The Italian sausage is known to be one of those foreign dishes that combine pantry staples with fresh ingredients to make a delicious dinner the whole family can enjoy. It’s actually a food recipe that’s always affordable and easy to cook when prepared appropriately whether fried or baked. A pastry dish best known for the Italian sausage is the spaghetti, getting its rich flavour from the sausage or probably a quick homemade sauce to go with it.
As convenient as it seems, we’ve come to realize that some people however aren’t used to this homemade recipe. With several cooking procedures, if you’ve got no prior experience or “how-to” knowledge, just leave it to us to help you figure it all out. Here, you’ll learn how to cook a tasty Italian sausage and some best practices for desirable results. Be sure to take note of the useful tips and instructions, as well as timing guidelines that should help you get the best out of your recipes.
Italian Sausage Nutrition Facts
Tips for Cooking Italian Sausage for Spaghetti
Below are some tips that have been carefully compiled to enable and ensure you get amazing results out of your spaghetti dish, so pay close attention:
Purchasing an Italian sausage – The Italian sausage also referred to as “Sasista” or ” Salsiccia” is relatively easy to find in retail outlets and supermarkets at affordable prices too. Whether the sweet or hot type of Italian sausages, they can also be gotten from Italian delis (either pre-packaged or from the butcher). In cases of unavailability in grocery stores, one can easily purchase online as well. Some notable varieties of Italian sausage include the Chorizo, Toulouse, Cumberland, and Lincolnshire.
Regular sausage vs Italian sausage – it’s very important you know the type of sausage you’re working with as they’re a wide variety of them, such as the American breakfast sausage, pork sausage, etc. A major distinction between the two is the seasoning. The Italian sausage is remarkably known for its kennel and garlic flavouring which is not really found in the regular sausage, but most likely, could be seasoned with local spices and herbs to achieve the desired taste. Remember, an Italian sausage could be hot or sweet and mild.
Sausage additions/substitutions – Imagine returning home from work on a late night and you just weren’t able to rush down to the grocery store to get some Italian sausages, as disappointing as it is, there’s always an alternative. Although the Italian sausage is mostly made up of minced pork, other food recipes like beef, turkey, lamb, chicken, veal, etc are also used. If you’re also vegan or vegetarian, some sausage fillers are made out of oatmeals, rice and mostly cereal products which would work best for you.
Easy step by step cooking procedures – To get the best out of your Italian sausage recipe, here are a few easy steps to follow when cooking;
- Tear open your sausage by the side of the pack and place them in a non-stick pan containing some water. If you desire to reduce the level of fat in your sausages, the ideal way to go about this is to bake them by poking them first with a fork or skewers so that more fat can drain out while cooking.
- Continue cooking for about 20-25 minutes, turning your sausages in the pan at intervals so that they’ll cook evenly on all sides.
- When you start to notice a deep golden brown colour on the outside and pale pink on the inside, it only indicates that your sausages are now ready.
You can make gravy – If you really had your sights set on a delicious sauce or gravy to accompany your spaghetti and sausages but you’re running out of time or basic ideas on how to do this, no need to worry. Simply grab some fresh/canned tomatoes and your choice of seasonings and there you go.
Cooking Time for Italian Sausage for Spaghetti
The appropriate time for preparing an Italian sausage has been stated above which would enable your recipe to turn out just fine:
Cooking Procedure | Cooking Time |
Cooking Italian sausage in an oven at 350°F | 25-35 minutes |
Cooking on the grill at 375°F with the lid closed | 15-20 minutes |
Cooking on a stovetop at 160°F | 10-12 minutes |
Fried Italian sausages (1- 2 Servings)
Ingredients
- 4 large lbs of Italian sausages
- 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil or vegetable oil
- Seasoning salt to taste
- Ground peppers
- 2 tbsp of chopped parsley/onions for garnish (optional)
- 1 (16 ounce) packaged spaghetti
- 1 tbsp of Italian seasoning (optional)
- Diced tomatoes or pasta sauce
Instructions
- Heat up your skillet, adding a little amount of olive/vegetable oil using medium heat. Throw in some chopped onion or garlic and stir for a while, adding your sausages to get them evenly brown on the sides. Cook in the pan for about 5-7 minutes, turning them at regular intervals to avoid getting a burnt result. You can remove once you start to notice the golden brown color on the Italian sausages.
- Next step, add half a cup of water to the pan and cook the sausages for an exact time of 12-15 minutes, turning up the heat to a medium-high till you get an internal temperature of 160°F, making sure your sausages are well cooked. Peharps, you’re a wine lover, you can always substitute water for some white wine. Now, adding wine to the recipe gives it an edge as it puts a little touch of alcohol to improve the taste.
- Add 3 cups of prepared pasta sauce (homemade or otherwise) to your boiling Italian sausages and one-third volume of water to the sauce jar . Ensure you shake properly, pouring it into the pan. Another option however, is to first remove the sausages and chop into reasonable sizes before adding them to the sauce. After doing this, make sure to stir for approximately 1½ hours, allowing the goodness of flavor in the sausages to sink into the tomato sauce. Boil for another 10 minutes.
- Since this is one food recipe that is served best with pasta, it’s never too late to boil the packet of spaghettis in a pot containing medium salted water for a space of 30 minutes.
The Italian sausage recipe for spaghetti is one that’s sure to leave you with a delicious result, especially when the guidelines are carefully followed.It could be served with some parmesan cheese as an extra touch. On the other hand, in case you need more satisfying recipe ideas and contents on preparing Italian sausages, we suggest that you check out this video recipe.