Ingredients
2 pounds Italian hot and/or sweet sausages
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided
1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seed
1 red chili pepper, thinly sliced
2 cubanelle peppers, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
2 large red or yellow onions, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
1 can tomato sauce or stewed tomatoes (15 ounces)
A generous handful of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 loaf ciabatta bread
Directions
Place the sausages in a high-sided skillet or Dutch oven and cover with 1 inch of water and add 1 tablespoon EVOO to the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat a bit and allow the water to boil away. The sausages will gently cook through in the water, and then the EVOO will crisp the casings up to a deep brown.
Remove the sausages to a plate.
Heat the remaining EVOO, a couple of turns of the pan, in the same skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the fennel seed and chili pepper, then add in the peppers, onions and garlic as you slice them. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 15 minutes to soften. Stir in the tomato paste for 1 minute, then the wine for 1 minute more. Add the chicken stock and tomato sauce or stewed tomatoes. Finish with parsley.
Slice the sausages on an angle and add them to the pot. Cover, cool completely and store for a make-head meal. Reheat, covered, over medium heat or in oven on moderate heat.
Crisp up chunks of bread in a warm oven just before serving for mopping up your plate!
Cook's note: Wrap the bread in plastic or freeze if not using within 24 hours.
