Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: This one pan sausage dinner is the perfect 30 minute meal on a night when you want a nutritious meal but you really don’t feel like cooking. Easy to make, nutritious, and easy clean-up — a perfect dinner!
How long it takes: 30 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: large skillet with lid
Servings: 4
One Pan Sausage and Vegetables
Easy to make. This easy sausage dinner is of those that I just throw together when I don’t especially feel like cooking (which is more often than you might think!), but it’s a satisfying healthy meal that uses up extra veggies in your fridge.
Convenient. I usually keep a package of pre-cooked chicken sausage in my fridge. It keeps awhile and it is great for quick and easy meals like this one. Slice it, sauté it over high heat so it gets golden brown and caramelized, and mix it with whatever vegetables you have. Dinner, done!
Versatile. For this particular rendition of that one pan meal, I use fall vegetables: red onion, sweet potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, Brussels sprouts, and a nice apple chicken sausage. Sometimes I add apples or regular potatoes to mix this up a little. It really is whatever I have on hand, usually.
How to Make this One Pan Sausage Dinner
Start with the longer-cooking vegetables. This recipe really is nearly fail-proof but the important thing is to take into account the different cooking times of the vegetables you’re making. Start with the hard vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, and onions which take longer to cook.
Next, add the quicker-cooking vegetables. Once those have a good head start, add the softer vegetables, such as bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, and so on.
Add vegetables that cook very quickly last, along with the sausage. Mushrooms, asparagus, and spinach cook quickly and you’ll want to add them last to prevent overcooking. Slice the precooked sausages before adding them near the end of the cooking time, too.
Cooking Tip
Use the largest skillet you have (that has a lid) so that the vegetables have lots of space. This will help them caramelize and brown, rather than just steaming from being too crowded in the pan.Recipe Variations
Make it vegetarian
Substitute fried eggs for the sausage. When the vegetables have cooked and you’ve added the sauce, divide the mixture on plates. In the same pan, fry as many eggs as you like. Vegetable hash with an egg – so good!
Add quinoa, beans, or cheese instead of sausage. Another way to boost protein is to add a protein-packed grain like cooked quinoa, or to add canned beans or cheese. All great and tasty additions, with or without sausage.
Make it Whole30 compliant
Choose a compliant chicken sausage (mustard, too) and omit the maple syrup in the sauce.
Add bacon
I recommend cutting the bacon up into small pieces, cooking it first, and then removing it to a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve the grease and use that instead of olive oil to sauté all the vegetables in. Add the bacon back in immediately prior to serving.
Using raw sausage
If you happen to have raw sausage links such as Italian sausage or bratwurst, try baking or air frying it. We love this baked Italian sausage recipe. You can add any assortment of vegetables to the pan or just bake the sausages. Air fryer Italian sausage turns out great, too.
Refrigerate: If you happen to have leftovers, refrigerate them in an airtight container for up to 4 days. You can safely freeze leftovers but the quality won’t be the same.
Reheat: Individual portions can be reheated in the microwave; reheat larger amounts in a skillet on the stove. You can also put leftovers in your air fryer to warm them up.
Free Meal Plan
Interested in a weekly meal plan that includes this recipe? Take a look at my Meal Plan #41 or Meal Plan #86. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let me do the planning for you this week! We add a new meal plan weekly.
More One Pan Meals
One Pan Sausage Dinner with Fall Vegetables
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ red onion, chopped
- 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced into ½ -inch slices
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled or scrubbed and diced into ¾ -inch cubes
- 8 ounces Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
- 8 ounces mushrooms, brushed clean and cut in half
- 12 ounces pre-cooked chicken sausage, cut into ¼ -inch to ½ -inch slices (I like an apple variety for this recipe)
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a very large skillet (choose one that has a cover available) over medium high heat. When oil is glistening and hot, add onion, carrots, and sweet potatoes. Cover and cook for 5 minutes, stirring once.1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ red onion, chopped, 1 large sweet potato, peeled or scrubbed and diced into ¾ -inch cubes, 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced into ½ -inch slices
- Add Brussels sprouts, stir, and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, covered.8 ounces Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
- Add mushrooms and sausage; continue to cook uncovered, stirring, until mushrooms are cooked and sausage is browned, about 5 minutes.8 ounces mushrooms, brushed clean and cut in half, 12 ounces pre-cooked chicken sausage, cut into ¼ -inch to ½ -inch slices
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, and Dijon mustard. Taste, and if desired, add more maple syrup if it seems too tangy, or more vinegar if it seems too sweet.1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- Pour sauce over vegetables and sausage, stirring to coat all ingredients in the sauce. Taste and season as desired with salt and pepper before serving.Salt and pepper to taste
Notes
- If you’d like to add apples to the mixture (so yummy!), add them in when you add the sausage and mushrooms to prevent them from turning into applesauce. Choose a firm apple such as Granny Smith or Honeycrisp.
- I love the appearance and taste of a coarse-ground mustard, but any Dijon mustard will work in this recipe.
- You’ll need a larger skillet than depicted in the photo. Choose a large skillet with a lid.
- Feel free to substitute or add any vegetables you like or happen to have in the fridge.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
I loved this meal. It reminds me of a sheet pan dinner, but you don’t have to turn on the oven, which is nice when it’s still warm outside. I added more syrup, because I thought it needed a little more sauce and I prefer the sweet. Also, yes, a skillet with lots of surface area is very helpful…might consider using 2 pans next time, just to give me more surface area since I don’t have a large skillet.
So glad you liked this recipe, Kara! Thanks for the comment!
sounds easy and delish!
I like to put smoked paprika and a splash of red wine vinegar when I make this. Red potatoes are good too. I pretty much use whatever potato veggie combination I have in my pantry. The chicken sausage is essential for flavor in my opinion.
Great additions!