Easy Sausage Casserole

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Sausage casserole - delicious traditional sausages in a rich, robust tomato gravy, served up from a cheerful blue casserole dish.

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A delicious but thrifty stove top sausage casserole recipe to delight the whole family. Rich, warming and satisfying.

Servings:

Author: Helen Best-Shaw

Prep Time5

Cook Time55

Ingredients

1 tbsp oil or dripping - to fry
6–8 good quality pork sausages
1 medium/large onion
2 cloves garlic
1 stick celery
1 bell pepper
60 g bacon - cut into small pieces (or pancetta or lardons
150 ml stock - use half a chicken stock cube
1 can tomatoes - 400g
2 tbsp tomato paste/puree
½ tsp mixed herbs or seasoning blend
½ tsp black pepper
½ tsp salt
fresh parsley - to garnish

Instructions

Put a little oil or dripping in a shallow casserole or frying pan (choose one that has a lid).
1 tbsp oil or dripping
Prick the sausage skins. Then fry the sausages over a medium heat, turning from time to time until they are starting to brown. This can take around 5 minutes.
When cooked, remove the sausages from the pan and set to one side.
6–8 good quality pork sausages
While the sausages are cooking, prepare the other ingredients, peeling and chopping the vegetables, cutting the bacon and making up the stock.
1 medium/large onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1 stick celery, 1 bell pepper, 60 g bacon, 150 ml stock
Add the prepared onion, peppers, celery and the bacon to the fat from the sausages. You can add a little more fat and heat it first if necessary, but remember that the fat on the bacon will melt down too.
Fry over a medium heat until the vegetables have softened and are starting to brown at the edges. Then add the garlic, herbs and seasoning and cook for a further minute.
Add the canned tomatoes (use just a little water torinse the can out into the pan). Add the tomato puree and stock.
1 can tomatoes, 2 tbsp tomato paste/puree
Add the sausages. Bring to a gentle simmer. Replace the lid and allow to cook for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a little water to loosen if needed.
Towards the end of cooking, check that the casserole has thickened. If it seems too liquid leave, the lid ajar for the last 5 minutes of cooking.
Check the seasoning and adjust if necessary. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve immediately.
fresh parsley

Notes

Variations

You can make this casserole go much further by adding extra vegetables and a can or two of rinsed white beans towards the end of cooking.

Swap the regular sausages for chipolatas or cocktail sausages (excellent for a buffet so people can eat one handed)

Storage

Fridge – Once cool, keep in the fridge in a airtight box for up to 4 days. Reheat in a pan on the stove top or in the microwave until piping hot.

I prefer not to reheat in plastic tubs, so I transfer my casserole to a microwave safe Pyrex style jug with a handle for ease of handling.

Freezer – Once cool, transfer to stackable airtight boxes and freeze to keep for up to three months. I use plastic takeaway trays. They are the perfect size for a stew/casserole for 2, are dishwasher friendly and stack so well in the freezer.

Defrost your easy sausage casserole overnight in the fridge or on the kitchen counter for a couple of hours. Do not reheat more than once.

Hints and tips

Don’t forget to prick the sausages so that they won’t explode!

Kitchen tongs are your friend when turning sausages in the pan. They allow you to keep your distance from the sizzling fat.

• Please note that the nutrition information provided below is approximate and meant as a guideline only.

• Unless stated otherwise cup conversions have been made with an online tool. For accuracy please check with your favoured conversion tool. We recommend buying inexpensive digital kitchen scales.