Homemade Italian Sausage – Freezer Friendly!

Italian Sausage is full of flavor and great in all kinds of recipes from pasta to stuffed peppers.

A simple mixture of ground pork and flavorful seasonings, this sausage is a little sweet, and a little spicy!

What is Italian Sausage?

A traditional Italian sausage can be made with different types of meat or seasonings and it usually has a high percentage of fat.

In North America, a typical grocery store Italian sausage is usually pork and has fennel among other seasonings.

As we mainly use this sausage mixture for cooking and adding to other recipes like lasagna, I opt for ground pork. It has great flavor and some fat but not as much as a traditional Italian sausage link.

Ingredients

GROUND MEAT We start with fresh ground pork as we love the flavor, but beef, turkey, or chicken work. Your local butcher can often offer nice mixtures for sausage too.

SEASONINGS The secret is in all the seasonings (most of which are found in homemade Italian seasoning). Add extra chili flakes if you’d like more heat.

FENNEL Fennel seeds are really important in this recipe to give the sausage its signature flavor. You can use either whole or ground fennel (I use whole because it’s usually what I have on hand).

PRO TIP

Mix the seasonings with the meat and be sure to let it rest in the fridge. This allows the flavors to blend.

How to Make Homemade Italian Sausage

Keep in mind this is intended to be used as bulk Italian sausage in recipes (it doesn’t have enough fat to create great Italian sausage links). It can be used to make sausage patties if desired.

Mix all of the ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl (using your hands works best)!
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Cook in a skillet over medium heat. Drain any fat and use in recipes or add to pasta sauce.

Storage/Leftovers

Raw pork can be kept in the fridge for 2 days or frozen for 2 months (more food safety info here).
Keep in freezer bags with the date labeled on the outside.
Cooked Italian sausage will keep about 2 months in the freezer and uncooked sausage will keep about 3 months.

Italian Sausage Recipes

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Homemade Italian Sausage

Italian Sausage is perfectly seasoned & so flavorful. Toss into soups, stews, or pasta sauce for a delicious addition!

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
Cover & refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.
Cook in a skillet until no pink remains.

Fennel seeds to give the sausage its signature flavor. You can use either whole or ground fennel (I use whole because it’s usually what I have on hand)
This recipe can be doubled and half of the uncooked mixture can be frozen for future use.
Sausage can be formed into patties before cooking. Cook over medium heat about 4-5 minutes per side or until cooked through.
Optional add-ins
1-2 teaspoons brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika
Nutritional information includes ground pork, information may vary with beef or turkey.

Serving: 0.25of recipe, Calories: 303, Carbohydrates: 1g, Protein: 19g, Fat: 24g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Cholesterol: 82mg, Sodium: 356mg, Potassium: 337mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 265IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 23mg, Iron: 1mg

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