Name: Air-Fryer Italian Sausage and Pepper Sub
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 2 red or green bell peppers , stemmed, seeded, and cut into ¼-inch-wide strips; 1 onion , halved and sliced ¼ inch thick; 2 teaspoons vegetable oil; Pepper; 1 pound hot or sweet Italian sausage (6 sausages); 2 teaspoons honey , warmed; 2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard; 1 tablespoon mayonnaise; 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar; ½ teaspoon sugar; 4 (6-inch) Italian sub rolls , split lengthwise

Why This Recipe Works

Less fussy than grilling, the air fryer was similarly able to crisp and brown all the ingredients at once, while allowing excess fat to drip away. Since the peppers and onions needed more time to cook, we gave them a jump start, using that time to brush our sausages with a little honey, which improved browning and added pleasant sweetness. We stacked our sausages right on top of our onions and peppers, flipping them after a few minutes to give one side deep browning we thought was achievable only with a grill. For a quick accompaniment, a combination of whole-grain mustard, mayonnaise, and red wine vinegar balanced the richness of the sausage and gave our sandwiches a pop of flavor.

Before You Begin

Warming the honey makes it easier to brush onto the sausages.

Instructions

Toss bell peppers and onion with oil and ¼ teaspoon pepper in bowl; transfer to air-fryer basket. Place basket in air fryer, set temperature to 350 degrees, and cook for 8 minutes.

Brush sausages with honey. Stir peppers and onion, then arrange sausages on top, spaced evenly apart. Return basket to air fryer and cook until vegetables are tender and sausages are lightly browned and register 160 degrees, 16 to 18 minutes, flipping and rotating sausages and stirring vegetables once after 5 minutes.

Transfer sausages to cutting board, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Whisk mustard, mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, and ¼ teaspoon pepper together in bowl. Halve sausages crosswise on bias. Divide sausages, peppers, and onion evenly among rolls and drizzle with mustard sauce. Serve.