Italian sausage is incredibly flavorful, and it goes with just about anything. That’s why learning how to cook Italian sausage in a variety of ways is a total mealtime game-changer!.
I like to bake Italian sausage and serve it with roasted vegetables for a quick and easy dinner during the week. I also like to add sliced Italian sausage to my favorite pasta dishes.
I believe that the key to stress-free cooking is being able to use different cooking methods to make cheap and useful ingredients like Italian sausage.
You can quickly and easily make a tasty meal with Italian sausage, whether you like to bake it in the oven, cook it on the stove, on the grill, or in the air fryer.
Do you want to learn more how to cook? Read my post on how to cook frozen meatballs and this one on how to cook frozen brussel sprouts.
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You can also learn how to make Air Fryer Ham and How To Cook Canned Corn.
Friends, cooking sausage is one of those easy kitchen shortcuts you’ll come back to again and again! Cause who doesn’t love #easyrecipes ?!.
Italian sausage is a pantry staple for many of us. With its signature fennel and garlic flavors, Italian sausage can add delicious depth and savoriness to pastas, pizzas, sandwiches, soups, and more. While homemade sausage certainly has its merits, store-bought Italian sausage offers convenience without much compromise on flavor. However, to get the best results from store-bought sausage, proper cooking technique is key.
In this comprehensive guide we will walk through the different methods for cooking store-bought Italian sausage to juicy, flavorful perfection. Whether pan-frying baking, or grilling, we’ve got you covered with tips, tricks, and recipes to take your sausage game to the next level. Let’s get cooking!
Choosing the Right Sausage
With so many options at the grocery store selecting the right Italian sausage is the first step. Here are the main types to look for
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Raw sausage – These sausages need to be fully cooked before eating. Raw sausage offers versatility to cook as you like
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Cooked sausage – Fully cooked and ready to heat and eat. Convenient but less customizable.
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Sweet Italian sausage – Flavored with fennel seed and herbs like parsley and basil. Milder taste.
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Hot Italian sausage – Spiced up with red pepper flakes or chili powder. Bold, fiery flavor.
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Chicken, turkey, or vegetarian sausage – For alternative protein options.
For the techniques below, raw pork sausage tends to work best, but cooked sausage and alternative protein sausages can also be delicious.
Pan-Frying
One of the quickest and most popular cooking methods for Italian sausage is to pan-fry it in a skillet. Here’s how to do it right:
Prep – Remove sausage from casing if desired. Pat dry with paper towels.
Choose a skillet – Cast iron or stainless steel work best. Avoid non-stick pans.
Get the pan hot – Heat the pan over medium-high heat until very hot.
Add oil – Add just enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Vegetable, olive, avocado oil all work well.
Brown the sausages – Place the sausages in the pan. Let them sear undisturbed for 2-3 minutes before flipping.
Flip and repeat – Continue cooking and flipping the sausages until browned all over, about 10-12 minutes total.
Check for doneness – Use a meat thermometer to confirm the internal temperature reaches 160°F.
Pan-frying locks in the juices and gives the sausage a delicious sear. Feel free to add aromatics like garlic and herbs or deglaze the pan with wine or broth to make an easy sausage gravy.
Baking Sausages
Baking Italian sausage in the oven is mess-free and hands-off. Here are some tips:
Prep the pan – Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil for easy cleanup.
Brush with oil – Lightly coat sausages with olive oil or cooking spray.
Use a rack – Elevate sausages on a wire rack for air circulation.
Cook low and slow – Bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes until cooked through.
Finish with high heat – For crispy skin, broil sausages for 2-3 minutes at the end.
Baking gives you juicy interior and nicely browned exterior. Pair baked sausages with roasted veggies or use in pastas and pizzas.
Grilling Juicy Sausages
Grilling is a fantastic way to impart smoky flavor into Italian sausage. Follow these tips for grilling success:
Create a hot zone – Sear sausages over direct high heat. Move to indirect heat to finish cooking.
Get grill grates clean – Scrape the grill grates well so sausages don’t stick.
Use a grilling basket – Place sausages in a grilling basket or perforated grill pan to contain juices.
Go low and slow – Grill over medium-low, turning occasionally, for 20-25 minutes until 160°F.
Add smoke – Try adding wood chips to the grill for extra smoky flavor.
The char from grilling gives great texture and smoky notes to sausages. Grilled sausage pairs nicely with summery sides like potato salad, pasta salad or grilled veggies.
Slow Cooker Sausage
The slow cooker is great for infusing sausage with flavor. Here are some tips:
Prep the sausage – Brown sausages in a skillet first for extra flavor (optional).
Liquids are key – Add broth, beer, wine, etc to keep things moist.
Get the temp right – Cook on low for 4-6 hours or high for 2-3 hours.
Let sauce reduce – After cooking, remove sausages and reduce liquid to make a sauce.
Add veggies – Try cooking sausage with peppers, onions, potatoes, etc.
Slow cooking makes sausages super tender and great for soups, chilis, pasta sauce, sandwiches and more.
Helpful Tips and Tricks
- Let raw sausage come to room temperature before cooking for even cooking.
- Use a meat thermometer to guarantee doneness of 165°F.
- Avoid poking sausages with a fork as this causes juices to escape.
- Add spices, herbs, garlic, etc to ramp up flavors.
- Cook cut up sausage in pasta sauce, soup, chili, etc to add flavor.
