Italian crockpot sausage and peppers are a super simple yet amazing dish that is packed with flavor. Serve it as is, broil cheese on top, or serve it on a bun. It's a Whole Lotta Yum!
Italian sausage in the Crock Pot is so good!
The recipe is also low carb, no sugar, gluten-free, and keto-friendly. A reader fave!! Plus it comes together in just 10 minutes! 8 net carbs per serving.
From Pinterest: "Absolutely loved this recipe! The family asked for thirds! I cook for a family of 5 picky eaters." ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I tried this and its BOMB!!!!"
This is a sausage and peppers recipe with sauce, you'll find some recipes out there I'm sure that don't add sauce at all, or use crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce instead of pasta sauce. In a hurry? We make this in an Instant Pot too!
Ingredients you'll need
- Italian sausages - you can use either pork sausage links or chicken, most brands come 5 to a pack, some come as a pack of 4.
- red & green bell peppers - while using a variety of colored peppers is pretty, it's perfectly fine to use one color. Green, red, yellow, or orange are all great options
- onion - red is pretty, but any variety will work like yellow or sweet onions.
- seasoning- garlic salt, Italian seasoning, black pepper
- marinara sauce - Rao's makes the best store bought marinara on the market, it tastes just like homemade, plus it has no added sugar or artificial ingredients. While Amazon and many grocery stores now carry it, Walmart sells it for 25% less than most places.
- olive oil - for searing the sausage in, any high heat oil will work
- Mozzarella cheese- (optional) any white cheese or cheese blend will work like Monterey Jack, 3 cheese blend, or Monterey Jack
- buns - (optional) serve the recipe casserole style over polenta, pasta, zoodles, or cauliflower rice, OR serve them like a hot dog on a bun.
How to make Sausage Peppers and Onions in the Crock Pot
Step 1. Sear the sausage. Heat a skillet on medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil to the pan. Sear the Italian sausages 2-3 mins on each side until just starting to brown, they won't be cooked through.
2. Assemble. Lay the seared Italian sausages in the bottom of a crock-pot. Add the uncooked sliced onions and peppers on top of the sausages. Sprinkle the garlic salt, black pepper, and Italian seasoning over the top.
Spread the marinara sauce over the onion and pepper mixture.
3. Slow cook. Cook the sausage and peppers on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-7 hours until the peppers are soft and the Italian sausage is cook through.
The sausages are cooked through when the internal temperature is at least 160 degrees, but sausages often do well up to 190 degrees and still stay juicy inside.
Step 4. Add cheese and broil (optional step). Transfer the sausage and peppers to a baking pan. Sprinkle with ½-3/4 cups of shredded cheese.
Broil for for 1-2 minutes 4" from the heat source until the cheese is melted.
Helpful tips
- Skip browning the Italian sausage before adding it to the crockpot to make the dish even faster
- Using chicken sausage instead of pork lightens up the recipe. The cook time takes less with chicken sausage.
- Feel free to double if you're serving a crowd or freezing some for later! Freeze before adding the cheese, this will keep frozen for up to 2 months.
- Leftovers will last for up to 4-5 days in the fridge.
- Many people also love to eat sausage and peppers in a crockpot served on a bun like a big messy hot dog, which is so tasty too! I'd recommend toasted the buns slightly before serving.
Recipe FAQs
As long as you're using a keto-friendly marinara sauce like Rao's and skip the bun or use a low carb bun, this is a keto friendly recipe!
Each serving is 6 net carbs without the bun, this can vary based on the specific brands you buy.
More Sausage Recipes
- baked brats and peppers
- Instant Pot beer brats
- Italian tortellini soup
- crockpot pizza soup
- Chicken sausage with peppers and onions
If you loved our recipe, please leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review and leave us a comment too! Connect with us on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube!
Recipe
Slow Cooker Sausage and Peppers
Equipment
- Crock Pot or slow cooker
Ingredients
- 1 pkg Italian sausages 5, uncooked
- 2 bell peppers, sliced red & green
- 1 large onion, sliced
- ½ teaspoon garlic salt or salt + garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup marinara or pasta sauce Rao's recommended
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½-3/4 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese (optional) not pre-shredded
Instructions
- Heat a skillet on medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil to the pan.
- Sear the Italian sausages 2-3 mins on each side until starting to brown. You aren't trying to cook them all the way through, you're just browning the outside a bit which always increases the flavor while slow cooking. Transfer them to the bottom of a slow cooker.
- Add the sliced onions and peppers on top of the sausages. Sprinkle with the garlic salt, black pepper, and Italian seasoning.
- Spread the marinara sauce over the onion and pepper mixture.
- Cook the sausage and peppers on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-7 hours until the peppers are soft and the Italian sausage is cooked through.
Adding Cheese (Optional)
- Sprinkle ½ - ¾ cups of your favorite shredded white cheese, like mozzarella, Monterey Jack, an Italian blend, or Colby Jack would all be great choices.
- Broil the Italian sausage and peppers mix for 1-2 minutes 4" from the heat source until the cheese is melted.
