One of my favorite ways to make this classic weeknight dinner taste even better is to skip the store-bought sausage and make my own. That's exactly what I did with this sausage and peppers skillet, and I don't think I'll ever go back! Bell peppers, onions, and diced tomatoes round out the meal, and you can make the entire dinner in just 30 minutes!
I make this sausage and peppers skillet with plain ground pork instead of pre-seasoned ground sausage or sausage links. If you have ground pork on hand, you can season it yourself and have all the flavor of sausage and peppers without making a special trip to the grocery store just for a package of Italian sausage.
- I love that I can control the flavor of the sausage, rather than being stuck with whatever the store has to offer that week.
- Adding canned tomatoes creates a light, sauce-like consistency that pulls everything together.
- A splash of balsamic vinegar adds an unexpected depth of flavor.
Making the sausage from scratch and cooking everything on the stovetop makes this recipe slightly more hands-on than my sheet pan chicken sausage and veggies, but it's still a super quick, one-pan meal.
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Key Ingredient Notes
- Ground pork - Use plain ground pork without any added salt or seasonings. You'll spice this up yourself with fennel seeds, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and oregano.
- Bell peppers - Any color will do. Just make sure they're sliced into evenly sized strips.
- Onions - Either white or yellow onion is fine. Try to slice the onion to the same thickness as the bell peppers so they cook at the same rate.
- Canned tomatoes - I used plain diced tomatoes, but Italian-seasoned or fire-roasted tomatoes would also work.
- Balsamic vinegar - This adds surprisingly deep flavor to the dish. It might seem like an insignificant ingredient, but I don't recommend skipping it!
If you love the flavor combination of sausage and peppers, you'll want to try my Italian Sausage Stuffed Peppers recipe, as well! It uses the same main ingredients as this recipe, but transforms them into a completely different meal.
Step-by-Step Instructions with Photos
- Add the ground pork to a large skillet over medium heat, breaking it up as it cooks.
- About halfway through cooking, add the seasonings. Adding them partway through cooking helps the spices bloom and gives the sausage more flavor.
- Once the pork is cooked through, remove it from the pan and set it aside on a clean plate.
- Add the sliced peppers and onions to the same skillet and cook over medium heat for about 7-10 minutes, until they're soft and tender.
- Season the veggies with a little more salt, oregano, and garlic powder to build in even more flavor.
- Reduce the heat to low, then stir in the balsamic vinegar, along with the diced tomatoes and all of their juices.
- Add the cooked sausage back to the skillet and give everything a good stir, then remove the skillet from the heat.
- Serve the sausage and peppers mixture however you'd like!
- I like to spoon it over rice or quinoa for a more filling meal.
This skillet recipe uses homemade sausage seasoning and ground pork, but my air fryer Italian sausage and peppers recipe is a great option when you want to use traditional sausage links instead.
Helpful Tips
- Choose a large skillet. I first tested this recipe in my tried-and-true cast iron braiser, but since the entire recipe is cooked on the stovetop, you have some flexibility with the type of pan you use. Just make sure it's large enough to hold everything comfortably. I recommend a pan that holds at least three quarts.
- Use plain ground pork. Look for plain ground pork since you'll be adding the seasonings yourself. If you prefer pre-seasoned ground pork or sausage, simply skip the added sausage seasonings called for in the recipe.
- I don't recommend substituting the ground pork with ground turkey or chicken here. Italian sausage is typically made with a fattier cut of meat, and that fat is what gives the dish its rich, savory flavor. Leaner poultry just won't give you the same result.
- You can cover your skillet while the vegetables cook to help them soften up faster. Alternatively, if you have more time and prefer a deeper caramelization, you can cook the vegetables for longer, stirring occasionally until they're more deeply browned.
- Don't skip the fennel. It's the key ingredient for giving the ground pork that classic Italian sausage flavor.
Looking for another way to use up those peppers and onions? My sheet pan chicken, peppers, and onions recipe is another easy, one-pan option that uses plenty of both!
Serving Ideas
- Serve it over my garlic basmati rice recipe for an easy, filling meal.
- Spoon everything over orzo for a pasta dinner.
- Top the sausage, peppers, and onions mixture over an oven-baked potato or sweet potato.
- For a sandwich-style option, pile everything into a crusty roll, top it with slices of provolone cheese, and pop the sandwiches open-face under a broiler to melt.
FAQs
No, I don't think you should make this substitution. Canned tomatoes are guaranteed to come with a measurable amount of tomato juice. This recipe relies upon the tomato juice to pull everything together. You're not guaranteed to get the same result using fresh tomatoes.
More Skillet Recipes
If you tried this sausage and peppers skillet recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and tell me how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Ground Pork Sausage and Peppers Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 teaspoon fennel seed
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil optional
- 4 large bell peppers sliced into thin strips
- 1 large white or yellow onion sliced into thin strips
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 14.5 ounce canned diced tomatoes with juices
Instructions
- Cook the ground pork. Add the ground pork to a large skillet over medium heat and cook for about 7-10 minutes, breaking it up into crumbles as it browns. About halfway through cooking the pork, add the sausage seasonings (fennel, garlic powder, smoked paprika, oregano, salt, and pepper). The pork should only take about 10 minutes to cook through, but continue cooking it if needed, until no pink remains. Once the pork is fully cooked, remove it to a clean plate and set it aside.
- Cook the peppers and onions. If needed, add up to two tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet before adding the peppers and onions. Alternatively, if the pork left behind a lot of excess oil, drain some off first, then cook the peppers and onions in the leftover pork fat. Use your best judgment here. Cook the peppers and onions over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and tender.
- Season the vegetables. Sprinkle the peppers and onions with additional ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, ½ teaspoon of dried oregano, and ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt.
- Add the balsamic vinegar and tomatoes. Reduce the heat to low and stir the balsamic vinegar and undrained canned tomatoes into the vegetables.
- Add the ground pork sausage. Return the cooked pork sausage to the skillet. Stir to combine, then remove from the heat.
- Serve and enjoy! Serve the sausage and peppers over rice or quinoa, or enjoy it on its own!
Nutrition
Notes
- I tested this recipe in my cast iron braiser, but since the entire recipe is cooked on the stovetop, you have some flexibility in the pan you use. Just make sure it's large enough to hold everything comfortably. I recommend a pan that holds at least three quarts.
- Use plain ground pork since you'll be adding the seasonings yourself. If you prefer pre-seasoned ground pork or sausage, simply skip the added sausage seasonings called for in the recipe.
- Ground pork produces plenty of fat as it cooks, so you don't need to add oil to the skillet during this step.
- You can cover your skillet while the vegetables cook to help them soften up faster. Alternatively, if you have more time and prefer a deeper caramelization, you can cook the vegetables for longer, stirring occasionally until they're more deeply browned.
- The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for professional medical advice.
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