The idea for this one came from me defrosting two sweet Italian sausage links with intent to use them but no idea how I planned to do it. Then, I was talking to a friend, and he threw the phrase, “Sausage Parm,” at me, and it was over. That was the winner. Fleshing that base idea out, I decided to incorporate the green pepper I had sitting in my fridge, and this idea quickly took shape from there.
We served this with a homemade pasta sauce (slight cheat if you count the canned tomatoes) and angel hair pasta. However, it would also go very well as a sandwich between two pieces of garlic bread or with a side of sauteed green vegetables (I’m thinking broccoli rabe would be great).
Time: 40 Minutes
Ingredients:
- Raw Italian Sausage Links (we used sweet, but I don’t see why spicy wouldn’t be good too)
- Green Bell Pepper (we used about 1/4 of a pepper per parm patty)
- Egg
- Bread Crumbs
- Tomato Sauce (or make your own. We are pureeing a can of diced tomatoes with some oregano, basil, and garlic, but we’ve got some quick recipes in our Tofu Meatballs, Chicken Cacciatore, Eggplant Parm Pizza, and “Red”)
- Parmesan Cheese
Method:
- Thinly slice (or dice) your pepper.
- Lay a piece of plastic wrap on your counter (one large piece per parm patty)
- Uncase your sausages, and mix in some bread crumbs to give them more body and to make them easier to work with. (Using a bowl is the easiest way to do this…we didn’t, but we will next time!)
- Place a hunk of sausage in the middle of one of your sheets of plastic wrap, and then layer your peppers on top of half of it (should look like a sausage omelet before the top gets flipped over)
- Lift the plastic wrap from the end of the sausage that hasn’t got peppers on it, and fold it over the pepper half. Then, crimp the edges together, and wrap it all up in the plastic wrap. Repeat with all of your patties.
- On a flat sheet/cutting board, put all of your patties into the freezer for 15-20 minutes. This will make them MUCH more possible to bread later.
- During your freezer wait, start boiling some water if you’re making pasta, and start simmering your tomato sauce on low.
- When your parm patties are firm but not frozen, start heating a cast iron pan (nonstick works too…but I prefer cast iron for its heat retention) with a little olive oil in it, and crack and beat an egg in a bowl.
- Remove your patties from the freezer, and one at a time, give them an egg wash, and then bread them in a separate bowl.
- When your pan and oil are hot, add your sausage parm patty, and let it cook for about 5 minutes. By this point, it should be golden brown and easy to flip. Flip, and let it go for another 5 minutes until it’s golden brown on both sides. **Cooking times will vary depending on your pan’s temperature, the oil temperature, and the thickness and starting temperature of your parm patties. Since the patties are thin, they should be done by this point, but just give it a quick temperature check and make sure it’s at least 160 degrees F.
- Plate, devour, and enjoy!
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