Cooking up Italian sausage for dinner on the stovetop is so easy if you follow a few simple steps for perfectly cooked sausage. You just need a few ingredients, Italian sausage and a skillet to make this recipe and it is delicious on its own or with some Italian bread for dipping.
The Ideal Italian Sausages
In my family, we use the word ideal to refer to the perfect, or best that something can be. We have an ideal hamburger, an ideal pasta and these delicious Italian sausages.
While anyone can throw together a quick meal made with Italian sausage, there is a little love and care that should go into making them and attention paid to how they are made.
This Italian sausage and peppers recipe is a family way of making them and everyone in my family has been taught this simple but delicious way of cooking this dish. The Italian sausage comes out perfectly browned on the outside and juicy and fully cooked on the inside.
This is one of my favorite recipes to make for my family and I love it because it does not have pasta, just the peppers and the sausage making it really quick to cook.
I cook a similar dish to this one, my chorizo and peppers that is equally as delicious.
This Italian sausage and peppers recipe is easy to make and the perfect weeknight meal on busy evenings. Let me show you how easy it is to make so you can add it to your dinner rotation!
Ingredients Needed
- Italian Sausage. I prefer using a mild Italian sausage and adding in my own heat with red pepper flakes later. You could also use sweet Italian sausage or spicy.
- Green Bell Peppers. I really love the bitterness that green bell peppers add to this dish so I use lots of them.
- Red Bell Peppers. When I use red bell peppers I like to make sure that I am using less of this and more of the green or else the dish becomes too sweet.
- Red Onion. Sliced
- Fresh Garlic.
- Tomato. You only need one and it will cook almost completely down giving you a bit of a sauce.
- Olive Oil.
- Red Pepper Flakes.
- Kosher salt.
How To Make Skillet Italian Sausage and Peppers
- Brown Sausage: In a large heavy bottom skillet, cook the sausage and brown all sides.
- Cover and cook: Once those Italian sausages are browned, cover them with a lid and allow them to fully cook through. It only takes about 15-20 minutes!
- Saute Peppers and onions: Now you remove sausages from the pan and cook up the peppers and onions in that delicious flavor left behind in the pan from the Italian sausage.
- Bring it all together: After 10 minutes, add the sausages back to the skillet along with the garlic and diced tomatoes and mix well. and simmer for a few minutes.
- Serve immediately with your favorite side.
Tips For Perfectly Cooked Skillet Sausages
- Pre-heat the skillet: Get the pan nice and pre-heated before you add the sausage. You want to seal in those juices so a nice sear is important.
- Use a good heavy bottom skillet: You want a good skillet that distributes the heat evenly so the sausage cooks well and evenly.
- Test for doneness with an instant read thermometer: If you can, try not to pierce the sausage which will release the juices. An instant read thermometer that scan the sausage without piercing is perfect. It is done when the internal temperature reaches 160 degres.
Storing
This Italian sausage and peppers store really well. To make ahead of time, just follow the recipe until complete then allow to fully cool.
Place the Italian sausage peppers and onions in a large air-tight storage container with a lid and refrigerate for up to 1 week.
To reheat, just add the sausage and peppers to a baking dish and bake (covered) in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 20 minutes or until warmed through.
Recipe Faqs
No. By piercing sausage, you are allowing the juices to leave the sausage which can make them dry.
After browning the sausages, cooking them for an additional 20 minutes covered and allowing them to rest for 5 minutes after cooking should yield perfectly cooked sausages.
My Favorite Things To Pair With Skillet Sausages!
Now although I am a purist and prefer to enjoy this Italian dish as is, they go really well with many dishes. Here are some ideas:
The Ideal Skillet Sausage And Peppers
Equipment
- large skillet
Ingredients
- 5 Mild Italian Sausage LInks in their casing
- 2 Green Bell Peppers Sliced thin into strips
- 1 Red Bell Pepper Sliced thin into strips
- 1 Large Red onion Sliced thin into strips
- 1 medium tomato Diced finely
- 3 cloves of garlic sliced thin
- 2 tablespoon Olive Oil
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt Plus more to taste
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- In a large sauté pan over medium heat, add your olive oil and red pepper flakes.2 tablespoon Olive Oil, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Now add your sausage and brown all sides (about 5 minutes.)5 Mild Italian Sausage LInks
- After the sausages are browned, reduce heat to low and cover with a lid.
- Cook on low for another 20 minutes with the lid on making sure to rotate the sausages a couple times.
- After 20 minutes, remove sausages from the pan and set aside.
- In the same sauté pan over medium heat, add the green pepper, red pepper, onion and salt and cook for about 10 minutes until the peppers and onions begin to soften.2 Green Bell Peppers, 1 Red Bell Pepper, 1 Large Red onion, ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- After 10 minutes, add the sausages back to the pot along with the garlic and diced tomatoes and mix well.3 cloves of garlic, 1 medium tomato
- Reduce heat to low and cover.
- Cook for another 5 minutes.
- Serve immediately with your favorite side.
Notes
Make It Ahead Of Time:
If you are using this as a make-ahead meal, here is what you do: Storing: Allow the sausage to cool then place in an air-tight container in the fridge (for up to 3 days). Reheating: Place sausages and peppers in aluminum foil (and seal well) in a preheated 350-degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until heated through.Nutrition
Nutrition Values are estimates only.
See full nutrition disclaimer hereTried the Recipe? We Would Love To Hear From You In The Comments Below!
Emma says
I finally made juicy sausage! This recipe was so helpful