Name: Sausage Sandwiches with Fennel and Olive Salad
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 6 sweet or hot italian sausages; 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil; 1 fennel bulb , stalks discarded, bulb halved, cored, and sliced thin; ½ red onion , sliced thin; ½ teaspoon table salt; ½ teaspoon pepper; 2 garlic cloves , minced; ½ cup olive salad, drained; 6 hot dog buns; 12 slices deli sharp provolone cheese (about 12 ounces)

Why This Recipe Works

Italian pork sausages are deeply seasoned and flavorful, affordable, and versatile. We wanted links with an appealing brown exterior while maintaining a moist and juicy interior. Many recipes call for just browning sausages in a pan until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees, often leading to leathery, overcooked links. Others require searing first and then adding water to steam the sausages until they are thoroughly cooked. While the latter recipes are somewhat improved, much of the savory browning gets washed away. The secret, it turned out, was gently steaming and searing the sausages simultaneously, without adding water. Since sausages contain a lot of natural moisture, the trick was to harness that liquid as a steaming medium by starting the links in a cold skillet with a bit of olive oil and cooking them covered over medium heat (opening the lid to turn the sausages every couple minutes). This method resulted in nicely browned sausages that were tender and juicy within, and it had the added benefit (thanks to the covered cooking) of reducing messy stovetop splatter. These well-browned, tender, juicy sausages were perfect for sandwiches. For a twist on the classic sausage, pepper, and onion sandwich, we replaced the peppers with sweet, anisey fennel and finished with briny olive salad.

Before You Begin

Sausage size will vary by brand, and the size will affect the cooking time in step 2. This cooking method will work with any variety of fresh sausage that is similar in size to typical Italian sausages.

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Add sausages and oil to 12-inch nonstick skillet. Cover and cook over medium heat, flipping every 2 minutes, until sausages are well browned and register 160 degrees, 12 to 16 minutes, reducing heat to medium-low if sausages begin to get too dark.

Transfer sausages to plate, tent with foil, and let rest while preparing vegetables.

Heat fat left in skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add fennel, onion, salt, and pepper and cook until fennel and onion are tender and lightly browned, 6 to 9 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in olive salad. Off heat, place sausages over vegetables in skillet. Cover to keep warm.

Arrange buns on prepared sheet. Divide provolone evenly among buns. Bake until cheese is melted and buns are warm, about 3 minutes.

Place 1 sausage in each bun. Divide fennel mixture evenly among buns. Serve.