Cast Iron Sausage and Peppers

Sausage and Peppers is an Italian dish that has become more or less ubiquitous in modern American cooking.  Everyone has their own version and just about every one of those versions is delicious in its own regard. The recipe you are reading today has been made many hundreds of times and has fed many thousands of people.  It is simple, reasonably fast, and is guaranteed to make your guests happy.

The Ingredients

• 1½ lb mild Italian sausage links
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 bunch fresh basil, chopped
• 1 bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped
• 6 multi-colored bell peppers, chopped
• 1 14½ oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 29 oz can tomato sauce
• Kosher salt
• Fresh ground black pepper
• ½ tsp granulated garlic
• Red pepper flakes to taste
• ½ tsp Italian seasoning
• 3 tbsp olive oil

The Steps

1. First, preheat your Stargazer cast iron skillet over low heat for 5 minutes. After the skillet is sufficiently preheated, add in the oil – then, turn it up to medium heat.

2. Carefully place the sausages in the pan.  Allow them to cook on all sides until they become dark and golden-brown in color and cooked to 165F internally.  This should take about 10 minutes.  You can use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature. Remove from the skillet and allow to rest.  Do not cut them right away – the juice will escape. Never allow the juice to escape. The juice is in a sausagey juice prison - where it belongs.

3. Next, pour your bell peppers into the skillet and cook for 2 minutes.  The reason you add the peppers before the rest of the ingredients is because it takes longer for peppers to soften than it does for the other ingredients.  After the peppers are softened, add in the onion, garlic, and seasonings. Cook for 10 minutes.

4. Once the peppers, onions, and garlic are softened – add in your tomato sauce and diced tomatoes.  Stir the contents of the skillet and allow to simmer for 10 minutes. During this time, the peppers will continue to cook – but, more importantly, the tomatoes will start to develop flavor along with the other ingredients.  This is a good opportunity to cut up the sausages.

5. The sausages should be mostly cooled at this point.  Cut each link into ½” thick rounds. You can go bigger or smaller than this – or even cut the sausage down the middle and cut it up very small.  It’s your sausage, pal – don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. 

6. The final step – add in the cut sausages and stir.  This is now the time to add in the fresh basil and parsley (adding them at the end helps to maintain their flavor and texture).  Remove the skillet from the heat and go to town. You can serve this over pasta, on a roll, or serve it solo for an almost carbless meal.