Tried and True

I was reading at Eat at Home this morning (a food blog I check regularly), and this week's ingredient spotlight is smoked sausage. The call went out for recipes and as a matter of fact, I do have one we love. It's one of those "measure? huh?" recipes, which I do pretty frequently.

Kielbasa, Potatoes & Peppers
That's kind of it--the whole recipe in the title. Oh, there's also red onion & some oil, but you get the gist. More specific?

• 1 pound Kielbasa or beef sausage, sliced about 1/2" thick (why is it that the ones that don't have turkey in them so rarely go on sale?)
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1/2 red, orange & yellow bell peppers, sliced into strips (you can use green too, if you have no taste buds)
• 4 or 5 redskin potatoes (size depends on how much you love potatoes)
  
• olive oil

The thing here is that you want everything crispy, and everything done at pretty much the same time before you throw it all in a big bowl and put it on the table. For me, there are two tricks to achieve this.

First, you want to par-cook the potatoes. I usually microwave them earlier in the day and then let them cool down. When you're ready to cook, cut them up into chunks.

The second trick is to use two pans. Yes, it makes more dishes. But since everything is served in just one dish, I figure it evens out in the end. You can use one skillet, but it will take twice as long. You don't want to overcrowd the pan.

I used a griddle pan for the sausage slices. Lay them all out and cook on medium-low heat, turning once they brown on one side. I cook the peppers & onions in about a tablespoon of oil in a big non stick skillet. Let them get brown, too. When they're done, put them in the serving dish and set aside.

Turn the skillet up to medium high and add another tablespoon of oil. Let it get hot. Add the potato pieces and swirl them around a little to get them coated. You only want one layer of potatoes here--too many and they won't get crisp. Then wait a few minutes so they can get really crispy. Turn them so the other sides get crispy too. The thing to remember is that this takes time. If you're constantly moving them, they won't crisp up. Once they are crispy, add them to the serving dish with the sausage. (This part is all about the crispy, in case you missed that.)

Mix it all up, take to the table and get out of the way. If I forget to put the ketchup out, one of the kids is getting it before I manage to pick up my fork.

This is not my healthiest recipe. In fact, I don't think I've made it in the last few months. But everyone does love it, and I do have beef sausage in the freezer, so I will be making it soon. I'll just have a smaller portion. And some salad. :)