Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan [203]
2. Put the sausages in a small skillet and pierce them in several places with a sharply pointed fork. The fat that will spill through as the sausages cook will be all the fat you require. Turn the heat on to medium, and cook the sausages, turning them, until you have browned them deeply all over. Transfer them to a plate, using a slotted spoon or spatula.
3. When the cabbage is nearly done—it should be reduced to half its bulk and limp, but not yet completely soft after about 45 minutes—sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper, and add the browned sausages. Continue cooking for 20 minutes or so, until the cabbage is very soft, turning the entire contents of the pan over from time to time. Transfer to a warm platter and serve at once.
Pork Sausages with Smothered Onions and Tomatoes
For 4 servings
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups onion sliced very, very fine
1 cup canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, chopped up, with just a little of their juice, OR fresh, ripe tomatoes, peeled and cut up
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
1 yellow or red sweet bell pepper
1 pound mild pork sausage, containing no herbs or strong spices
1. Put the oil and onion in a saute pan, cover, and turn on the heat to medium. When the onion wilts and becomes much reduced in bulk, uncover the pan, turn up the heat to medium high, and cook the onion, turning it over from time to time, until it becomes colored a deep gold.
2. Add the tomatoes, salt, and pepper, stir to coat well, and turn the heat down to cook, uncovered, at a steady, but gentle simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the oil floats free from the tomatoes.
3. Skin the pepper raw with a swiveling-blade peeler, split it, remove the seeds and pulpy core, and cut it into thin long strips.
4. Add the pepper to the tomato and onion. Put in the sausage, puncturing the skin in several places with a fork. Cover the pan and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes, turning the sausages and tomatoes over from time to time.
5. Tip the pan and spoon off most of the fat. Do not discard the fat; if sausages are left over, you will need it for other dishes, see note below. Transfer the contents of the pan to a warm platter and serve at once.
Leftover note If sausage is left over, cut it into small pieces and combine it with the fat you had kept aside to form the flavor base of a risotto, see instructions or crumble it, reheat it with a little of its reserved fat, and toss it with pasta; or drain it well of fat, combine it with grated Parmesan cheese, and add to a frittata.
Ahead-of-time note The sausages may be cooked all the way to the end several hours or a day or two in advance. Do not degrease until after they have been reheated.
Pork Sausages with Black-Eyed Peas and Tomatoes
For 4 servings
2 tablespoons chopped onion
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon chopped garlic
⅓ cup chopped carrot
⅓ cup chopped celery
1 cup canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, chopped coarse, with their juice, OR fresh, ripe tomatoes, peeled and cut up
1 pound mild pork sausage, containing no herbs or strong spices
1 cup dried black-eyed peas, soaked for at least 1 hour in lukewarm water
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
1. Choose a heavy-bottomed or enameled cast-iron saucepan, put in the onion and olive oil, and turn on the heat to medium. Cook and stir the onion until it becomes colored a light gold, then add the garlic, and when the garlic becomes colored a pale blond, add the carrot and celery, stir thoroughly to coat well, and cook for 5 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes with their juice, stir to coat well, and adjust heat to cook at a gentle, but steady simmer for about 20 minutes, until the oil floats free of the tomatoes.
2. Add the sausages to the pot, puncturing them in several places with a fork. Cook at a steady simmer for about 15 minutes, turning the sausages from time to time.
3. Drain the peas and add them to the pot, together with enough fresh water to cover. Bring to a steady simmer and cover the pot tightly. Cook for about