Italian Sausage and Peppers is a savory, filling meal that can be on the table in 30 minutes or less. If you are looking for a quick meal that is sure to satisfy, give this one a try!
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Italian Sausage and Peppers is a family favorite! Every summer Sunday, my Italian grandmother would make Sausage and Peppers for a quick meal at the family cottage. Though this recipe isn’t exactly the same as hers (she cooked the peppers and tomato sauce separately from the grilled sausage), it is very similar! When a recipe is shared by a grandma, you know it has to be good.
There is something for everyone to love in this recipe including delicious, flavorful sausage and crisp peppers and onions. When combined with the tomato sauce, the combo goes perfectly on top of pasta or inside a warm hoagie. It is quintessential comfort food that must be shared!
Sausage and Peppers is a popular street food in notoriously Italian sectors of large cities. The best part about this meal is how easy it is to make. With one pot/pan and a knife, you can have dinner on the table in 30 minutes or less, which makes it a great recipe for a busy weeknight meal.
It’s also incredibly easy to double or triple this simple recipe and feed the whole family or an entire crowd. If you are looking for an easy way to enjoy some Italian cuisine, look no further. Then check out this list of What To Serve with Italian Sausage and Peppers to make a complete meal in a homemade dinner.
Recipe Origins
Sausage has been an essential part of Italian cuisine for centuries, even back to Ancient Roman times. That’s because sausage is a great way to ensure every piece of meat is used.
Italian sausage is typically made with primarily pork meat, but it may also contain beef, veal and even poultry. Fennel is the main spice used in Italian sausage but it also usually contains garlic and other herbs.
This Authentic Italian Sausage and Peppers Recipe is really Italian-American. While there is no conclusive evidence of its history, its evolution is credited to immigrants from Italy to America who settled in Boston, Chicago and New York. As they settled, they brought with them favorites from home like Italian sausage.
The ease and versatility of the dish made it a perfect food for street food vendors and the popularity spread from there.
In 1926 the immigrants who had settled in New York decided to come together to celebrate their culture and their ancestry with a block party and the annual Feast of San Gennaro was born. This week-long festival in the Little Italy neighborhood continues today, each September.
For many, the smell of this Sausage and Pepper dish takes them right back to that festival where vendors sell Italian sausage and peppers in warm sub rolls on the street. It’s another classic Italian American comfort food, just like these Slow Cooker Italian Beef Sandwiches. Enjoying traditional foods that’ll be memories in the making!
Why Make This Recipe?
- Easy: This is a fantastic one-pan meal to quickly feed a family.
- Delicious: This classic dish satisfies nearly all the senses. It smells amazing, looks colorful, cooks with an irresistible sizzle, and packs so much flavor into every bite.
- Traditional: This is my Grandma’s recipe and always reminds me of home. It’s also an easy way to satisfy a craving for authentic Italian flavor.
What Do I Need to Make This Recipe?
Ingredients
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
- Mild Italian Sausages: Authentic Italian sausage is best for this recipe. If you like a little spice you could use spicy Italian sausage.
- Green Bell Peppers: You can also add sweet bell peppers like red bell peppers or yellow peppers, but my grandmother always kept it simple with just green pepper.
- Sweet Onion: You could use a yellow onion or vidalia onion.
- Tomato Sauce: The sauce in this recipe is so simple and is flavored mostly by the vegetables and sausage. No need to complicate things, but you could add a little Italian seasoning if you would like.
How to Make This Recipe
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Step 1: Heat the Sausages
In a large skillet, add 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Once warmed, add the Italian sausages into the skillet.
Heat for a couple of minutes until the skin is brown on one side. Then, flip the sausage over and heat for another 5 minutes. The sausages do not need to be cooked all the way through at this point.
Remove the hot sausages from the skillet and set aside.
Step 2: Prepare the Vegetables
Add the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil into the skillet and warm again over medium heat.
Add the sliced bell peppers and sliced onions into the skillet.
Saute for about 10-15 minutes until the peppers and onions are mostly soft, but still have some structure.
Step 3: Combine Your Ingredients
Add the tomato sauce into the pan along with the salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Add a lid and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
In the meantime, slice the sausages into ½” – 1” pieces. The sausage will still be pink in the middle.
Once the 10 minutes is up, remove the lid from the skillet and add the sliced sausage pieces into the sauce. Stir to combine.
Continue cooking, with the lid off, for about 10-15 more minutes, until the sauce has reduced a little and the sausages are cooked all the way through (they should reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit).
Serve and enjoy!
To enjoy the full Italian experience, check out these Italian Dessert recipes. Not too sweet but definitely takes care of that dessert craving that if you’re like me, you get too!
Expert Tips
- There are so many ways to enjoy this meal. It is delicious on its own but you could also serve it over rice, cauliflower rice, quinoa, pasta, or on a toasted hoagie. It pairs perfectly with a green salad and breadsticks!
- Feel free to use red and yellow peppers as well and any other fresh vegetables you like. It goes great with zucchini, mushrooms and sweet potatoes.
- If your sauce turns out thinner than you would like, allow it to cook for an extra minute or two with the lid off to reduce the amount of moisture.
- Be careful not to overcook your onions and peppers during the saute stage. They will finish cooking during the simmering, so saute until just tender.
- Obviously this is an Italian dish so it makes the most sense to use Italian sausage. You can find authentic Italian sausage links at the grocery store or an Italian deli. You could also substitute a different kind of sausage. Chicken sausage, turkey sausage, kielbasa and even ground sausage all work. Spicy sausage, mild sausage, sweet sausages all pair well with onions and peppers.
