Air Fryer Recipe
Ploughman's Sausage Rolls
A playful take on the classic sausage roll, bringing in those familiar British Ploughman’s flavours and made just right for the air fryer.
Ingredients
- Ready-rolled puff pastry
- Quality pork sausage meat
- Grated mature cheddar cheese
- Branston pickle
- Finely chopped pickled onions
- Grated apple (such as Bramley)
- Beaten egg for egg wash
- Salt
- Pepper
- Mustard powder (optional)
Method
- Preheat the air fryer to 180°C (356°F).
- In a large bowl, mix together the sausage meat, grated cheddar, Branston pickle, chopped pickled onions, and grated apple. Season with salt, pepper, and mustard powder, then mix well until everything is evenly combined.
- Roll out the puff pastry on a floured surface and cut it into strips, each 20cm by 10cm.
- Spoon the sausage mixture along each strip of pastry.
- Roll the pastry around the filling, using the egg wash to seal the edges.
- Brush the tops with egg wash.
- Place them in the air fryer basket, making sure they are not touching.
- Cook for 12-15 minutes, until the pastry is puffed and golden and the sausage meat is cooked through.
- Leave to cool slightly before serving.
Why this works in an air fryer
Air-fryer convection dries and lifts the puff pastry quickly while rendered pork fat and cheddar baste the filling. Branston, pickled onion and apple add moisture, so sealing well and leaving basket gaps matter: airflow must evaporate surface water before the pastry can brown and crisp.
Equipment notes
Assumes a 5–6 litre basket holding 4 medium rolls with clear gaps; in a single-drawer model cook in batches on the crisper plate, while dual-zone drawers usually need the smaller drawer loaded less tightly and may take 1–3 minutes longer unless the rolls are swapped or rotated halfway.
Common pitfalls
- Soggy seam or pickle leaking by minute 10: the filling is too wet or the seam is underneath a heavy patch; squeeze excess juice from grated apple and chopped onions, use a thin line of filling, and place the sealed edge fully underneath.
- Pastry browned but sausage still pink in the centre: the rolls are too thick for the heat to penetrate; reduce to narrower logs next time, or drop to 160°C and cook 4–6 minutes longer until the centre reaches 75°C.
- Cheese bubbling out and scorching on the basket: cheddar pieces are too close to the pastry edge or the rolls were overfilled; keep a clean pastry border for sealing and line only the base with perforated parchment, not the sides.
- Pale, leathery pastry underneath: airflow is blocked or the basket is crowded; leave at least 2 cm between rolls and turn them over for the final 2 minutes if your air fryer has a weak bottom heat pattern.
Variations & substitutions
- Swap pork sausage meat for Cumberland-style sausage meat for a pepperier filling; the higher seasoning level means go easy on extra salt and keep the same cooking time.
- Use red Leicester instead of mature cheddar for a milder, more orange filling; it melts readily, so seal the pastry especially firmly to prevent leaks.
- Replace Branston pickle with piccalilli for a sharper mustard note; drain it well first, as the looser sauce can make the pastry seam soften.
- Use grated firm eating apple instead of Bramley for less moisture and acidity; the filling will be slightly sweeter and the pastry is less likely to go soggy.
Storage & reheating
Keep cooled sausage rolls refrigerated for up to 3 days, then reheat in the air fryer at 160°C for 5–7 minutes until hot through and the pastry has re-crisped.
Nutrition
Calories: 250
