Easy Smoked Sausage and Rice Skillet is an easy, family loved, main dish packed with tons of flavor that is ready in just 30 minutes. It’s the perfect weeknight meal when need to get dinner on the table fast.
The first time I made this Easy Smoked Sausage and Rice Skillet I wasn’t all that sold on it. It was good, but I thought it had the potential to be a lot better. I spent a little time in the kitchen adding some ingredients and a couple spices. After a few tries my husband gave me the thumbs up I knew it was perfect.
I always keep a package of smoked sausage on hand because it is so versatile. Not only can you use it in a rice dish like this one or in this recipe for Easy Red Beans and Rice but it can also be a great accompaniment for pasta like in this recipe for Spicy Sausage and Penne Pasta. Another great reason to keep Smoked Sausage in the fridge or freezer is that it is inexpensive. Let’s face it nothing is better than inexpensive and delicious!
What is the difference between smoked sausage and kielbasa?
Smoked sausage can be made from several types of ground meat; like pork, turkey or beef. These sausages can also be made from a combination of any of these meats. Kielbasa or Polish Kielbasa is also a smoked sausage but is typically made from ground pork.
For this recipe you can use just about any kind of smoked sausage you’d like. Use smoked turkey or turkey kielbasa for a healthier twist on this recipe.
To make this recipe you will need:
- smoked sausage
- mozzarella cheese
- rice (white or brown)
- onion
- red bell pepper
- garlic
- olive oil
- tomato sauce
- chicken broth
- paprika
- red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper
How to make Smoked Sausage and Rice in a skillet:
This dish is really, really easy to make. Begin by preparing white or brown rice according to package directions. While the rice is cooking thinly slice a smoked sausage or kielbasa.
Next, thinly slice up a small yellow onion and a red bell pepper. Then mince three cloves of garlic and set everything aside.
Warm a tablespoon of olive oil and the sausage over medium high heat. Stir occasionally until the sausage starts to brown.
Add sliced onion, bell peppers, and garlic to pan. Stirring occasionally. Cook until onions and peppers are tender.
Add in Paprika, Red Pepper Flakes, tomato sauce and chicken broth, stir to combine. Bring everything to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Allow to simmer for ten minutes.
At the end of ten minutes combine mixture with rice and stir in Mozzarella cheese. I like to garnish this with a little fresh parsley.
That is all there is to making this easy dish. It’s a great one to keep in your pocket for those hectic nights when dinner needs to be fast.
Looking for more great easy dinner ideas? Check these out:
Ranch Pork Chop and Potatoes Sheet Pan Dinner
Happy Cooking Y’all!
Susanne
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Easy Smoked Sausage and Rice Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 package smoked sausage sliced thin
- 3 cups rice
- 1 small yellow onion sliced
- 1 red bell pepper sliced
- 3 cloves garlic finely diced or one teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 15 oz can tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup Mozzarella cheese shredded
- 1/2 teaspoon Paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
Instructions
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Prepare rice according to package directions.
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Heat olive oil and sausage in a large skillet or dutch oven until sausage starts to brown.
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Add onion, bell peppers, and garlic cook until onions and peppers are tender.
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Pour tomato sauce and chicken broth to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer for 10 minutes.
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At the end of 10 minutes remove from heat.
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Stir in rice and Mozzarella cheese.
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Garnish with freshly chopped parsley if desired.
That looks delicious and certainly comes together fast enough! I am definitely going to have to keep this one on hand!
Carlee it is so easy. We loved it and the leftovers the next day were just as good. Thanks for stopping by!
Susanne
This looks delish! Is that 3 cups COOKED rice, or 3 cups raw, before cooking?
Val you will need to prepare the rice according to the package directions and then add it in cooked. Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope you love this recipe as much as we did.
Susanne
Please edit your recipe to clarify it is 3c cooked rice./how much uncooked.. I cooked 1c of rice thinking that it called for 3c of uncooked rice. My entire meal is thrown off because I’ve been halving the entire recipe…… I read the comments AFTER the fact… and realized I’d make a huge mistake.
Thanks
I just made this for my family. So cheap, easy, and delicious (my favorite combo, lol). Even the kids love it! Thank you so much!
Jennifer,
I’m so glad your family loved this recipe! I agree frugal and delicious is the best combo!
Susanne
Great dish! I used my instant pot to cook the rice while I prepped everything else. Used a different brand of sausage, and it was great! Kind of a Jambalaya dish, and so good! Thanks for posting it. It’s a keeper!!
I made this yesterday and I absolutely loved it! it was very easy and fast. The only thing I did different was I was out of mozzarella, so I used a Mex blend of cheeses. Also I was a bit confused on the directions as to whether you meant 3 cups of uncooked rice, or 3 cups of cooked rice. But judging by the amount of the rest of the ingredients, I figured 3 cups of uncooked rice would be way too much. So I cooked 1 cup of uncooked rice, added it to the sauce and that was the perfect amount. Delicious recipe, going into my rotation. Thanks for sharing!