I pulled together 10 of my absolute favorite ways to cook with Jimmy Dean sausage, and these are the good ones. I’m talking about recipes that go way beyond a pile of fried links on a plate. Trust me, you’re going to want to make every single one.
1. Sausage Bolognese
This sausage bolognese calls for more ingredients than anything else on the list, and yes, it takes a little time to come together. So why should you bother?
Simple. Because it’s absolutely incredible. The consistency is some kind of magic: rich, creamy, and chunky all at once, brightened up with a pour of red wine that pulls everything together beautifully.
2. Sausage Lover’s Dip
Since everyone already knows and loves sausage Rotel dip, I decided to throw a different one onto this list: the sausage lover’s dip. It uses only six simple ingredients, sausage, condensed cheddar cheese soup, diced tomatoes with green chiles, cream cheese, cheddar, and green onions, to create a dipper that’s exquisitely flavored.
This one is thick and chunky, so if you’re serving it as an appetizer, go easy. You might fill up faster than you realize.
3. Sausage Cheese Soup
This creamy, garlicky soup is thick and loaded with succulent chunks of sausage, plus a rich, earthy depth from cumin, beer, garlic, and onions. It’s unbelievably cheesy and wraps you up in that cozy comfort food feeling from the very first spoonful. The consistency and just a whisper of the flavor will remind you of your favorite sausage Rotel dip.
4. Sausage Quiche
If your morning routine needs a little something exciting, this cheesy sausage quiche is calling your name. It has a similar cozy vibe to the hash brown cups, but this one goes big in a single dish without any hash browns at all. Instead, you’ve got sausage, cheese, eggs, milk, green onions, and baking mix all baked together into a hearty slice of heaven.
5. Sausage Veggie Casserole
Sausage veggie casseroles are another hearty breakfast move that’ll keep you full and happy for hours. They combine filling protein and nutrient rich veggies with yummy cheese for a complete meal the whole family will devour. This version stars sausage, onions, hash browns, broccoli, tomatoes, cheddar cheese, eggs, milk, and a little salt and pepper for pure down home flavor.
6. Sausage Combo Pizza
You didn’t think I’d forget about sausage as a pizza topping, did you? Of course not!
There’s no way you can round up the best Jimmy Dean sausage recipes and skip pizza. This sausage combo pizza is loaded with sausage crumbles, tomato and basil pasta sauce, mushrooms, green bell peppers, onions, black olives, mozzarella cheese, and more. It’s a classic slice made extra special.
7. Sausage Hash Brown Cups
These little hash brown cups call for just eight ingredients and are a brilliant appetizer, though I’ve been known to serve them for breakfast too. Nestled right in the center of each one is a thick, juicy ball of Jimmy Dean sausage.
You’ll wrap that savory core in a crispy coat made from hash browns, olive oil, sharp cheddar, eggs, chives, salt, and pepper. These handheld, golden bites are completely irresistible.
8. Cheesy Stuffed Sausage Pasta Bake
The name of this 45 minute meal pretty much says it all. It’s supremely cheesy thanks to ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan, and packed with plenty of pasta and savory sausage.
The parsley, salt, and Italian seasoning give the whole dish a ton of flavor, and let me tell you, your house will smell amazing while this bakes in the oven. If you want to pull together a full fledged Italian meal right in your own kitchen, this easy pasta bake is the way to do it.
9. Creamy Sausage Gravy
People go on and on about that famous fast food sausage gravy. I always wonder if they know how ridiculously simple it is to whip up at home.
You need a splash of vegetable oil and four humble ingredients: sausage, flour, black pepper, and milk. This recipe makes the creamiest, most mouthwatering sausage gravy you can imagine. Once you taste it, you’ll never look back.
10. Sausage Sloppy Joes
I’ll be honest, it never once crossed my mind to turn sausage into sloppy Joes until I stumbled across this recipe a couple years back. But after that first bite?
I was completely hooked. You still get the same fantastic, nostalgic flavor of traditional sloppy Joes, all thanks to that incredible sauce made from tomato, Worcestershire, and chili sauces, plus a touch of brown sugar.