Easy Italian Sausage in the Oven
This classic baked Italian sausage and peppers recipe is made even better by roasting Italian sausage, sweet peppers and onions on a sheet pan so they're browned, caramelized, buttery and delicious. Easy prep and clean up!
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Italian sausage and peppers has been a staple in my family for as long as I can remember. A family gathering wasn’t complete unless there were spiedini, chicken cutlets, meatballs, pie, and a big crockpot of sausage and peppers simmering away.
Sweet bell peppers, onions, and potatoes were cooked down to mush with Italian sausage swimming in a pool of liquid. It wasn't bad, but it wasn’t exactly my favorite. That's why my version is different.
By roasting the peppers and onions at a high temperature, they get buttery soft and caramelized. Roasting concentrates the flavor rather than dilutes it - it's a total game changer.
Since the sausage cooks much faster than the veggies, it gets added only for the last few minutes of cooking. Then, the broiler steps in to give it a beautifully browned and crisp skin.
This low-carb, paleo-friendly meal is perfect for weeknight dinners or for serving a crowd. You can eat it alone or tuck it into a crusty Italian roll or between two slices of buttery garlic bread for the best Italian sausage and pepper sandwich of your life. Add a piece of chicken from my extra crispy chicken cutlet recipe and you're in the money!.
Why my recipe for Baked Italian Sausage works
- This one-pan recipe is made entirely in the oven so it's quick to prep and even easier to clean up!
- Simple ingredients that are budget-friendly and easy to find.
- Perfect for a low carb, or even keto-friendly meal.
- Roasting at high heat brings the most amazing texture and flavor out of the vegetables and sausage. No mush with this recipe!
Ingredients for Baked Sausage and Peppers
- Italian Sausage - OId-fashioned homemade Italian sausage is the way to go for this recipe, if you can find it! If not, any sausage will work. You can use sweet, spicy, or both, depending on your preference. Here in New Jersey I'm lucky to have several places to get really good homemade Italian sausage, Ernest and Son's and Bagliani's being my favorites.
- Bell Peppers - Sweet bell peppers make up the bulk of the vegetables in this dish. I used green and red peppers, but you can use any color you prefer. If you want to add a little spice, throw in some jalapeño peppers as well.
- Onion -A yellow or sweet onion works best for this recipe, but if a white or red onion is all you have that will work too.
- Fennel Seed - These are the seeds used to flavor Italian sausage, so I add a few extra to the roasting pan with the peppers and onions because I love their flavor. If you're not a fan or don't have any in your pantry, it's no problem to leave them out.
Helpful Equipment
- Sheet Pan - I swear by these basic, inexpensive aluminum half sheet pans. They're incredibly versatile and will last forever!
- Mandoline Slicer - You can slice the peppers and onions with a knife, but a mandoline slicer makes it faster and easier to achieve thin, uniform slices that will cook more evenly. I recommend using a cut-proof glove to avoid nicking your fingers.
How to cook Italian Sausage in Oven
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Combine peppers, onion, garlic, and fennel seeds, if using, on a large sheet pan. Season generously with salt and pepper, then drizzle with olive oil and mix to combine.
- Roast the vegetables for 20 minutes, then toss them around with a spatula. Roast for another 20 minutes or until very soft and caramelized around the edges.
- Arrange the sausage over top of the vegetables, then roast for another 8-10 minutes, or until cooked through to an internal temperature of 160℉ for pork sausage or 165℉ if using chicken sausage.
- Place the pan on the top rack of the oven and switch the broiler on to high. Keep a close eye on it and remove the pan as soon as the sausage browns. Sprinkle with parsley and serve as-is or with rolls to make sandwiches.
Tips for success
- If you’re doubling or tripling this recipe for a crowd, use separate sheet pans for each batch. Overcrowding the ingredients in one pan will cause them to steam rather than caramelize.
- Depending on how hot your oven runs, you may need to add the sausage earlier to avoid burning the vegetables before the sausage is cooked through. Check the vegetables after 30 minutes (halfway through the second half of baking). If they’re already starting to char on the edges, add the sausage at this time instead of waiting another 10 minutes.
- For extra easy cleanup, line your sheet pan with parchment paper!
Ways to Serve Baked Italian Sausage and Peppers
You can serve this dish on its own for a low-carb, keto friendly meal or along with a crusty Italian roll or garlic bread for sandwiches. This dish also goes really well with these recipes for a complete meal!
- Roasted Potatoes with Onion and Rosemary
- Italian Chickpea Fritters
- Spinach with Butter and Parmesan
- Farinata - Italian Chick Pea Flatbreads
- Escarole with Olives and Capers
How to Prep, Store and Reheat This Recipe
You can make this even easier for weeknight dinners by having the peppers and onions pre-chopped and ready. Once sliced, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
To store leftovers, just place the sausage and vegetables in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. To reheat, either warm them in the microwave, in a pan on the stove, or in an oven preheated to 300 degrees until warmed through.
FAQS About Baked Sausage and Peppers
Do not pierce or poke holes in sausage before baking so that the juices to stay inside the sausage and not escape.
Absolutely! This recipe will work with any kind of sausage you like. I love using a broccoli rabe or provolone sausage. Chicken or turkey sausage also works well, and this can even be made vegan if you use a plant based sausage.
Related Recipes
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Sausage and Peppers in the Oven
Ingredients
- 2 medium-large bell peppers any color, cored and thinly sliced
- 1-2 jalapeños thinly sliced (optional)
- 1 large yellow or sweet onion thinly sliced
- 2-3 cloves garlic very thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds optional
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 ½ lbs Italian sausage hot or sweet, cut into 4-inch pieces
- Italian flat leaf parsley leaves only, for garnish (optional)
- rolls or Italian bread for serving optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Combine peppers, onion, garlic, and fennel seeds, if using, on a large sheet pan. Season generously with salt and pepper, then drizzle with olive oil and mix to combine.