- Searing your sausage is what brings out the delicious flavor. Then allowing it to sit for a few minutes before slicing it gives it a chance to redistribute moisture and become extra juicy and delicious.
- This recipe is not spicy, but if you would like to add some spice feel free to use hot Italian sausage or add some red pepper flakes to the sauce.
- Some chefs like to use a little butter instead of olive oil to cook the vegetables to add a little extra flavor. Feel free to give it a try!
How to Make my Sausage and Peppers Sweeter
This Authentic Italian Sausage and Peppers Recipe is slightly acidic due to the use of tomato sauce. This is how my grandmother served it, but if you are looking for a sweeter dish, have no fear!
You can add a tablespoon or two of butter into the sauce as well as a sprinkle of sugar. This will simmer into just the right taste!
FAQs
Yes, this easy meal is great to store in the fridge for up to five days. Reheat in the microwave. This recipe also freezes well but you may lose some texture in your peppers.
Yes, you can use any type of sausage you would like, but for the most authentic flavor, I chose sweet Italian sausage.
I love this dish because it is so versatile. You can eat it on its own with a green salad or serve it over just about any kind of pasta. If you need to make it a quick to-go meal, warm hoagie rolls are always an excellent choice (this is my personal favorite option!).
Did you like this Authentic Italian Sausage and Peppers Recipe? If so, check out these other recipes I picked out just for you:
- Easy Tiramisu Recipe
- Easy Pasta Sauce Recipe
- Bucatini Cacio e Pepe
- Italy: Recipes, Background and Culture
- Substitutes for Italian Herbs
- How Long To Cook Homemade Pasta
Authentic Italian Sausage and Peppers Recipe
Equipment
- Skillet
- Food Thermometer
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 4 Mild Italian Sausages
- 4 Green Bell Peppers, sliced thinly
- 1 Sweet onion, sliced
- 2 15 oz Tomato Sauce
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- ½ tsp black pepper (Use code FF20 for 20% off)
Instructions
- In a large skillet, add 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Once warmed, add the 4 Italian sausages into the skillet. Heat for about 5 minutes until the skin is brown on one side. Then, flip the sausage over and heat for another 5 minutes. The sausages do not need to be cooked all the way through at this point.
- Remove the sausage from the skillet and set aside.
- Add the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil into the skillet and warm again over medium heat.
- Add the 4 sliced bell peppers and 1 sliced onions into the skillet.
- Saute for about 10-15 minutes until the peppers and onions are mostly soft, but still have some structure.
- Add the 30 oz of tomato sauce into the pan along with the 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper, and 1 tsp garlic powder. Add a lid and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
- In the meantime, slice the sausages into ½” – 1” pieces. The sausage will still be pink in the middle.
- Once the 10 minutes is up, remove the lid from the skillet and add the sausage pieces into the sauce. Stir to combine.
- Continue cooking, with the lid off, for about 10-15 more minutes, until the sauce has reduced a little and the sausages are cooked all the way through (they should reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Mild Italian Sausages: Authentic Italian sausage is best for this recipe. If you like a little spice you could use spicy Italian sausage.
- Green Bell Peppers: You can also add sweet bell peppers like red bell peppers or yellow peppers, but my grandmother always kept it simple with just green pepper.
- Sweet Onion: You could use a yellow onion or vidalia onion.
- Tomato Sauce: The sauce in this recipe is so simple and is flavored mostly by the vegetables and sausage. No need to complicate things, but you could add a little Italian seasoning if you would like.
- There are so many ways to enjoy this meal. It is delicious on its own but you could also serve it over rice, cauliflower rice, quinoa, pasta, or on a toasted hoagie. It pairs perfectly with a green salad and breadsticks!
- Feel free to use red and yellow peppers as well and any other fresh vegetables you like. It goes great with zucchini, mushrooms and sweet potatoes.
- If your sauce turns out thinner than you would like, allow it to cook for an extra minute or two with the lid off to reduce the amount of moisture.
- Be careful not to overcook your onions and peppers during the saute stage. They will finish cooking during the simmering, so saute until just tender.
- Obviously this is an Italian dish so it makes the most sense to use Italian sausage. You can find authentic Italian sausage links at the grocery store or an Italian deli. You could also substitute a different kind of sausage. Chicken sausage, turkey sausage, kielbasa and even ground sausage all work. Spicy sausage, mild sausage, sweet sausages all pair well with onions and peppers.
- Searing your sausage is what brings out the delicious flavor. Then allowing it to sit for a few minutes before slicing it gives it a chance to redistribute moisture and become extra juicy and delicious.
- This recipe is not spicy, but if you would like to add some spice feel free to use hot Italian sausage or add some red pepper flakes to the sauce.
- Some chefs like to use a little butter instead of olive oil to cook the vegetables to add a little extra flavor. Feel free to give it a try!
Britney says
Does this do well with freezing any leftovers?
Alexandria Drzazgowski says
Yes these should freeze very well! Keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 6 months!
Glen says
What is sausage and peppers called in Italian thank you
Alexandria Drzazgowski says
Hi Glen, I’m not sure actually! Like i mentioned in the article, Sausage and Peppers are actually an Italian American immigrant food 🙂 My family were immigrants from Italy, but I do not speak Italian myself so I don’t know the right word for this dish. A quick Google Translate search told me it is “salsiccia e peperoni” but I do not speak Italian to know if that is correct.