Sausage and Peppers

The real beauty of sausage and peppers is that it’s an incredibly simple and straightforward one-pan meal that packs in seriously big flavor, with the savory sausage mingling with soft, sweet peppers. And while Italian pork sausage is an ingredient commonly found in red sauce pasta, hearty soup, or even stuffed into eggplant, it is the star here. These links are rich, fatty, and have a ton of great seasonings already mixed in, which means you get a really delicious meal without a long ingredient list. 

The other superstar trait of sausage and peppers is that there are so many ways to put it on the dinner table. Here at my house my husband prefers it tucked into a fresh hoagie roll, I love it spooned over spaghetti or orzo, and my 5-year-old is happy with the simplicity of eating it as is. The one thing we can all agree on, however, is keeping this one-pan meal on repeat in our dinner rotation. 

• It’s packed with flavor. Between the rounds of Italian sausage, sweet bell peppers, garlic, diced tomatoes, and herbs, this dinner is loaded with many layers of flavor.
• There are so many great ways to eat it. Eat it straight from the skillet as is, stuff it into a hoagie roll, or spoon it over pasta, rice, or even polenta.

• Sausage links. Mild or hot (spicy) Italian sausage links are the classic ingredient for this dish. Make sure to buy raw, not pre-cooked, sausage. Italian sausage is packed with a mix of seasonings that bring more flavor to the sauce here, so this is the time to use good-quality sausage. 
• Bell peppers. Take your pick between red, orange, yellow, or any combination of the three. 
• Yellow onion. Strips of softened onion add flavor to the sauce and a natural sweetness to complement the savory (and possibly spicy) pieces of sausage.

1. Prep the vegetables. Trim and thinly slice the bell peppers and onion.
2. Sear the sausages. Heat a glug of olive oil in a large skillet and cook the sausages until they’re well-browned on both sides. They won’t be fully cooked yet. Transfer to a cutting board.
3. Sauté the peppers and onion. Add another glug of oil to the skillet and cook the peppers and onion until slightly softened. While they cook, slice the sausage on a slight diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick pieces.
4. Make the sauce. Stir garlic, tomato paste, and Italian seasoning into the vegetable mixture. Add a can of diced tomatoes and water, and bring to a simmer.
5. Finish cooking the sausage in the sauce. Return the sausage slices to the skillet and cook at a gentle simmer until the flavors meld and the sauce is slightly thickened.

• Several types of onions can get the job done — white, red, or Vidalia onions all work as an alternative to using a yellow onion here.
• While the recipe calls for red, orange, or yellow bell peppers because they’re sweeter than green, if all you have are green or even purple bell peppers, go ahead and use them. 
• A can of crushed or whole peeled canned tomatoes will easily work in place of diced tomatoes. If using whole peeled tomatoes, just break them up with your hands into bite-sized pieces as you add them to the skillet, and make sure to include the juices in the can.

• The peppers and onion can be cut up to a day in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container until you’re ready to cook. 
• Stored in an airtight container, leftovers can be refrigerated for up to three days or frozen for up to three months. 

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