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I have about 20 friends coming over this weekend and we plan to eat only sausages. I have bought a variety of sausages and this will be my first time BBQ-ing. I have bought several packs that are marked "fully cooked" so I am assuming I can toss them on the BBQ for ten minutes before they are ready to eat. I have bought 3 packs that did not have the word "fully cooked" or "pre cooked". Should I be poaching them in water before BBQ-ing? In addition, there is one pack that came frozen. Should I also poach the frozen pack prior to BBQ-ing?

3 packs of sausages that does not have the word 'fully cooked': 3 packs of sausages that does not have the word 'fully cooked'

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    I recommend opening each package and trying to BBQ one of each item before this weekend so that you can get used to the varying heating times due to the size of those "sausages" (at least half of those are hot dogs). This can help you to avoid burning all of the food this weekend and it will let you gauge how much you can socialize while cooking the food.
    – MonkeyZeus
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 13:37
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    @MonkeyZeus is giving you solid advice - if you are new to grilling (bbq-ing, whatever you wanna call it) the best way to learn is to experiment. Try medium heat on those.
    – J Crosby
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 13:56
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    Poking holes in each with a fork in advance can prevent unsightly blistering and bending. Use high(er) heat to brown the outside, then lower heat (or higher shelf) and longer time (possibly with lid closed) to cook through. Otherwise go largely by appearance.
    – Jeff Y
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 14:30
  • If you have a gas grill, I like grilling my sausages on medium heat. By the time they reach ~160°F, they should have a nice level of grill-marking on them.
    – Rich
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 14:52
  • How did your BBQ go?
    – MonkeyZeus
    Commented Aug 27, 2019 at 14:42

3 Answers 3

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Those are what you would refer to as "Hot Dogs" in American parlance.

They can be heated by any means you deem suitable, including boiling, microwaving, baking, frying etc. They do however need to be heated fully before they are ready to consume.

They commonly contain a lot of sugars, so burn readily on a grill if the grill is too hot or the hot dogs are not rotated frequently enough.

They do not need to be boiled before grilling in any form, but it can make it easier to preheat them before cooking on the grill so that you can achieve an even browning or the much desired "grill marks" without burning before thorough heating is achieved.

Edited to add: it has been pointed out to me that the package at the bottom of the post showing Marc Angelo chicken sausages are uncooked. This means they are not hot dogs like I largely described. Definitely do not boil these. Give them a light oil coat and put on low to medium heat on the grill for about 30 min turning regularly to ensure they don't burn.

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  • The additional water from pre-boiling hot dogs also helps keep them moist during cooking, and helps avoid a shriveled appearance.
    – Sneftel
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 13:50
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    @Sneftel I enjoy the reduced moisture. It brings out more flavor since the water to salt ratio is lowered.
    – MonkeyZeus
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 14:22
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    I agree that the two labeled wieners are “hot dogs.” But the one on the bottom right seems to be an italian-style (unsmoked, uncured) sausage made with chicken. It also says “uncooked” on it. Are you sure it's the same as the others?
    – Matthew Leingang
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 15:42
  • @MatthewLeingang You might be right there. I can't find that particular one on the Marc Angelo website. It does say preserved, but I don't know what that means. I was basing off the Great Value (Walmart brand) and the ones on the top.
    – bob1
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 15:56
  • Yeah, I was looking at the website too and didn't find it. If it's the kind of sausage I'm thinking of, it would be pretty obvious when thawed that it wasn't cooked. It would feel like loosely-ground meat in a tube.
    – Matthew Leingang
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 16:01
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It's not necessary to poach sausage before BBQ-ing. If you afraid you might get not cooked in center and burned outside skin due to charcoal fire is hard to control or first do BBQ-ing as you mentioned, then poaching before BBQ-ing might be a good choice. At least you won't get any inedible foods.

You could use toothpick to poke some holes or use knife to cut some lines onto the sausages before BBQ-ing, making the center more likely to get cooked. And turn the sausage frequently on the grill meshes, shall you will get nice cooked and yummy sausages :D

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    Poking holes with a toothpick will not affect the cooking time.
    – Sneftel
    Commented Aug 22, 2019 at 13:48
  • @Sneftel It works to me, maybe you need to poke more or deeper.
    – Conifers
    Commented Aug 24, 2019 at 3:12
  • The reason to poke the holes is to allow the hot juices an exit path. Otherwise pressure will build up inside and the juices will eventually and possibly energetically make their own path.
    – Willk
    Commented Aug 24, 2019 at 18:58
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    @Sneftel : actually it can, as you lose moisture through the holes that would otherwise need to be heated and/or turn to steam (which requires a lot of energy). Of course, you're more likely to end up with dry overcooked sausages, so I wouldn't recommend it.
    – Joe
    Commented Aug 24, 2019 at 20:34
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Recruit a friend.

Of 20, presumably Canadians, someone must have a clue. Since this is explicitly a sausage party I am going to assume it is a he. You know who he is or maybe you will find out when the party starts. Have a couple of expensive beers set aside for that person. He will hopefully be proud to know that his expertise is recognized. He will teach you how to grill for this occasion.

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