Serve on a Bun with Cheese (Optional)
- toast the bun and add a little butter to each
- add the sausage and peppers mix and sprinkle with shredded cheese
- broil the sausage and peppers in the bun until the cheese is melted, keeping an eye on things so the buns don't burn.
Video
Notes
- This is a very saucy dish. We recommend serving it over something like pasta, low carb pasta, hearts of palm noodles, etc.
- Using chicken sausage instead of pork lightens up the recipe, chicken sausages cook faster than pork sausages.
- We highly recommend shredding your own mozzarella cheese since it melts better than pre-shredded cheese that's coated in starch.
- You can easily double this recipe if you have a large slow cooker.
- Serve on a toasted bun for messy deluxe hot dog style
- Use a marinara sauce without sugar like Rao's if you're eating low carb, gluten free, or sugar-free
Cindy says
Can I use frozen pepper and onion mix?
WholeLottaYum says
Hi Cindy, you could probably add frozen peppers and onions but it WILL add more moisture to the sauce. I haven't tested it using frozen veggies but it should work. Let us know!
Margarita says
This has to be one of my favorite meals. Made it exactly as your recipe describes. It was delicious. I toasted the keto hot dog buns, and broiled the sausage with the bun and cheese as suggested. Soooo good. Thank you!
Tara says
This was fantastic! Like so much better than i even imagined! In case it helps others, I cooked this in my Instant pot on the slow cooker option on high for 90 minutes. It was perfect 👌🏻! I America's Test Kitchen says Instant pot on Slow cook cooks doubly fast, which is why I cooked it that fast. Was perfect. I didn't have marinara sauce so I used a can of tomato sauce, tomato paste (1 tbsp) and a bunch of spices. I didn't precook it. Just threw it all in. Divine!
WholeLottaYum says
Thank you for your review and adpations, Tara! I'm glad you enjoyed it, it's one of our favorites and it's amazing how just a few basic ingredients blend so well together.
T. Fuller says
Could I add potatoes into the crock pot for this recipe?
Anita says
Wondering if you don’t have crockpot can you cook in oven, and if yes what temperature and how long.
Lindsay says
This looks so good! Would I be able to slice the sausages before putting them in the crockpot or do they need to be left whole?
WholeLottaYum says
Yep! You can slice them but they will cook faster than whole ones.
Carrie says
Could this be done in the oven instead of the crockpot?? And how long would you cook it??
Pam says
I have chorizo sausage, will that work with this recipe?
WholeLottaYum says
Chorizo will technically work in the recipe since it's a raw sausage. Chorizo is pretty spicy and is often eaten crumbled or sliced mixed into a dish. If you don't mind a little heat, you can definitely use chorizo instead! Let me know how it turns out, we love chorizo!
Edythe Monroe says
Made this for dinner tonight. It was tasty and super easy. I only had pumpkin pasta sauce but it was still very good. I used chicken sausage and it I didn't have mozzarella cheese so I used a mixed taco cheese blend. But like I said easy and tasty. Would do it again and try the marinara sauce next time, just to see if I like as much, pretty sure I will though. 🙂 Edythe
WholeLottaYum says
Hi Edythe, that sounds delicious! It's an easy recipe to swap and make changes based on what's in your fridge and cupboard 🙂
Linda says
Where is the nutrition information? I didn’t see it anywhere
Connie says
Is there any way this could be cut down half or 1/3 of recipe as to I am the only one here and trying to keep portions smaller so I won't gain weight?
WholeLottaYum says
Yep! You can definitely cut it in half, use chicken sausage instead of pork, or even skip the cheese. It freezes well too just do so before adding the cheese.
Stacie says
I was wondering, do you serve this with a side?
Ash says
This may be a dumb question but what type of sausage do you use? Sweet, mild? Thanks!
WholeLottaYum says
There are no dumb questions! 🙂 Sweet or mild are basically similar, which brand you get might refer to it in a different way. Either mild Italian sausage or sweet Italian sausage is what you'll want to look for. Italian chicken sausage works too! We just had it this week 🙂
Richelle says
I made this and it is so delicious! I am planning to make it again and planning to add mushrooms. You think it will be okay or will it ruin the taste of it?
WholeLottaYum says
I think mushrooms would be a great addition and tbh I've been meaning to try it that way myself!
Angela says
Just wanted to let you know that I have made this twice and love it! I like that it is so easy, but it has incredible flavor!!! Also, you mentioned making homemade marinara sauce but I am having no luck finding your recipe. I've tried Rao's marinara sauce, but I think it's way over priced. Would it be possible to link your recipe for low carb marinara sauce? Thanks for sharing this recipe!
WholeLottaYum says
We don't yet have a marinara sauce post but will have one on the site in the next month!! I just found out last week Walmart sells Rao's for $6! I ordered it online and had it delivered, by far the cheapest price for it.
Angela says
Quick question...what do you do with the sauce? Do you put it in the pan when you add the cheese? Or will it be too liquid? Thanks