Bratwurst is a long-time summer favorite for outdoor cooking. The name bratwurst is derived from Old High German. Wurst means sausage and brat means meat (sometimes defined as chopped meat or pure meat).
Because it did not contain nitrite and consequently had a white external color, sometimes fine-ground cooked bratwurst was referred to as a white sausage. Traditional German bratwurst was typically made from pork and veal. In the U.S. bratwurst is most frequently made from all pork. However, it is not uncommon for bratwurst to be manufactured from turkey or chicken. Beef is also found as an ingredient in bratwurst.