Italian Sausage and Peppers Skillet

Our Italian Sausage and Peppers Skillet Recipe is a one-pot meal featuring colorful bell peppers, sweet onions, and garlic perfectly cooked alongside flavorful Italian sausage. It’s quick, easy, and since it’s cooked in one pan, clean-up is a breeze!

Top down image of italian sausage and peppers in a cast iron skillet.

Sometimes there are nights when even we don’t feel like cooking. However, that’s not an excuse to run out and pickup fast food.

On nights like that, we try to make something quick using as little dishes as possible while still cooking with whole ingredients.

Many times that includes chicken, like our Greek chicken pasta salad or Chicken Pot Pie. Other times, it’s something totally different like this Italian sausage and peppers skillet meal.

This recipe uses whole Italian sausage links along with fresh garlic, onions, and colorful peppers. We add a can of diced tomatoes for flavor, moisture, and color.

Our rosemary Parmesan bread or Italian Bread goes great with these sausage onions and peppers. It only takes about 30 minutes to cook and best of all, only uses one pan.

The hardest part is prepping the vegetables.

How to Make Italian Sausage and Peppers

(These instructions include step-by-step photos but don’t include the exact amounts of each ingredient. For that information, you’ll want to scroll to the recipe card further down the page.)

  1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat.
  2. Add the oil and sausage links and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side. Turn them often so all sides get evenly browned.
  3. Once the casings are well browned, remove the sausage from the pan leaving any drippings behind.
  4. Add the sliced bell peppers and onions and cook for 3-5 minutes. When they start to soften, toss in the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.
Five italian sausage links cooking in a skillet.
The sausage has been removed and onions and peppers added.
  1. Pour in the diced tomatoes, Italian seasonings, salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
  2. Return the sausage links to the skillet, and reduce the heat to low. Let the ingredients simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the sausage is completely cooked through.
  3. Enjoy!
Tomatoes and garlic added to the cooking veggies.
The sausage links added back to the pan to finish cooking.

How to Store Italian Sausage and Peppers

Refrigerator: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

Reheating: For the best flavor and texture, reheat leftovers on the stove top over low-medium or medium heat. Another option is to reheat them in a baking pan in the oven at 350°F until warmed through.

Frequently Asked Questions

What goes with Italian sausage and peppers?

This dish tastes great as-is, but if you’d like to serve them differently here are some suggestions:

  • Over a bed of rice: Whether you serve it with stove top white rice or brown rice this skillet meal tastes great either way.
  • Pasta: We love this pepper and sausage combo with penne, but any short noodle works. In fact, we have a sausage and peppers pasta recipe that uses similar ingredients.
  • Buns: Serve it up in a hoagie roll or hot dog bun.

What other flavors can I add?

The bell peppers, onion, and garlic impart a lot of flavor into this dish. We also like to add Italian seasoning for extra flavor.

If you want something different, there are some other options.

Try a sprinkle of dried oregano, basil, or red pepper flakes. Or, use hot Italian sausage links instead of sweet Italian sausage.

Pour some red wine into the pan when you add the tomatoes. Just be sure to cook it down so the alcohol evaporates.

Beef or chicken broth also adds a lot of flavor, but it needs to be cooked down as well.

Try a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese or romano as a garnish.

A close-up of the peppers and sausage in the pan.

Can I use another type of sausage?

Yes, absolutely! If you’d prefer not to use Italian sausage, try chicken sausage, turkey sausage, kielbasa, bratwurst, beef sausage, or pork sausage instead.

You could even cut the sausage into circles or use ground sausage if you don’t want to serve whole sausage links.

What can I use in place of diced tomatoes?

If you don’t have diced tomatoes, use crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, or a little tomato sauce.

You’ll want to add tomato paste and tomato sauce “to taste,” and not in the same amounts listed in recipe. Start with a tablespoon or two and add more if desired.

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Top down image of italian sausages and bell peppers in a cast iron pan.

Italian Sausage and Peppers Skillet

4.7 from 23 votes
Print Pin
Author: Kimberly
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 5 Servings

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil
  • 5 Italian sausage links, any variety
  • 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
  • 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium white onion, thinly sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
  • 15 ounces diced tomatoes, undrained (1 can)
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions
 

  • Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. After the skillet gets hot, add the cooking oil and sausage links.
    2 tablespoons cooking oil
    5 Italian sausage links
  • Cook the sausage for 5-6 minutes on each side until the casings are nicely browned. Remove the sausages to a waiting plate, and leave the drippings in the pan.
  • Add the bell peppers and onion to the same pan used to cook the sausage. Cook over low heat until they begin to soften (about 3-5 minutes), then add the garlic.
    1 green bell pepper
    1 yellow bell pepper
    1 red bell pepper
    1 medium white onion
    3 garlic cloves
  • Cook an additional 30 seconds, then add the tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
    15 ounces diced tomatoes
    1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
    Salt and pepper
  • Add the sausage links back to the pan. Simmer over low heat for 10-15 minutes to ensure the sausage is thoroughly cooked.
  • Serve hot in buns or slice the sausage into pieces and serve over pasta or rice.
  • Scroll up and see the post for answers to frequently asked questions and storage information.

Suggested Equipment

Notes

*The calories listed are an approximation based on the ingredients in the recipe card and a serving size of 1 sausage plus peppers and onions. Actual calories will vary.
 
*For more information, tips, and answers to frequently asked questions, please refer to the post.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sausage and peppersCalories: 483kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 18gFat: 41gSaturated Fat: 13gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 20gTrans Fat: 0.02gCholesterol: 85mgSodium: 831mgPotassium: 638mgFiber: 3gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 998IUVitamin C: 106mgCalcium: 77mgIron: 3mg
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Recipe Rating




5 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Super good!! My husband doesn’t eat pork so we substitute vegan Italian Sausage (Beyond Meat Dinner Sausage Links) and it is VERY good! Tonight is my second time making it and we’re excited!

  2. This recipe was amazing !!! 5 star in my book and I am a “ foodie” did this recipe last minute, looked it up and made it ! We loved it !!! Will definitely make it again and again !

    1. Good Morning Beth, glad to hear you enjoyed the sausage and peppers skillet. Thank you for coming back to comment on the recipe. Have a lovely day 🙂