Having a few fast dinner recipes like this easy spicy sausage fried rice dish in your repertoire is perfect for a bigger family. This simple meal comes together really fast making it a wonderful meal for weekdays! The hot Italian sausage meat infuses the whole dish with delicious flavor, and the peppers give a nice crunch. This adaptable recipe can be varied in so many ways for your family, making it an excellent stand-by.
Everyone loves a good fried rice dish. Best of all, they are inexpensive to make and fill everyone up for the evening. Families can benefit from having a few recipes like this spicy sausage fried rice to count on when busy schedules keep time in the kitchen down. In fact, this fried rice comes together in under an hour!
This particular dish was the brainchild of my son. We had fun tweaking it to have just the right blend of spices and vegetables for a satisfying family dinner.
Expert Tips:
Basmati works excellently for this fried rice recipe; as an added bonus, it is prebiotic. Gut health is essential to our family and so anything that aids in that area the better. White basmati is used in this recipe with a healthy dose of hot Italian sausage meat, which we get from a local grocer. The grocer has the best store-made sausage meat for this dish. However, you could use any sausage meat, really. If you don’t like hot Italian, use the one that best suits your taste.
The jalapeno peppers offer a bit of crunch and heat, but most of the spice comes from the Italian sausage. So if you switch up your sausage meat and still want the heat, add some hotter pepper like a scotch bonnet. Just don’t go overboard if you still want to taste the combined flavors of this delicious dinner dish.
Keep an eye on the pan, especially after adding the rice, as this can stick fast. So having extra oil on hand is a good idea. If you add oil and still find the rice sticking, adding some moisture with water is okay. That rice sure does like to soak up the juices!
Follow these steps for your whole spicy sausage fried rice.
To get started, cook your rice. It’s straightforward following the water-to-rice ratio on the package of rice. Then, I recommend adding a large bag of rice that reseals to your pantry. It’s a very budget-friendly carbohydrate to have on hand at dinner time. Rice also has the added benefit of a very long shelf life. In fact, stored correctly, it can last up to 30 years! The average home doesn’t need to worry about having rice that long though.
So once you have cooked your rice, set it aside and work on prepping the vegetables. You want to cut the celery into small slices, the jalapeno into small pieces (the smaller the chunks, the less heat you will notice), the bell pepper into mid-size pieces, and the green onion also chopped up. It’s important to note here we are separating the white part of the green onion from its green stems.
After you have chopped all of the veggies, you are ready to start cooking. We are adding a splash of olive oil to our pan with the sausage meat. You don’t need a bunch and can add more while cooking. Break the sausage meat apart as it is cooking with your spatula. You want to get a nice brown on the sausage before adding the frozen peas. Those peas need to have the ice melted out of them before adding the jalapeno. That jalapeno is a thicker-skinned little pepper, so cooking it for a bit longer won’t make it mushy.
The next step is to add the rice. We used six cups; you could add more if you have a bigger family. Reserve the white rice for another recipe or to add to the dinner as people like. Adding a bit to the meal when it is finished will reduce its overall heat, which is great for those with a more heat-sensitive palette.
You may notice things drying out after adding the rice and stirring it. Adding more oil is okay; after all, we are frying the rice. But don’t overdo the oil. If you find it’s sticking too much, add a bit of water to help keep it from burning. Reduce the heat on the stove as well while cooking. If you use too high of a temperature on the element is guaranteed to spell disaster.
Add the remaining ingredients after having cooked the jalapenos with rice for a minute. We want these veggies to soften but still be crisp, so watch for overcooking. At this stage, we add our spice and stir the mixture constantly to avoid sticking.
You will know when it’s done because the red bell pepper looks like it’s starting to cook. Serve the spicy sausage fried rice with the chopped green onion as a garnish. Enjoy your dinner, knowing you spent only a few dollars on feeding your whole family.
You can use leftovers from this dinner easily as it is great reheated in a frying pan with more oil! They also make a great hot lunch should you work in a place with a microwave. What’s better than a budget-friendly tasty meal that can be reheated so none goes to waste?
Substitution ideas for spicy sausage fried rice.
As stated above, switching the hot Italian sausage out for your favorite sausage meat is fine. However, if you want dinner to still be spicy, add some other hotter peppers instead of the jalapenos. Alternatively, you could also add a splash of hot sauce. In fact, while making this dish, my son threatened me with doing so. Uh, no thanks. I like spice, not burning your mouth hot.
We added classic peas to this fried rice; however, corn would work instead as well.
Green onions were used for this dish, but a regular cooking onion could also be tasty if sauteed with the sausage meat.
Red bell peppers offer a sweet reprieve from the spice and a nice splash of color; however, a yellow or orange bell pepper would be just as yummy.
If you don’t have white basmati rice on hand, other rice that would work for fried rice is; Jasmine, Japanese-sushi, brown, wild, black/forbidden. Note: it’s essential to familiarize yourself with various kinds of rice as not all rice is the same in texture, flavor, and cooking.
Easy Spicy Sausage Fried Rice
Equipment
- 1 Large Pot
- 1 Deep Saute Pan Or Wok
- 1 Spatula Or other stirring tool
- 1 Teaspoon
Ingredients
Rice
- 3 Cup White Basmati Rice
- 6 Cups Water
Spicy Sausage Fried Rice
- 1 Lbs Ground Hot Italian Sausage Meat
- 2 Cups Frozen Peas
- 6 Cups Cooked White Basmati Rice
- 2 Jalapenos Seeded and Diced
- 1 Bell Pepper Seeding and Cut Into Chunks
- 3 Green Onion Whites Separated From Green Stem
- 4 Stalks of Celery Sliced
- 1 Tsp Seasoned Salt
- ½ Tsp Garlic Powder
- 3 Tbsp Olive Oil
Instructions
Cook the Basmati Rice
- Follow the directions on the package. And cook, set aside to cool.
Spicy Sausage Fried Rice
- Add the olive oil to your saute pan or wok. Add in the ground Italian sausage.
- Break the sausage meat apart as it browns.
- Add in the frozen peas and let dethaw in sausage meat. Stir frequently.
- Add the diced jalapenos and cook for one minute.
- Measuring and add six cups of cooked rice. Less or more as desired.
- Stir well before adding in the remaining veggies less the green onion stems.
- Mix the vegetables into the rice and sausage mixture. Be careful to keep stirring so it doesn't stick.
- Add more oil or a bit of water as desired to keep it from sticking.
- Let veggies cook in rice until red peppers start to soften.
- Add the seasoned salt and garlic powder while stirring the veggies and rice mixture.
- Serve with garnish of green onions.
- Add remaining white rice to table for people to add in if they find the dish too spicy.