Bread Bake with Sausage and Pickled Cucumber Recipe
This is a bread bake with sausage, pickled cucumber and cheese, inspired by the flavour of a Polish hot sandwich. The bread pieces soak up an egg-and-milk mixture, creating a soft, omelette-like centre, while the top bakes to a golden, pleasantly crisp crust. It is a great way to use up stale bread and leftover cold cuts, turning them into a filling oven dish.
Bread bakes are a homestyle way of using up stale bread, popular in many Polish kitchens alongside croutons and toast. The combination of sausage, pickled cucumber and cheese strongly echoes classic sandwiches with cold cuts and a pickle from the jar.
It turns everyday fridge staples – stale bread, a piece of sausage and a few pickles – into a crispy, cheesy bake reminiscent of a milk-bar classic., It tastes like a favourite sausage sandwich, only hot and sized for several people at once., It is a very homely zero-waste dish that both feeds the household and clears out the fridge.
Why this version works
- Stale bread absorbs the egg mixture better, giving a creamy centre instead of a dry one.
- Mustard in the egg mixture boosts the flavour of the sausage and cucumbers without needing many extra spices.
- A short rest before baking ensures the cubes soak evenly and there are no dry spots.
Chef's tips
Plain wheat bread slices or rolls work best here – very dark wholemeal bread can make the bake too heavy and dense., If you like deeply browned cheese, switch on the grill function for 1–2 minutes at the end of baking, watching closely so the top does not darken too fast., When using very fatty sausage, fry it first in a dry pan and pour off the excess fat, otherwise the bottom of the bake can turn out greasy.
How to serve
Serve with a tomato and onion salad, a fermented cucumber or a bowl of white cabbage slaw – the acidity and crunch refresh the flavour., It is a great warm after-work supper, but also a filling snack for watching a match or an evening with friends., The next day you can serve pieces with garlic sauce or ketchup, like homemade fast-food style toasts.
Watch out for
- Do not oversalt the egg mixture – the sausage, cheese and cucumbers are already quite salty.
- If the bread is very fresh, cut it with a sharp knife and mix gently, as it squashes easily.
- Do not skip the resting time after baking, otherwise the hot egg mixture will run out when you cut it.
Substitutions
- Replace part of the sausage with ham or bacon fried until crisp to reduce the fattiness of the dish.
- Swap the yellow cheese for mozzarella or a mix of Gouda and cheddar for a stronger flavour.
- Replace spicy Sarepska mustard with mild table mustard or horseradish mustard for a hotter version.
- Instead of wheat bread you can use rolls or baguette, preferably slightly stale.
Ingredients
- wheat bread can be stale - 6 slices
- sausage e.g. Silesian or Podwawelska - 200 g
- pickled cucumber medium - 3 piece
- yellow cheese grated - 150 g
- egg - 3 piece
- milk - 200 ml
- mustard mild or hot - 1 tablespoon
- oil for greasing the dish - 1 tablespoon
- black pepper to taste
- salt to taste, carefully as sausage and cheese are salty
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 190°C (top and bottom heat). Grease a baking dish with oil, thoroughly coating the bottom and sides so the bake does not stick after baking.
- Cut the bread slices into cubes about 2 cm across. If the bread is very fresh and soft, spread the cubes on a baking tray and dry them in the oven for 3–5 minutes, until dry to the touch on the surface.
- Cut the sausage into half-moons or cubes, trimming off any very thick pieces of fat. Slice the pickled cucumbers thinly; if they are very sour, pat them dry lightly with paper towel so they do not water down the mixture.
- Put the bread cubes into a large bowl, add the sausage, cucumbers and half of the grated cheese. Gently mix with your hand or a spoon so the ingredients are evenly distributed but the bread cubes stay intact.
- In a separate bowl whisk the eggs with the milk, mustard, pepper and a pinch of salt (remember the cheese, sausage and cucumbers are salty). Mix until you have a uniform, lightly foamy mixture with no streaks of mustard.
- Pour the egg-and-milk mixture over the bread and add-ins and mix very thoroughly, pressing the cubes down with a spoon so they absorb the liquid everywhere. Set aside for 5–10 minutes, until the bread has clearly softened and no longer looks dry.
- If after soaking you still see dry, pale cubes, add 2–3 tablespoons of milk and mix again. Transfer everything to the greased dish, press down lightly with a spoon to level the surface and remove air pockets.
- Sprinkle the top with the remaining grated cheese, spreading it in an even layer right to the edges. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 18–20 minutes, until the cheese has melted and the top is golden and slightly crisp.
- After 15 minutes gently shake the dish – the centre should not wobble like liquid, only tremble slightly. After removing from the oven, let the bake stand for about 5 minutes so the egg mixture sets, then cut into squares and serve hot.
Storage
Once cooled, store in the fridge for up to 2 days – the bread softens and the top loses its crunch. Reheat in the oven or in a dry frying pan to re-crisp the cheese and edges; in the microwave it will be much softer.
After a party I throw in leftover cheeses and odd pickles from different jars – it turns out a bit different every time, but the plate always comes back empty.
