Crockpot Sausage and Peppers

Name: Crock Pot Sausage and Peppers
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 240 min
Total time: 255 min
Ingredients: 1 pound Italian Sausage links (5 links); 3 bell peppers (any color, seeded and cut into strips); 1 medium red or white onion (cut into strips); 1 garlic clove (minced); 1 teaspoon dried oregano; 1 teaspoon basil; ¼ teaspoon salt; ¼ teaspoon black pepper; 1 bay leaf; 3 cups marinara sauce (1 (24-ounce) jar or 3 cups homemade); Fresh minced parsley or basil for garnish; For serving: Cooked pasta or hoagie rolls for serving, fresh grated Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese

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Crock Pot Sausage and Peppers is an easy weeknight meal! Italian sausage cooks for a few hours in the slow cooker with bell peppers, onions, marinara and spices and they come out tender, juicy and full of flavor every time.

For serving, you can stuff the sausage and peppers in hoagie rolls or enjoy with pasta. We absolutely love Italian sausage cooked any way around here, especially in Tortellini Soup and Spicy Italian Sausage Dip.

A close up overhead image of italian sausage in a hoagie roll with onions and peppers.

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Table of Contents

Why We Love this Recipe
Ingredients Needed for Slow Cooker Sausage and Peppers
How to Make Sausage and Peppers
Jarred Sauce Substitute
FAQs
Serving Suggestions
Storage and Reheating
Italian Sausage Recipes
Crock Pot Sausage and Peppers Recipe

Why We Love this Recipe

Cooking Italian sausage in the slow cooker is super easy. The skins don’t burst and the meat just melts in your mouth. The sausages are incredibly tender and juicy and you still get a slight pop when you bite into them.

Crockpot Sausage and Peppers is one of my family’s favorite meals, and because it’s so simple, it’s one of mine, too!

Ingredients Needed for Slow Cooker Sausage and Peppers

Italian Sausage Links – these usually come in a package of 5 links or you can find them in the butcher’s case and buy as many as you need.
Bell Peppers – I like to use 3 different colors for variety but you can use any color you like.
Onion – a whole onion (any color), cut into strips.
Seasonings – Dried oregano, basil, salt, pepper and a bay leaf.
Marinara Sauce – A large jar of sauce or a batch of Homemade Marinara Sauce.
Fresh Parsley or Basil – just for garnish.
For Serving – Your choice of cooked pasta or hoagie rolls and fresh grated Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese for topping.

Italian sausage, peppers and onions in marinara sauce in the slow cooker with a wooden spoon.

How to Make Sausage and Peppers

Brown. Browning the sausages adds color, flavor and texture to the finished dish so I do recommend it. It helps if you’ve got a slow cooker that has a browning function like this one. You can brown your onions at the same time; just make sure that the sausage is touching the bottom of the pan in order to brown, nestling the sliced onions around them.
Cook. Add sausage, onions, peppers, marinara and spices to the slow cooker and stir gently to combine, then cover and set your slow cooker to low for 4-5 hours or high for 2-3 hours.
Serve immediately, or switch to the warm setting for up to 2 hours.

Jarred Sauce Substitute

If you don’t want to use a premade sauce in a jar, you can use a large can of crushed tomatoes or tomato, Italian seasoning and minced garlic. Still great flavor, without the preservative or additives some jarred sauces have.

A collage of images showing the process of making sausage and pepper in the slow cooker.

FAQs

Can you put raw sausages in the slow cooker?

The key step to cooking sausages in your crock pot is browning the sausage first. Browning adds color to make them look prettier, seals in the juices to add texture and flavor and helps jumpstart the cooking process, ensuring that your sausages are cooked through.

While browning is a step that I highly recommend, you can skip it if you simply don’t have the time.

Can you make sausage and peppers on the stovetop?

In the slow cooker, this recipe can take anywhere from 3-5 hours to cook, plus about 15 minutes of prep. If you don’t have that kind of time or you don’t own a slow cooker, you can cook it on the stovetop in about an hour.

Brown the sausage and sliced onions in a little olive oil in a large, heavy bottomed soup pot or dutch oven for about 6 minutes oven medium-high heat. Pour in the marinara and add sliced peppers and seasonings. Stir it all together and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for at least 45 minutes to an hour.

What temperature should Italian sausage be cooked to?

Italian Sausage is fully cooked when it reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.

Will onions and peppers soften in slow cooker?

Sometimes onions and peppers don’t completely soften in the slow cooker, but when they are simmered in the crockpot with the marinara sauce, they do! They come out nice and soft with a slight texture that makes them a perfect topping.

Can you put frozen sausages in a crockpot?

While you technically can put frozen meat in your slow cooker, I don’t really recommend it. There is some time that the sausage will be at an unsafe temperature as it slowly cooks which could lead to harmful bacteria. So you do so at your own risk.

Serving Suggestions

There are a few ways we serve this meal but our favorite is nestled in rolls for hearty sandwiches and topped with fresh Mozzarella or Parmesan. I usually serve a copycat Olive Garden Salad on the side and dinner is done. Here are some other ways we’ve served crockpot sausage and peppers:

With pasta, like spaghetti or penne. Pour on lots of that luscious sauce and top with grated cheese and fresh basil or parsley.
With garlic bread. Whip up some garlic bread, and make a sandwich out of it like we did with our Shredded Chicken Parmesan Sandwich.
Baked in hoagie rolls. This is the way we usually serve this meal. Brush the insides of the rolls with butter and bake, open-faced, for a few minutes or until the bread is golden and a little crispy. Place sausages inside, top with sauce and cheese, then broil again until the cheese melts. Kind of like a meatball sub.

Storage and Reheating

Storage: Place leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.

Freezing: Fully cooked sausages and sauce can be frozen in a resealable freezer bag or airtight container for up to 6 months. Thaw completely in the refrigerator before reheating.

Reheating: Reheat in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove.

A stack of hoagie rolls with italian sausage adn peppers with a slow cooker in the background.

Mild or hot? You can use sweet Italian sausages or spicy ones.
As long as you’ve got about 3 cups, or 24 ounces, you can use any kind of tomato based sauce you like. For a smoother sauce, try my Homemade Spaghetti Sauce.
This recipe calls for sausage links. It will not work with ground Italian sausage.

Italian Sausage Recipes

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