Looking for a quick and easy way to prepare one of your favorite dishes? Air fryer sausage and peppers make an easy meal option that's full of flavor to satisfy your taste buds while keeping things simple in the kitchen. Cooking with an air fryer reduces the amount of oil in your food and ensures a faster cooking time.
Enjoy the flavors of juicy, perfectly cooked Italian sausages with roasted bell peppers and onions for an incredibly tasty, low-carb lunch or dinner. The air fryer cooks the sausages and vegetables to perfection bringing out their natural flavors.
Serve them up in a sandwich or on a bed of rice for a meal that will easily become a family favorite.
Love sausage? Try this air fryer brats with onions, air fryer breakfast sausage or sausage crescent rolls. They're great with any of these options of what to serve with sausage and peppers.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Quick and Easy. This recipe is easy to prepare, requires minimal effort and the air fryer cooks both the sausages and bell peppers in about 20 minutes.
- Delicious Cooked Sausages. The air fryer produces sausages that are nicely browned and crisp, similar to grilling, and peppers and onions that are roasted to perfection.
- Family-Favorite Dish. This crowd-pleasing dish is kid-friendly and perfect to serve at parties, game days, or with friends and family.
Ingredients
To make air fryer sausages with peppers and onions, you'll need the following ingredients.
- Italian Sausages: Italian sausages are the most popular choice for this recipe. They come in different flavors including mild, sweet, hot or spicy so pick your favorite. You can also use other types of sausages such as turkey sausage, chicken sausage, bratwurst, or vegetarian sausages.
- Red, Green and Yellow Bell Pepper: Choose a combination of sweet peppers for a more colorful and flavorful dish with a sweet and somewhat tangy taste.
- Onion: Adds aromatic flavors and aroma along with a slight sweetness when they're roasted. You can use red, yellow or white onions, depending on your preference.
- Olive Oil: Olive oil is used to prevent the veggies from sticking but you can use cooking spray, avocado oil, or canola oil instead. Select an oil with a high smoke point to avoid any unwanted flavors or burning.
- Hot Dog or Sausage Buns: Use your favorite hoagie rolls, gluten-free buns, tortillas, ciabatta, baguette or lettuce wraps as you prefer.
See the recipe card below for the exact quantities of each ingredient.
Substitutions and Variations
When making this recipe, there are a few substitutions you can consider to fit your taste and dietary preferences.
- Seasonings: Feel free to switch up the spice blend, maybe adding smoked paprika or a dash of garlic salt. If you have dietary restrictions or preferences, consider opting for lower sodium or including additional herbs for added flavor. You may even want to experiment with seasoning blends such as Cajun seasoning or Italian seasoning.
- Add a Sauce: Add one of these best dip recipes as a sauce to your sausage and peppers! Marinara sauce is always a classic option for this classic Italian dish.
- Add More Vegetables: Consider adding more veggies like zucchini or mushrooms, to make the dish even heartier.
- Spicy: Add a bit of chili pepper flakes, diced jalapeno pepper, homemade hot pepper sauce, our jalapeno powder, smoked jalapeno powder, or chipotle powder to the pepper mixture for a bit of heat.
How to Make Sausage and Peppers in the Air Fryer
This recipe goes together quickly and easily in the air fryer! Here's a look at the main steps but be sure to review all the details in the recipe card.
- Poke the uncooked sausages with a sharp knife.
- Brush the tops with oil.
- Place the sausages in a single layer in the preheated air fryer tray or air fryer basket.
- Cook the raw sausages at 370 degrees F (190°C) for about 10-12 minutes, flipping them halfway through to ensure they are golden brown and both sides are evenly cooked.
PRO TIP: Cooking time may vary depending on the thickness of the sausages. They should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F (71°C). Use a digital meat thermometer to check for doneness.
- Lightly brush the bell pepper and onion strips in the air fryer basket with olive oil or sausage drippings to add flavor and keep them from sticking.
- Cook the bell peppers at 370°F (190°C) in the air fryer or in a skillet for about 10-13 minutes, or until they are tender and slightly caramelized.
- Serve the cooked air fryer Italian sausages with the air fryer peppers and onions as a delicious and colorful main course or lunch. You can also serve these sausages and veggies over pasta or in hot dog buns.
Hint: Shake and adjust the basket halfway through cooking to get an even cook and browning on everything.
If you love recipes like this, you may also enjoy our air fryer frozen sausage patties, chorizo sausage stuffed peppers or smoked brats recipe.
Storage
Refrigerator: Allow the dish to cool down to room temperature before storing any leftovers in an airtight container or resealable bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Freezer: Place cooled sausage and peppers in a freezer-safe container or heavy-duty resealable plastic bag. Be sure to press out as much air as possible before sealing it tightly. Your frozen sausage and peppers can last for up to three months in the freezer. Thaw them in the refrigerator overnight and then reheat them.
