
- Oven roasting – leave it on the baking sheet with parchment paper during preparation.
- Grilling – place each one by one on the grill (do not prepare on a baking sheet)
5.2.
Turn once in the middle of the oven, roasting and/or turning 4x during grill preparation (each side should be grilled for a few minutes).
6.Serving of Čevapčiči Sausages With Cheese:
6.1.
Serve warm or cold.
6.2.
Serve with mashed or boiled potatoes and mustard, or make it even more special with homemade tartar sauce.
Tip:
Optionally, it also serves as a sandwich with fresh sliced onion and mustard.
Kitchen Guide
Ground Meat With the Exception of Poultry
The USDA minimum safe internal temperature is 160°F.
Read More
Popular questions
My easy recipe for homemade Cevapcici Sausage with Cheese! This Czech adaptation of the Balkan classic is a flavorful, skinless sausage you can grill or bake.
No, you don't have to use both. While I prefer the flavor and texture that comes from the combination of 1 pound of ground beef and 1 pound of ground pork, the recipe is quite flexible. The notes specify that you can substitute the ground pork with another pound of ground beef, or you can even use ground turkey or ground lamb if you prefer. The key is to use 2 pounds of ground meat in total to ensure the ratios of all the other ingredients in this easy sausage recipe remain correct.
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