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This is the dinner I make when I want something hearty on the table with almost no effort. One skillet, a handful of ingredients, and it’s ready in about half an hour — smoky sausage, crispy little potatoes, and sweet peppers and onion all cooked down together until everything’s tender and a little caramelized at the edges. Simple, satisfying, and it reheats just as well the next day.
Why You’ll Love It
One skillet, easy cleanup everything cooks in the same pan, start to finish
Ready in about 30 minutes perfect for busy weeknights
Budget-friendly simple ingredients you probably already have
Naturally gluten-free easy to fit into most eating plans
Great for leftovers reheats beautifully and tastes just as good the next day
Ingredient Notes
The sausage — I use whatever smoked sausage is on sale, honestly, kielbasa-style usually, though andouille works great too if you want a little more kick.
Baby potatoes I like because you don’t have to peel them, and peeling potatoes is one of those chores that I have never once enjoyed, not even a little, not even when I was younger and supposedly had more patience for that kind of thing. If all you’ve got are regular russets, cut them smaller, it’s fine.
The smoked paprika is not optional in my opinion — regular paprika is basically just for color, doesn’t do anything, don’t @ me — but I know some people substitute it and it’s… fine. It’s just fine. Not the same.
Ingredients
– 1 lb (450g) smoked sausage, sliced into half-inch rounds — or thereabouts, I don’t measure this part
– 1 lb (450g) baby potatoes, halved, quartered if they’re on the bigger side
– 1 small onion, chopped (I use whatever’s in the basket, sometimes it’s more medium than small)
– 1 bell pepper, any color — I like red for the sweetness
– 2 cloves garlic, minced, though I’ll be honest, some nights it’s three because I lose count
– 2 tbsp olive oil
– ½ tsp smoked paprika
– ½ tsp dried thyme
– Salt and pepper, to taste — I go heavier on the pepper than most people would
– 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped, for on top (I have absolutely served this without it and nobody noticed, for what that’s worth)
Instructions
Okay so — start with the potatoes, wash them, halve them, quarter the big ones. If you’ve got the patience, parboil them for about five minutes first, it cuts down the skillet time later and I do recommend it, though I’ll admit some nights I skip it entirely because who has five extra minutes, really.
Heat a tablespoon of the olive oil in your biggest skillet, medium heat, and get the sausage going. Four, five minutes, until it’s browned up nice. Pull it out, set it aside — and I will tell you, I have forgotten to do this step, left the sausage in there the whole time, and it’s not the end of the world, it just gets a little tougher than I like. Learn from my mistake or don’t, your call.
Add your second tablespoon of oil to the same skillet — don’t wash it, all that browned bit on the bottom is flavor — and toss in your onion and pepper. Three, four minutes, till they’ve softened up some. Stir in the garlic, the paprika, the thyme, let that cook another minute, and your kitchen will smell like something at this point, trust me.
Now the potatoes go in. Toss them around so they get coated in all that oil and spice, cover the skillet, and let them go on medium heat for fifteen to twenty minutes — stir them every so often so they don’t stick, though a little stuck-on bit at the bottom never hurt anyone. Salt and pepper them once they’re getting tender.
Then the sausage comes back in. Stir it all together, let it heat through, two or three minutes, until everything’s warmed up and smelling like dinner.
Sprinkle the parsley on top at the end. Serve it warm. We’ve eaten this for breakfast with eggs on the side, for dinner on its own, once — memorably, not necessarily successfully — cold out of the fridge at eleven at night because nobody wanted to wait for the microwave.
Variations
Some people like adding a can of diced tomatoes to this, which gives it a little more sauce, though I think it muddies the flavor a bit. A fried egg on top is a great addition too, and honestly elevates the whole thing more than it has any right to. I tried it once with sweet potatoes instead of baby potatoes and it wasn’t quite right — too sweet against the smoked paprika — so I can’t recommend that swap.
Storage & Reheating
It keeps in the fridge four or five days, covered, though I’ve absolutely pushed that a day or two further and lived to tell about it. Reheats best in a skillet with a splash of water or oil, gets some of that crisp back on the potatoes. Microwave works too, obviously, it’s just a little sadder that way.
A Few Last Thoughts
This one just keeps earning its spot in the dinner rotation. It’s simple, it doesn’t ask for much, and it delivers every time. Serve it on its own or with a fried egg on top for something a little extra.