Homemade Italian Sausage Seasoning
Turn ground pork, beef, chicken, or turkey into flavorful Italian sausage with this homemade seasoning blend. You can also sprinkle it into soups, sauces, beans, vegetables, and casseroles whenever you want the flavor of Italian sausage without adding meat.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1½ tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- Add the fennel seeds to a spice grinder and pulse briefly until lightly crushed but not ground into a powder.Add the remaining seasonings and pulse once or twice, just until evenly combined.To make Italian sausage, mix the entire batch thoroughly into 1 pound of ground pork, beef, chicken, or turkey. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before cooking to give the seasonings time to flavor the meat.To season soups, sauces, beans, vegetables, or casseroles, add the blend a little at a time according to taste. Begin with 1 teaspoon and add more as needed.
Notes
- For spicy Italian sausage, increase the crushed red pepper flakes to ½ teaspoon.When using very lean ground meat, mix in 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil to add moisture and help distribute the seasoning.If you do not have a spice grinder, lightly crush the fennel seeds using a mortar and pestle. Then stir them together with the remaining seasonings.Because the blend contains salt, taste the finished dish before adding any additional salt.
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