Reheat: Reheat the leftover Italian sausage in the air fryer or oven for the best results though you can use your microwave as well. Preheat the air fryer to 300° F and place the sausage and peppers in a basket coated with cooking spray. Cook for 5-8 minutes or until heated through. Adjusting and shaking the basket after 3 minutes or so.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F., and place the sausage and peppers on a baking sheet. Heat for 10-15 minutes, or until warmed through.
What to Serve with Sausage and Peppers
- Over a Side Dish. It goes great over rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes! For more ideas check out this collection of starch side dishes.
- Bread: Instead of a bun use crispy, warm homemade garlic bread or frozen garlic bread on the side or make a sandwich.
- Add a Salad: Serve it up with a bell pepper salad, broccoli salad, cold asparagus salad, cucumber salad, or a crunchy and flavorful coleslaw, whether it be sweet grandma's coleslaw or spicy jalapeno coleslaw.
Tips
When making air fryer sausage and peppers, following these tips can help you achieve delicious, perfectly cooked results:
- Always preheat your air fryer to ensure even cooking and browning.
- For a more colorful and flavorful dish, use a mix of red, green, and yellow bell peppers maybe some hot peppers too!
- Do not overload your air fryer as it can cause undercooked or unevenly cooked sausages and peppers so always arrange in a single layer with some space in between so air circulates.
- Shake and adjust the basket halfway through cooking to get an even cook and browning on everything.
- Cooking frozen sausages? Add an extra 10 minutes to the cooking time.
- Ensure the internal temperature of the cooked sausages reaches 160 degrees F.
FAQ
Do you have questions about air fryer sausage and peppers? Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about it.
While it's not required, tossing the peppers in a small amount of oil before air frying can help them cook more evenly and develop a nice, crispy texture. You can also use a cooking spray to lightly coat the peppers before adding them to the air fryer.
Yes, you can cook frozen sausages in an air fryer. Simply add about 10 minutes to the cooking time, making it around 20-22 minutes total to cook sausages.
To prevent sausages from drying out avoid overcooking them. Check the internal temperature as you cook and stop when they reach 160 degrees Fahrenheit. You may also want to use a small amount of cooking oil or spray to help keep the sausages moist during the cooking process.
Yes, you can add a little water but never more than 1-3 tablespoons. It will help the food retain its moisture and reduce burning. by creating some steam.
Video
More Sausage Recipes
Do you like sausages? Here are some recipes you may also like to try.
Ready to get cooking? Remember that you can print this recipe if you would like.
Air Fryer Sausage and Peppers
Ingredients
- 5 mild Italian sausages
- 1 red bell pepper cut into ½-inch strips
- 1 green bell pepper cut into ½-inch strips
- 1 yellow bell pepper cut into ½-inch strips
- ½ medium onion cut into ½-inch slices
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil for brushing adjust according to personal preference
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste.
- 5 Hot dog buns optional
Instructions
- Preheat your air fryer to 370 degrees F (190°C).
- Poke the uncooked sausages with a sharp knife, brush with oil and then place them in a single layer in the preheated air fryer tray or air fryer basket.
- Cook the raw sausages at 370 degrees F (190°C) for about 10-12 minutes, flipping them halfway through to ensure they are golden brown, and both sides are evenly cooked. Cooking time may vary depending on the thickness of the sausages. They should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F (71°C). Use a digital meat thermometer to check for doneness.
- Once the sausages are cooked, remove them from the air fryer and set them aside. The cooking time of each sausage will depend on the thickness of the sausage as well as the air fryer model.
- Wash and seed the bell peppers and then cut the bell peppers and onion into uniform ½-inch strips or rings.
- Lightly brush the bell pepper and onion strips with olive oil or sausage drippings. This helps prevent sticking and adds flavor. Season them with salt and pepper.
- Place the prepared bell pepper strips and onions in the air fryer basket. I removed the grill pan.
- Cook the bell peppers and onions at 370°F (190°C) in a clean air fryer or skillet for about 10-13 minutes, or until they are tender and slightly caramelized. The actual cooking time may vary based on your air fryer, so keep an eye out for the desired tenderness.
- Optional Seasoning: If you like, you can sprinkle the bell peppers and onions with ½ a teaspoon of Italian seasoning, ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper, and 1 teaspoon of garlic powder during the last minute of cooking. Adjust these quantities to your taste.
- Serve the cooked air fryer Italian sausages with the air fryer peppers and onions as a delicious and colorful main course. You can also serve these sausages and veggies over pasta or in hot dog buns.
Notes
- Always preheat your air fryer to ensure even cooking and browning.
- For a more colorful and flavorful dish, use a mix of red, green, and yellow bell peppers maybe some hot peppers too!
- Do not overload your air fryer as it can cause undercooked or unevenly cooked sausages and peppers so always arrange in a single layer with some space in between so air circulates.
- Shake and adjust the basket halfway through cooking to get an even cook and browning on everything.
- Cooking frozen sausages? Add an extra 10 minutes to the cooking time.
- Ensure the internal temperature of the cooked sausages reaches 160 degrees F.
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