Cooking Spicy Calabrian Fennel Sausages

Italian fennel sausages typically come in either sweet or spicy hot.  These traditional all-pork Italian sausages are made with fennel seed, Calabrian chili, paprika, and garlic, and are on the hot side, though not blisteringly hot.  These Calabrian chilis are pickled and preserved in olive oil.  Their brilliant red color tints the sausage brightly.   

Cook the sausages over medium heat in a cast iron skillet or on the grill, about 7 minutes on each side, until browned nicely and cooked through, about 14-15 minutes altogether. They are delicious with arugula and pickled onions; uncased, they’re perfect in pasta with rapini and white beans (squeeze them out of the casing, crumble and fry the sausage meat before adding to the pasta); or, my favorite way, on toasted ciabatta with vinegary grilled green peppers and onions.  Kept in your refrigerator, they will last perfectly for 5 or 6 days, and can be frozen for up to three months.