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2. Meanwhile, place a large skillet over medium heat. After about a minute, add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add the sausages (whole), and cook gently for about 15 minutes, turning them every couple of minutes, until golden brown all over. (The sausages are cooked through when no longer pink in the middle. You can check by cutting in with a small sharp knife to be sure.) Transfer the cooked sausages to a cutting board, let them cool for a few minutes, and then slice them into ¼-inch-thick rounds. Leave them there until needed.

3. Without cleaning it, return the skillet to medium-high heat, and immediately add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. After about 30 seconds, swirl to coat the pan. Add the onion, bell peppers, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and the onion is golden brown.

4. Reduce the heat to medium, then add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the cooked potatoes and the sausage rounds, and cook, stirring often, for 3 to 5 minutes, or until everything is heated through. If the mixture looks dry, stir in a tablespoon or two of water and heat briefly.

5. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper (depending on how spicy the sausage is), and serve hot or warm.

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GET CREATIVE

Top this with grated Parmesan cheese and/or chopped flat-leaf parsley.

Serve with penne pasta: Boil ½ pound of penne pasta, drain, and toss with the warm Peperoni e Salsiccia.

Serve with a green salad and some crusty bread on the side.

Make this into an open-face sandwich by piling it onto a split, toasted French roll or a slab of focaccia and topping it with grated Parmesan cheese. You can also top it with sliced mozzarella and melt the cheese briefly in the broiler or toaster oven.

If you have leftovers, reheat them for breakfast, with or without eggs and toast and maybe a few sliced tomatoes. It also makes a great omelet filling. Add some Skillet Potatoes with Fried Onions (Chapter 7: Sides) if you’re feeling ambitious and have the time.

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stir-fried broccoli beef

Makes 4 servings

Real Chinese restaurant food can be yours at home—from your own pan on your own stove, made by you. The trick, as with all stir-fries worth their salt, is to have all the ingredients ready and lined up near the stove, so you can work ultra-fast (and that means having the rice cooked, too—see Chapter 7: Sides). Notice how short the cooking time is in this recipe: 30 seconds here, 1 minute there. Take that timing literally, as a few seconds can make the difference between bright green, crisp, radiant broccoli with mouthwateringly tender, pink-in-the-middle beef…and depressing, faded broccoli mush with beef jerky (and not in a good way). So be organized, swift, and attentive, and reap the benefits. Make sure you use seasoned, not plain, rice vinegar.

2 tablespoons soy sauce

6 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar

2 teaspoons (packed) light brown sugar

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

1½ pounds flank, sirloin, rib-eye, skirt, or strip steak, about ¾-inch thick

3 tablespoons canola, soy, or peanut oil

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons minced garlic (about 6 good-sized cloves)

2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

1 large head of broccoli (1½ pounds), tough stem ends discarded, cut on the diagonal into 2-inch spears

1. Combine the soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, and sesame oil in a small bowl and whisk to blend. Set aside.

2. Slice the steak into ¼-inch-thick strips, cutting crosswise, against the grain.

3. Place a large (10-to 12-inch) heavy skillet (or a medium-large wok) over medium heat. After about a minute, add about half of the oil (approximately 1½ tablespoons) and swirl to coat the pan. Turn up the heat to medium-high, and wait another 30 seconds for the oil to get very hot, then add the steak strips in a single layer. Sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon of the salt and 1 tablespoon each of the garlic and ginger.

4. Wait for 1 minute. Then, as