This recipe makes crumbled Italian sausage, not the kind in a case. But it starts from ground turkey so it’s super easy. But why would anyone want to make Italian sausage rather than just buying it? Because I can’t find it in my grocery store anymore! Italian turkey sausage is a critical ingredient in Spaghetti Sauce, Lasagna, Risot, and Italian Sausage Soup. We eat it about every 2 weeks, on average. I can find pork based Italian sausage, but I don’t like eating all that saturated fat. Fortunately, this combination of spices, along with a pound of lean ground turkey, tastes great and makes a perfect substitute for Italian turkey sausage. It’s also really easy and uses common spices. The only thing I had to buy was fennel seeds, because I don’t usually cook with those.
This recipe doesn’t include garlic or red pepper, but you could certainly add a bit of both if you are so inclined.
The most noticeable difference between this version and regular ground turkey sausage is the size of the crumbles. Ground turkey breaks up into very small pieces when I brown it, but regular Italian sausage remains in slightly larger chunks. I don’t think this is a major problem.
Maybe someday my grocery store will be well stocked again, and I won’t need to make my own Italian turkey sausage. But I’ve also struggled to find it when we travel and rent a VRBO. Yes, I like to cook when we travel too, and spaghetti is always a quick reliable option. With this spice combination, I plan to carry a little Ziploc bag with the right spices already measured out.
Italian Turkey Sausage
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds whole or crushed
- 1 lb. ground turkey
Instructions
- Measure the seasonings into a pan.
- Mix and toast them lightly over medium heat.
- Add the ground turkey to the pan, and combine with the spice mixture as you brown and break up the turkey.
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