Slow Cooker Sausage with Peppers & Onions

Italian Sausage, peppers, and onions happens to be my favorite pizza topping combination, but it also happens to be delicious served by itself as a hearty Italian dinner. And it couldn’t be easier to make in the slow cooker. Read on to learn why this amazingly simple slow cooker recipe is one of our test kitchen’s most popular.

We put together a simple tomato sauce by combining tomato puree, garlic, sugar, oregano, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper, but you could certainly use whichever store-bought sauce you already have in the pantry.

Add the tomato sauce, 2 pounds of Italian sausage (sweet or hot, whichever you prefer ), bell peppers, and onions to the slow cooker crock. Stir everything together until the ingredients are coated with the tomato sauce, then cover the slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours or LOW for 7 to 8 hours.

Stir in fresh basil then serve by itself (with some Italian bread or your favorite baguette to soak up all that sauce), covered in grated parmesan served over pasta, or on sub rolls for a hand-held option. Who doesn’t love an Italian sausage hoagie?

Whether you need to feed friends on a summer afternoon, game day tailgate party, or just want to put an Italian dinner on the table for the family, slow cooker Italian sausage, peppers, and onions is a no-fail recipe you’ll make year round.

Slow Cooker Sausage, Peppers & Onions

Author: Hamilton Beach Test Kitchen

Ingredients

1 can (28 ounces) tomato puree
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
2 pounds Italian sausage, hot or mild
2 medium green bell peppers, halved, seeded and sliced
1 medium yellow bell peppers, halved, seeded and sliced
1 large sweet onion, sliced
¼ cup sliced basil leaves
Sub rolls or cooked pasta

Instructions

In a large bowl, stir together tomato puree, garlic, sugar, oregano, salt, black pepper and crushed red pepper.
Add tomato puree mixture, sausage, peppers and onion to slow cooker crock. Stir until mixture is coated with sauce.
Cover slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours or LOW for 7 to 8 hours.
Stir in basil before serving. Serve on sub rolls or over cooked pasta.

Notes

Serves 8-10

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Hamilton Beach® Set & Forget® Programmable Slow Cooker

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Comments

Can you use Adele chicken sausage?

Hi Laura. We think chicken sausage would also work well. Let us know how it turns out for you.

I love to grill sausages and place peppers and onions in pan on grill.
My question is could I omit the tomato puree and spices. And just slow cook the sausages and peppers and onions only? Maybe add some beer ?

Can you use frozen peppers and onions?

you could but it would turn to mush

Do we take the sausage out of its casing?

Third time making this recipe and I use chicken sausage. The sauce is perfect, the chicken sausage is wonderful in the crock pot and it’s a recipe I keep in rotation now!

Made for the first time today, and it turned out great. However, I used Jalapeno and Cheese Sausage. It was deeelish.

This was soooooo good. Thank you for the recipe

Barbara, yur not making Brats… No beer!
In your peppers & onion pan on the grill stir in a can of Fire Roasted chopped tomatoes. As a grilled sausage is close to done set it in pepper & onion pan, u want juices to mingle in sauce. Makes a fabulous topping to scoop over sausage link in a sub roll.

I am amazed at how many people do not at least for the first time refuse to follow the recipe.

i made it with pork chops cut in squares delicous

Slow Cooker Sausage with Peppers & Onions