Make a dozen of these irresistible gourmet Pork and Fennel Sausage Rolls at home. They’re super simple and a real crowd pleaser!

My kind of Sausage Rolls

At the risk of sounding pretentious, I try to avoid eating sausage rolls sold at our bakeries. Do you know which ones I mean? The ones that taste oily and overly processed with probably just 2% real meat in them.

Like many children, our parents often fed these sausage rolls to us for lunch or a quick snack, as they were cheap and easy. Funny enough, I didn’t like them then and I don’t like them now, but I would eat them if I was hungry. Yeah, I’m very flexible with food!

However, if there was a choice between pies and sausage rolls, I would always choose a pie. Who doesn’t love a good pie? It tastes even better when it’s homemade AUSSIE BEEF PIE! The only time I would choose a sausage roll over a pie is if they promised me ‘Pork and Fennel Sausage rolls’.

I fell in love with Pork and Fennel Sausage rolls since I tried them in a cafe in Hobart, Tasmania. The ambience at this cafe was unforgettable. The cafe’s front had a talented man dressed in an old-style suit and hat playing live jazz with his enormous upright bass. Once inside, there was an impressive selection of in-house-made sweet and savouries to choose from.

These sausage rolls remind me of the ones I got in Tassie (Tasmania). Flaky buttery pastry enveloped in a generous amount of well-seasoned filling with real pork and real fennel. That’s how we like it over here, so say goodbye to boring processed sausage rolls forever! If you want healthier and lower calories sausage rolls to share with kids, try these HOMEMADE SAUSAGE ROLLS

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Silly shenanigans by Nara in Tassie

We went on a couple’s vacation for 4 days in 2014 for my birthday. My sister, Nara, was with her then-boyfriend and I was engaged to my now hubby, Tomasi.

We drove up to Wineglass Bay but didn’t realise we had to walk a short trail to see the glorious view. It was a scorching day and none of us had any water, and Nara and I were wearing our thongs (to clarify, that’s flip flops and not the underwear).

Luckily, the trail to get right to the top didn’t involve too much climbing or very steep hills. BUT, this didn’t stop my sister from whinging all the way to the top. Nara, being her usual drama queen self, said things like,

‘It’s hot!… OMG, I won’t make it….. My body is shutting down and I need water…I bloody hate nature walking…. I’m going to turn back and wait for you guys in the car.’

Photos from our holiday in Tasmania in 2014 – Wineglass Bay (left) and Cascade Brewery Bar

Hubby and I laughed at Nara’s nonsense, which made her angrier, but her boyfriend had to secretly chuckle when she wasn’t looking.

There must be something about walking trails that cause people to fight. We walked by a man that looked exhausted and was propping himself up against a rock. ‘Don’t you dare stop! You always carry on like this whenever we’re on tour! Get up now and keep following us!’ His partner demanded with her teeth clenched in anger. Nara, who was probably 30 years younger than the man, took pity on him and gave him a supportive smile because she felt she could relate.

Then, a funny thing happened when we reached the top of Wineglass Bay. Nara was no longer grumpy because she had her phone out and took several selfies with her phone with a wide smile on her face. Nara suddenly had enough energy to pose for the camera, making sure it captured her best angles.

What on earth is Fennel, and how do you prepare them?

Good question because fennels are still new to me too. I only started cooking with fennel when I met my hubby. Tomasi told me that his cousin enjoys cooking with fennel because it’s cheap and tasty. Fennel goes really well fresh in salads or cooked with fish or pork.

The best way I can describe fennel is it has a texture of celery but with licorice or anise flavour. If you haven’t had fennel before, it may shock you a little. It definitely surprised me, I was expecting the anise flavour at all!

Fennel bulbs are relatively cheap and I can easily access them at my local supermarket when I need them. They look quite usual and are slightly intimidating. If you’ve never cooked with fennel before, you’re probably thinking ‘how on earth do I tackle this?’ I should’ve taken photos with steps on how to prepare fennel, but like usual I suffered a brain fart and forgot. Sorry, will do it next time!

Chop the roots and stems of the fennel leaving just the bulb. The fronds (leaves) make beautiful garnishes! Remove one or two tough layers surrounding the fennel bulb. Stand the bulb upright and cut it into quarters. The fennel has a core, so remove it by slicing it off each quarter and discard it. This now leaves the edible part of the fennel, so you can dice it or slice the fennel as needed. If you can’t find fennel for this recipe, substitute with celery for equal amounts.

Ingredients for Pork and Fennel Sausage Rolls

Pork mince (ground pork) – For the best taste, use pork with fat mixed in and not the lean variety.

Bacon – My favourite bacon is streaky, as I like the ratio of fat and meat. However, all kinds of rindless bacon with fat would work. Avoid lean variety bacon, like shortcut bacon.

Fennel – To prepare fennel – cut the stem and roots off, leaving just the bulb. Remove 1 or 2 layers of the outer layers of the bulb, then cut the bulb into quarters. Then remove the core from each quarter and discard it. Dice or slice the remaining fennel bulb for cooking or salads.

Frozen puff pastry sheets – I love using prepackaged puff pastry because it’s convenient and tastes pretty good. They need to be defrosted at room temperature before use. Follow the guide on the packet, however, don’t let it defrost too long or they’ll become difficult to handle. The square pastry sheets I used were 24 cm (9.5 in).

Fresh breadcrumbs – A day-old or stale bread is preferable. Roughly tear the bread and pulse in a food processor until you get breadcrumbs.

Pork and Fennel Sausage Rolls

Step-by-step guide with photos

Preheat oven to 200°C (390°F) or 180°C (360°F) for fan-forced ovens. Grease a large tray with oil or melted butter.

Roughly chop the bacon and place it in a food processor, pulse until finely chopped.

For the bacon mixture – Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, then add in the garlic, onion, fennel, fennel seeds and stir quickly for a minute. Add in the bacon and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Place the bacon mixture on a plate so it cools down a little.

In a large bowl, place in the pork mince, ONE egg, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper then add in the bacon mixture. Using your hand or wooden spoon, mix well until combined.

Whisk an egg in a small bowl for the egg wash.

Cut the pastry sheet in half equally, creating 4 even rectangles. Place 1/4 of the meat mixture onto a pastry sheet and shape it lengthwise into a log, making sure there’s meat in the edges. Use both hands and carefully roll up the pastry, evenly and tightly. Place the seams down and repeat with the remaining steps until you have 4 long rolls.

Let’s bake them!

Brush the top of the rolls with egg wash and sprinkle on sesame seeds (optional), then cut rolls into three or whatever size you prefer.

Place in the middle of the oven and cook for 25 to 30 minutes, turning the tray halfway through baking.

Leftovers – Allow the sausage rolls to cool completely at room temperature. Transfer the rolls into a sealed container and refrigerate. It’ll be good for up to 3 to 4. Frozen rolls will keep for up to 3 months.

Check out more classic Australian recipes, like these soft and delicious Cheese and Vegemite Scrolls or do you remember those addictive Sizzler Cheese Toast?

A Third-Party Application calculated the calories and nutritional information. Please use this as an approximate guide only.

Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements.

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Cheers (I’ll drink to that) – Cat Tre