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State Fair Sausage & Pepper Sandwich

“How ‘bout a nice sausage sandwich?” From 1983 to 1988 my partner, Mike, and I belted that line out thousands of times at fairs and festivals up and down the East Coast. Those were the days of Dinosaur Concessions, when we made our living slingin’ sausage and charbroilin’ steak for sandwiches. We pretty much retired from the fair business in 1988 when we opened the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. But ten years later we were back at it again. In 1998 we joined forces with Steve Davis from Gianelli Sausage, whose family stand has been a mainstay at the New York State Fair for as long as I can remember. Gianelli (see Resources, page 175) makes a great sausage—lean, yet packed with flavor— just great for our State Fair Sausage & Pepper Sandwich and all our other sausage specialties.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    feeds 6

Ingredients

2 tablespoons plus 1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 large onions, sliced into thick strips
1 large red bell pepper, sliced into thick strips
1 large green pepper, sliced into thick strips
Kosher salt and black pepper
2 pounds Italian sausage, hot or sweet
6 crusty submarine rolls

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Slap 2 skillets on the stove. Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in one and 1/4 cup olive oil in the other. Dump the onions and peppers into the one with less oil and cook over medium-high heat, seasoning with salt and pepper. Heat the skillet with the larger amount of oil over medium heat for several minutes. Slide the sausages into the pan. Cook for 15 minutes, or til they just lose their pinkness inside. Pull the sausages out of the pan and nestle them into the peppers and onions.

    Step 2

    Slice up the rolls and stuff them full with sausages and peppers. Serve ‘em up nice and hot with lots of napkins.

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que Ten Speed Press
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