This easy sausage casserole recipe is full of flavour and is simple enough to rustle up for a warming, hearty midweek dinner!
Pork sausages with mushrooms, onions and red peppers slowly cooked in a rich tomato sauce. It’s perfect cold weather comfort food that goes well with creamy mashed potato and crusty bread.
Love sausages? Try this easy spicy sausage and red pepper traybake!
When the weather turns baltic and I want to feed my family food that will warm them from the inside and keep their tummies happy, there are a few fail-safe recipes I turn to again and again. This sausage casserole is one of them. It’s hearty, filling and delicious.
When I was a teenager, sausage casserole was one of my favourite dinners. We used a packet mix that you can still pick up in most major supermarkets. However, I always believe that homemade is best!
ingredient list
- Pork sausages.
- red or white onion.
- fresh garlic (or jarred garlic puree if you’re in a hurry)
- one red pepper, sliced
- sliced fresh mushrooms
- dried mixed herbs
- smoked paprika
- beef or chicken stock (I use the stock pots)
- can of chopped tomatoes
how to make homemade sausage casserole
Keep scrolling to the end of the post to find printable recipe card with ingredient amounts and detailed instructions
Step 1 – Brown the sausages in a large frying pan – you might need to add a little cooking oil to prevent the sausages from sticking to the pan.
TOP TIP – This might seem like an extra step you don’t really need to do, but browning the sausages will add flavour to the casserole – plus they will look much more appealing!
Step 2 – Once you’ve removed the sausages, add a little more oil to the pan. Add your onions and cook on a low to medium heat for a good 5-8 minutes until they have softened, then add crushed garlic cloves and cook for a couple more minutes, stirring often (you don’t want the garlic to burn.)
Step 3 – Add the sliced pepper, mushrooms, (or whatever other vegetables you’re using), tomato puree, dried mixed herbs, smoked paprika and a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Gently fry for a further 5 minutes or until the vegetables are beginning to soften.
Step 4 – Add the beef or chicken stock and chopped tomatoes. Allow to simmer for a few minutes before transferring everything to a deep casserole dish.
Step 5 – Place in a preheated oven (180C/160Fan) and cook for 40-45 minutes or until the sauce has thickened slightly and the casserole is piping hot.
variations
- If you aren’t a fan of mushrooms or peppers, feel free to use this recipe as a blueprint and add any other vegetables you fancy – leeks in place of the onion, carrots, sweet potato chunks or butternut squash to name just a few.
- Make the casserole go further with a can of cannellini beans, kidney beans or butter beans.
- If you’re a fan of heat, you could also add a few chilli flakes or chilli powder to spice it up.
serving suggestions
I don’t think you can beat a great big mound of buttery mashed potatoes with casseroles. Long grain rice is also good. Some seasonal green vegetables – these Spring greens with lemon and mustard dressing would also be lovely.
One of my favourite side dishes to serve with sausage casserole is braised red cabbage.
storing leftovers
Leftovers should be placed in a plastic tupperware box with a lid. Once the casserole has completely cooled (never store warm cooked food in the fridge) store in the fridge for up to three days.
can you reheat sausage casserole?
Yes you can! Leftovers can be easily reheated in a pan on the hob. Place the casserole in the pan with a little water or stock. Simmer on a medium-high heat for about 15 minutes or until the sausages are very hot.
Freezing
Sausage casserole is ideal for freezing. Cool completely, then transfer the casserole to a freezer safe container and freeze for up to two months. Defrost overnight in the fridge before reheating.
More cold weather comfort food recipes
did you make this recipe?
I really hope you enjoyed! Please let me know what you thought by leaving a comment below. If you loved it, don’t forget to come back and rate the recipe!
Easy Sausage Casserole
An easy sausage casserole recipe that can be adapted to suit your family - you can swap the mushrooms for another vegetable such as carrots or butternut squash.
Ingredients
- 8 good quality pork sausages
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 onions, sliced thinly
- Two cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 250g mushrooms, sliced
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 200ml beef or chicken stock (I use a stock pot)
- One 400g can chopped tomatoes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160Fan/Gas mark 4.
- Drizzle a little of the oil in a large frying pan and gently fry the sausages. When they are brown, remove from the heat and set aside. Add the remaining oil and gently fry the onion on a low-medium heat for five to eight minutes or until softened. Add the crushed garlic and cook for a further two minutes.
- Add the diced pepper and sliced mushrooms, tomato puree, mixed herbs and smoked paprika. Season with salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes or until the vegetables have softened. Pour in the beef stock and chopped tomatoes, turn up the heat slightly and allow to simmer for a couple of minutes. Transfer everything to a deep casserole dish and cook for 40-50 minutes, until bubbling and piping hot.
- Check the casserole for seasoning and serve with buttery mash or baked potatoes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 258Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 40mgSodium: 560mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 4gSugar: 9gProtein: 13g
Calories and nutritional information are provided by a third party application and should be viewed as indicative figures only.
This would be great for the slow cooker Nic! Looks yummy.
Thanks Anna, yes it would work brilliantly in the slow cooker! We all loved it ๐
Growing up in the UK, one of my favorite foods was Sausage Casserole ~ made with a can of oxtail soup!
I now live in the US with my vegetarian family and decided to give it a try using Tofurkey Italian sausages!
I cut the ‘sausage’ up into small bite-size pieces and followed the rest of the recipe ~ and it was really GOOD!
Even with the scary sausage!! Had it with mashed taters, yum! Thank you for taking me back ๐
Iโm so pleased you enjoyed the recipe, Helen! Thank you for giving it a try!
When putting the dish in the oven, do yo cover it or leave it uncovered? Thank you!
Hi Dean, ideally it should be covered with a lid ?
I’ve made this quite a few times now, though I’ve made some additions to the recipe over time. I add three or four par-boiled potatoes, cut into inch(ish) sized chunks just before going into the oven. I also add a couple of chopped chorizo sausages. I then double the beef stock quantity to 400ml. My family love it, and it’s a firm favourite.
Hi Andy, thanks for your comment – I’m very glad to hear you like the recipe! It’s a great one to adapt and make your own ๐