- Leftover cooked sausage keeps for 3-4 days refrigerated and 2-3 months frozen.
With these techniques, you can cook store-bought Italian sausage to perfection. Browning in a skillet, roasting in the oven, grilling for char and smoke, or braising in a slow cooker or sauce – the options are endless. Now go forth and cook up some delicious sausage!
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- Warm the oven up to 176 degrees C/350 degrees F.
- Set up a baking sheet with foil, a cast iron skillet, or a baking dish that can go in the oven. Add the Italian sausages to any of these.
- Bake the sausage links for 15 to 20 minutes, turning them over every so often so they brown evenly.
- Once the Italian sausages have reached 160 degrees F (71 degrees C) on an instant read thermometer, take them out of the oven.
Place Italian sausages in a large skillet and add about an inch of water. Cook on the stove. Cover, bring to a simmer, and cook for 7-9 minutes. Then remove the cover and continue to cook Italian sausages for another 5-6 minutes.
Go to the How to Cook Italian Sausage on Stove post for complete instructions, tips, and more.
Note: Always check for doneness with a meat thermometer. The sausages are fully cooked when the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F / 71 degrees C.
Prefer to cook sausages in the air fryer? It’s as easy as preheating to 360 degrees F / 182 degrees C, placing them in the air fryer basket, and air frying for 10-15 minutes.
Check out my Italian Sausages in Air Fryer post for more information and full instructions.
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C) and lightly oil the grates.
- Close the lid and place the raw sausages directly on the grates. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, turning them over once in a while to make sure they brown evenly.
- After cooking Italian sausages until they reach 160 degrees F (71 degrees C), take them off the grill.
- I think you should buy fresh, uncooked Italian sausage for this recipe.
- If you use sausage that has already been cooked, the cooking time will probably be shorter.
- It’s best to let frozen Italian sausage thaw overnight in the fridge before cooking it.
- When cooking Italian sausage on the stove, put the sausages and water in the pan at the same time.
- If you want, you can brush or spray some olive oil on baked Italian sausages.
- Use a meat thermometer to make sure that the Italian sausage links are cooked all the way through, at least 160 degrees F (71 degrees C).
- Swap the Sausage—When you buy Italian sausage, have fun trying different things. Are you used to sweet Italian sausage? Get some hot Italian sausage instead. Smoked sausage or chicken sausages can be used instead of pork sausage.
- Make Sausage with Peppers and Onions: To serve this classic dish, just cook some bell peppers and onions and put them on a plate with cooked Italian sausage.
- Use Italian sausage on a hot dog bun or hoagie roll as a sandwich. Add mustard and thin strips of bell pepper, or marinara sauce and provolone cheese.
- Slice Italian sausage and add it to your favorite pasta dishes. You can also use it as a topping on pizza.
- Make Ahead: You can cook this up to two days ahead of time if you want to use the sausage in another recipe.
- Store—For up to four days, sausages that are left over can be kept in an airtight container. Warm it up again in the microwave or a skillet with a little water.
- Freeze—To freeze Italian sausage, either cooked or uncooked, wrap it tightly or put it in a freezer-safe container that won’t let air in. Can be frozen for up to 3 months.
It’s easy to cook Italian sausages in the oven. Just heat the oven to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C), put the sausages on a baking sheet, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.
Once the grill is hot (350 degrees F / 176 degrees C), lightly oil the grates. Place the Italian sausages on the grates, cover, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, turning them every so often to make sure they cook and brown evenly.
I do not recommend piercing the skin. When you poke holes in the skin, the meat’s juices can escape. This makes the sausage drier, and it may take longer to cook.
Italian sausage bake for 20 minutes in the oven. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to cook Italian sausages on a grill over medium heat or in a pan on the stove. Italian sausage in air fryer cook for 10-15 minutes.
Best Equipment To Use
Thank you for reading my How to Cook Italian Sausages in the Oven recipe post. Also, please come back as I keep cutting up and coming up with cheap Air Fryer recipes, Instant Pot recipes, Southern recipes, and more. Thanks for supporting Recipes from a Pantry, food blog.
How To Cook Johnsonville Italian Sausages
FAQ
How do you cook pre packaged sausage?
Is it better to cook sausages in the oven or pan?
Can you cook Italian sausage on the stove?
To cook Italian sausage on the stove, you need a frying pan or skillet that doesn’t heat up too fast. You should have brought out your Italian sausage pack from the freezer earlier so that each sausage isn’t frozen in the middle when cooked. You can add a little oil to the pan so that you can sear each sausage first.
What is the purpose of using fennel in Italian sausage?
The fennel in the sausage is just for flavor. But Fennel is widely used to combat gastrointestinal problems, helps digestion, fights flatulence and diarrhea, can help fight anxiety, stress and insomnia, helps release excess fluid in the body, can reduce menstrual pain, prevents bad breath and heartburn, in addition to other benefits.
How do you make Italian sausage?
Your immersion in the fine art of making and cooking great Italian sausage begins now. Italian sausage is made up of raw ground pork with some seasoning added to the mix. The ground pork is then stuffed into “skins” until each skin is full of the mixture.
How long does Italian sausage take to cook?
Add 1/2-cup of water to the skillet, cover the pan, and let simmer for about four to six minutes. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Italian sausage is fully cooked when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Serve Italian sausage on a plate with hot peppers, onions, roasted vegetables, and rice.