Italian Sausage and Peppers

Old fashioned Italian sausage and peppers is a one skillet dinner that comes together in about 50 minutes! Browned sausage links simmer with sweet onions, bell peppers, and a light tomato sauce until everything is tender and glossy. Pile it into toasted hoagie rolls, spoon it over pasta, or serve it with a loaf of crusty bread.

Before You Get Started

Three things make the difference between a skillet of juicy sausage in a bright sauce and a pan of mushy vegetables. None of them take extra time!

• Brown the sausage links whole. Sear them before slicing, then finish the rounds in the sauce. Slicing first lets the juices run out.
• Pull the peppers while firm. Add the tomatoes when the peppers and onions are still crisp-tender. They keep cooking in the sauce.
• Balance the tomatoes with sugar. Brown sugar and a splash of balsamic keep the sauce from tasting sharp or one-dimensional.

How to Make Italian Sausage and Peppers

Sausage and peppers is Italian American through and through, the kind of dish that came out of street festivals and family kitchens rather than any one region of Italy. 

This version builds a light tomato sauce right in the pan instead of serving the sausage and peppers dry, which is what makes it good over pasta or tucked into a roll.

Step 1: Brown the Sausage

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the sausage links whole and brown them on all sides, about 5 to 6 minutes total. 

They will not be cooked through yet, and that is fine. You are after color and a little browned residue on the bottom of the pan, which becomes the backbone of the sauce later. 

Move the links to a cutting board and let them rest while you start the vegetables.

→ Sweet Italian sausage is the classic choice, but hot Italian sausage works beautifully if your family likes heat, and mild sits right in the middle. Italian turkey sausage or chicken sausage will also work, though they brown a little faster and stay leaner in the finished dish.

→ Starting with fully cooked sausage? Slice the links into rounds first and brown them in the skillet, then set them aside. Stir them into the sauce at the very end so they do not overcook.

Step 2: Soften the Peppers and Onions

Add the remaining olive oil to the same skillet, then the sliced peppers and onions. 

Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, just until they start to give. Stir in the garlic and cook about 30 seconds more, until you can smell it.

→ A sweet onion is worth it here. It cooks down without any sharpness and rounds out the tomatoes. As for the peppers, early fall is peak bell pepper season, so use whatever colors look best at the market. Red and green together give you the prettiest pan, but any combination works.

Step 3: Build the Sauce

Add the crushed tomatoes, brown sugar, parsley flakes, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Take a wooden spoon and scrape up every browned bit from the bottom of the pan once the tomatoes go in. That is where a lot of the flavor lives.

The vegetables should still have some bite at this point. They will finish cooking in the sauce, and starting them too soft is the fastest way to end up with a mushy pan.

Step 4: Slice and Return the Sausage

Cut the rested links into thick rounds, about 2 inches each, and nestle them back into the sauce. 

Thick rounds hold their shape and stay juicy. Thin coins tend to dry out over the simmer.

Step 5: Cover and Simmer

Cover the skillet and let everything simmer about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the sausage is cooked through. 

The sausage is done when there is no pink left in the center, or 160°F on an instant read thermometer.

Step 6: Finish and Serve

Stir in the balsamic vinegar off the heat. Taste, then season with salt, pepper, and a little more brown sugar if the tomatoes still taste sharp. 

Finish each serving with shaved or grated Parmesan and a scatter of fresh basil or parsley.

Recipe Variations

• Leave the sausage links whole instead of slicing them into rounds. Whole links need a few extra minutes under the lid to cook through.
• Deglaze with a splash of red wine or chicken broth before the tomatoes go in. Let it bubble down for a minute, scraping the pan as you go.
• Add sliced fresh mushrooms with the peppers and onions. They soak up the sauce and give the pan more body.
• Use jarred sauce as a shortcut. Swap prepared sauce for the crushed tomatoes and dried herbs. My Easy Marinara Sauce Recipe works well if you keep a batch in the freezer.
• Use ground Italian sausage if that is what you have. Brown and crumble it first, drain the excess fat, and stir it back in at the end. You lose the browned casing, but the sauce comes together the same way.

Serving Suggestions

This is one of those dinners that changes character depending on what you put under it. Three ways work best:

→ As sandwiches: Split hoagie rolls and toast them cut side up until the edges are golden, which keeps the bread from going soggy. Let the sausage and peppers drain for a second against the side of the spoon before you pile them in, then lay a slice of provolone over the top and slide the whole thing under the broiler for a minute.

→ Over pasta or rice: Penne is the natural fit because the sauce catches in the tubes, but the mixture is just as good over plain rice, cauliflower rice, or a scoop of creamy polenta.

→ With bread on the side: Skip the roll and set out something crusty to soak up the pan juices.

A crisp green salad tossed in my Red Wine Vinegar Salad Dressing is always welcome alongside, especially if you are going the sandwich route.

Storage, Freezing, and Make-Ahead

Store: Leftovers keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. The flavor actually improves overnight as the sauce settles into the sausage.

Freeze: The cooked dish freezes for up to 3 months. Know going in that the peppers soften considerably once thawed, so freeze it with pasta or sandwiches in mind rather than expecting crisp-tender vegetables.

Reheat: Warm the mixture in a skillet over low heat for 7 to 10 minutes, just until heated through. Individual servings reheat in the microwave in about a minute.

Make it ahead for a crowd: This doubles easily in a large Dutch oven, and it holds beautifully. Make it a few hours early, then transfer it to a slow cooker on warm and let people build their own sandwiches. It is one of the easiest things you can set out for a tailgate or a casual party!

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did my peppers turn out mushy?

They most likely went too far before the tomatoes went in. Peppers and onions keep cooking the entire time the pan simmers under the lid, so they need to still have real bite at the end of the sauté step. 

If your peppers were already fully soft when you added the tomatoes, they had another 10 minutes of cooking ahead of them. Cutting the slices a little thicker also helps if this happens more than once.

Can I slice the sausage before browning it instead of after?

You can, and it will save you a step, but the results are noticeably different. Whole links brown on the outside while the juices stay sealed in, and slicing them after they rest keeps that moisture in the rounds. Slicing first exposes all that cut surface to the hot pan, and the sausage tends to come out drier and a little crumbly by the time it finishes simmering.

My sauce came out thin and watery. How do I fix it?

Uncover the skillet and let it simmer another 5 minutes or so, stirring now and then, until it thickens up. Peppers and onions release a good bit of liquid, and how much depends on how fresh they are. If you are in a hurry, pull the sausage out with a slotted spoon so it does not overcook while the sauce reduces around the vegetables.

Do I have to use both red and green bell peppers?

Not at all. Use whatever you have or whatever looks best. Green peppers bring a slightly grassy, sharper note, while red, orange, and yellow are all sweeter since they ripen longer on the plant. An all-red pan will taste a touch sweeter and an all-green pan a little more savory, so adjust the brown sugar to taste either way.