- Roast the vegetables for 20 minutes, then toss them around with a spatula. Roast for another 20 minutes or until very soft and caramelized around the edges.
- Arrange the sausage over top of the vegetables, then roast for another 8-10 minutes, or until cooked through to an internal temperature of 160℉ for pork sausage or 165℉ if using chicken sausage.
- Place the pan on the top rack of the oven and switch the broiler on to high. Keep a close eye on it and remove the pan as soon as the sausage browns. Sprinkle with parsley and serve as-is or with rolls to make sandwiches.
Notes
- If you’re doubling or tripling this recipe for a crowd, use separate sheet pans for each batch. Overcrowding the ingredients in one pan will cause them to steam rather than caramelize.
- Depending on how hot your oven runs, you may need to add the sausage earlier to avoid burning the vegetables before the sausage is cooked through. Check the vegetables after 30 minutes (halfway through the second half of baking). If they’re already starting to char on the edges, add the sausage at this time instead of waiting another 10 minutes.
- For extra easy cleanup, line your sheet pan with parchment paper!
Wow! I'm a Sicilian from the East Coast and lifelong maker and consumer of sausage and peppers in many forms. As you wrote in your post, the crockpot and large roasting pans of sausages and peppers were fixtures of every family gathering we ever had. And while they are perfectly “fine”, I too was looking for something a little bit different when I came across your recipe. Made it immediately, and I and my family thought it was the best we’ve ever had, except for possibly the grilled version on a roll that you used to be able to get at Italian street festivals in Boston, where I grew up. I’m sorry, Nana! Also, my husband has celiac and we are on a low-carb diet, so this is a perfect meal for us. Will definitely put in our rotation. Thank you, Coley!
I'm so glad you love this recipe! My family is also from the Boston area and I am very much familiar with the sandwiches you mention! Thanks for leaving such a kind review. 🙂
Delishious!
Thank you! 😀
Really easy to make between getting home and dinner time. Nothing but rave reviews from the family and easy clean up. Might be a new goto meal.
That's awesome to hear!!
This was the best sausage and peppers I've ever had. I'm also used to them being cooked in liquid, but baking is totally the way. This is a keeper!!
SO glad you loved it!
This was such a lifesaver this month! I feel like we've just been living on Christmas cookies the last few weeks, and my body was craving some veggies. This recipe is so easy and just the ticket. Don't skip the fennel seeds - they add a ton of flavor!
Thanks Jessie! It's a great back pocket recipe to keep on hand for just that!
Coley - we got two winners tonight! The Eagles take the Lombardi trophy and your Sheet Pan Sausage was a great half-time hit. I admit that after more than six decades of greasy wine based soggy sandwiches - this was a really pleasant surprise. Thanks for a great new way to make a South Philly/South Jersey staple. I'll be making this one again!
That's awesome, Bruno!! So glad you loved the recipe and FLY EAGLES FLY! We watched in Spanish (in Mexico) and it was such an incredible game.
Not sure what I did wrong but this didn't work for me. The peppers burned before they were caramelized and the sausages weren't even close to done after 10 minutes. I ended up taking the vegetables out and cooking the sausage for another ~15 minutes. Any ideas on what went wrong? Should I lower the oven temp and cook longer? Boil the sausages first?
Hi Sue,
I'm so sorry to hear this didn't work out. I have a few thoughts: First, I'm wondering if maybe your peppers and onions were on the smaller side and therefore didn't take up as much room on the sheet pan. That would cause them to cook a lot faster. You can see in the one picture of raw veggies that they are pretty piled up on there, and then they shrink up quite bit as they cook. I'm also curious if your oven is calibrated correctly. Keeping a separate thermometer in there is always a good move (most ovens are not calibrated correctly). My oven is convection, so that could possibly have an effect as well. Also make sure you're cooking everything on the middle rack.. if cooked on the bottom, that could cause the veggies to cook faster and the sausage to cook slower. Also, was your sausage straight out of the refrigerator? I usually take my proteins out at least 1/2 hour before cooking so that they go into the oven at room temperature. Cooking them from cold would definitely cause them to take longer. Boiling the sausages first would certainly help speed up the process, but that defeats the purpose of a sheet pan meal! I hope this was helpful, and again, I'm sorry this didn't work!
Added to my Pinterest board under "Keto Me, Baby!" Thanks for another great Coley recipe!!
I'm wondering how a small bulb of fennel thinly sliced and roasted with the peppers would taste rather than the fennel seed?
I think that's a brilliant idea! I actually have half a bulb of fennel in my fridge right now and I wish I had thought to throw it in. Go for it!
Guess what? I just made this on Sunday for hanging around & watching football. But I added fresh (thick-sliced) white mushrooms to the peppers & onions and they were a great add.
Hollaaaa! (I still love that this is your handle btw.) Great idea to add the mushrooms. I'll definitely try throwing them in next time. Perfect game day food.
OH EMM GEE this is the most delicious picture I have seen in a a while, also a great lower-effort way to this dish. We will definitely use this for some of the upcoming holiday gatherings.
PS: was sitting doing email the other day and mindlessly flipping through channels when I came across "“The Chef’s Kitchen.” on a cable (here in Florida, on youttoo, which I had never heard of before). It was like "Hey, I know that chef!". A Coley sighting in the wild!
Hey Rod! Thanks so much. It's totally a crowd pleaser and perfect for the upcoming holidays. So cool you saw me on the Chef's Kitchen! I know the show is in syndication in random markets all over the country, and since they change from time to time, I never know exactly where and when I'll show up on tv. So glad you caught it!