peppadew peppers and garlic, wrapped in ready-rolled puff pastry and baked at 220°C (200°C fan) for 25 to 30 minutes. The recipe makes 6 medium rolls, each about 12cm long.
Berry published this in Simple Comforts (2020) after her publisher specifically asked for them. Her headnote tells the story: “Lizzy, our publisher, asked for sausage rolls to be included in the book, as she feels they are among the most comforting of all foods. She’s right!”
Berry squeezes the meat from whole sausages rather than buying sausagemeat separately. Good-quality sausages already have the right fat-to-meat ratio and seasoning, so you’re starting with a better base. The peppadew peppers and tomato paste add a kick without making the filling hot, which is why Berry calls them spicy rather than chilli.
Mary Berry Spicy Sausage Rolls
Course: SidesCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy6
servings15
minutes25
minutes535
kcal45
minutesBerry’s only standard-sized sausage roll recipe, designed as comfort food rather than party canapés. She uses ready-rolled puff pastry and says “if you can’t find ready-rolled, buy an all-butter 500g block and use about four-fifths.”
Ingredients
6 fat pork sausages
2 tbsp sun-dried tomato paste
6 mild peppadew peppers, finely chopped
Small bunch of parsley, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 × 375g (13 oz) sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry
Flour, for dusting
1 egg, beaten
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Preheat: Set the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/Gas 7 (425°F). Line a large baking sheet with non-stick baking paper.
- Make the filling: Remove the sausage meat from the skins and place in a mixing bowl. Add the tomato paste, peppadew peppers, parsley and garlic. Season well and mix with your hands until all is evenly combined.
- Assemble: Unroll the pastry and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out the pastry to a slightly bigger rectangle measuring about 40×30cm (16×12 in). Brush the pastry with beaten egg. Divide the sausage mixture into three. Take one portion and roll it into a long sausage shape. Place it lengthways on the pastry, about 10cm (4 in) in from the shorter edge. Fold over the pastry to encase the sausage meat and press to seal. Trim the pastry edges to make a long sausage roll, then slice in half to make 2 long sausage rolls measuring about 12cm (5 in) long. Fork the edges. Repeat the process twice using the remaining pastry and sausage mixture.
- Bake: Arrange the sausage rolls on the baking sheet and brush with beaten egg. Bake in the oven for 25–30 minutes until golden brown and cooked through in the middle. Serve warm, with tomato ketchup.
FAQs
Why does Berry use whole sausages instead of buying sausagemeat?
Good sausages have a better balance of fat, meat and seasoning than most supermarket sausagemeat, which tends to be leaner and blander. Berry gives the same advice in her Everyday (2017) Sausage and Herb Plait: “Buy the best sausage meat you can, or take six fat sausages, remove the skin and use the meat for the filling.” She clearly prefers the sausage route.
Squeezing the meat from the skins takes about two minutes. Slit each sausage lengthways with a knife, peel the casing off and drop the meat into the bowl. The fat content in a good pork sausage keeps the filling moist during baking, which matters because puff pastry bakes at a high temperature and a lean filling can dry out fast.
What are peppadew peppers and can I swap them?
Peppadew is a brand name for small, round, sweet-sharp pickled peppers sold in jars. Berry uses them across several recipes in her books, including salads and canapés. They add a fruity heat that’s milder than chilli and sweeter than regular piquanté peppers. You’ll find them in the pickle aisle of most supermarkets.
If you can’t get them, finely chopped roasted red peppers from a jar give a similar sweetness without the heat, or a teaspoon of sweet smoked paprika stirred into the filling adds warmth in a different way. I’ve tried both and the peppadew version has the most character, so it’s worth tracking them down at least once.
Can I make these as mini sausage rolls for a party?
Berry does exactly that in her Complete Cookbook (2024) with her Herbed Mini Sausage Rolls, which make 36 bite-sized pieces from a similar quantity of filling. If you want to miniaturise this spicy version, roll the filling into thinner sausages, use narrower pastry strips and slice each strip into 5cm pieces instead of 12cm.
You’ll need to drop the bake time to about 20 minutes and check them from 18 minutes onwards, since smaller rolls brown faster. The filling stays the same — peppadew, garlic, tomato paste — it’s just the shaping that changes.
Why does Berry fork the pastry edges?
Pressing the edges with a floured fork does two things. It seals the pastry shut so the filling doesn’t leak out during baking, and it leaves a decorative crimped pattern. Berry uses this technique consistently across her sausage rolls and pasties, and in her Cookery Course she warns that “it’s important to make sure the edges are sealed or the filling will bulge out.”
She also says to dust the fork with flour first to stop it sticking to the raw pastry. I’ve forgotten this step before and ended up tearing the pastry trying to pull the fork away. A quick dip in flour before each press keeps things clean.
How far ahead can I make spicy sausage rolls?
Berry gives two options. You can assemble them up to 12 hours ahead and keep them in the fridge unbaked, then put them straight in the oven when you’re ready. Or bake them a full day ahead and reheat to serve. She also says they freeze well unbaked, though you need to thaw them before baking.
I prefer the 12-hour fridge method because the pastry stays crisper than reheated rolls. Assemble them in the morning, cover the baking sheet with cling film and refrigerate. The cold filling and chilled pastry actually give a better rise in the oven than room-temperature rolls do.
What’s the difference between these and Berry’s herbed mini sausage rolls?
Her Herbed Mini Sausage Rolls from the Complete Cookbook (2024) make 36 pieces instead of 6, use a fried onion and lemon base instead of peppadew and garlic, and spread sun-dried tomato paste directly on the pastry before adding the filling. They bake at a slightly lower 200°C (180°C fan) for the same 25 to 30 minutes.
The flavour profiles are different too. These spicy rolls have a punchy, garlicky heat from the peppadew and tomato paste mixed into the meat. The herbed version is more classic British — onion, lemon, thyme and parsley — and the tomato paste sits as a thin layer between the pastry and filling rather than running through the whole mixture.
