Low Sodium Italian Sausage Homemade - Tasty, Healthy Heart Recipes (2024)

To me breakfast is missing something without sausage, I meancome on it’s hard enough not having bacon right? So I just had to create a homemade low sodiumItalian sausage to go with my eggs and toast. Sausage can be made much moreheart-healthy by eliminating the salt. It also lowers the saturated fat by overhalf from the recipe using better meat. As a bonus, it can be cheaperand free of preservatives than what comes from the store.

LOW SODIUM ITALIAN SAUSAGE PATTIES OR LINKS

Sodium Total 232 mg – Sodium / Serving 29 mg – Calories / Serving 119

The best advantage to homemade sausage making is that you canuse ingredients that match your tastes and health requirements. With storebought sausage hitting almost 400 mg of sodium for one 2 oz. patty, it’s enoughto ruin your breakfast. The reduced sodium is overcome by using a bit more hotpeppers and fresh ground fennel than usual.And when the fennel and leafy spices are fresh ground, that flavor isreally going to do a savory hit job on your taste buds!

YOU CONTROL THE INGREDIENTS

By making your own low sodium sausage you have completecontrol over the ingredients you put into your mix. One of the biggest reasonssalt has always been used in sausage making is because of its preservationvalue for storage. Fortunately thisrequirement is not nearly as important these days. Sausage can now obviously be kept by freezingor refrigerating it, and the salt in most recipes is there simply to (overly?)enhance the flavor.

You might not like it, but no sausage is without fat.If even this is too much for you, you might want to avoid it all together. Whileeven though homemade Italian sausage is mostly prepared using pork, it is notbound to it. You can also use ground turkey if you’d like. Just make sure touse cooking spray on the skillet first because turkey has such a low fatcontent it will really stick to the pan otherwise.

Besides making just breakfast patties you can also use it crumbledin the ubiquitous sausage gravy. Or Italian sausagemeatballs with pasta by mixing in another pound of ground chicken or turkey androll them into meatballs. Cook and chop into crumbles and spread over ahomemade low sodium pizza. Use where you would have used a pre-made processedsausage before.

UPDATE: HOW TO MAKE SAUSAGE PATTIES

To make a perfect sausage patty use a mason jar lid. It holds about 1.5 oz. of meat when even with the lid rim. Just smush it in till even with the rim and then push the center of the lid out from the back. Perfect looking and a great size for cooking!

When mixing the sausage and spices be sure to really get in there and smush things together. I got lazy the last time I made them and end up with a couple pockets of spice that didn’t get mixed in. Not entirely pleasant when it is concentrated like that when chewing!

While you need to get everything well mixed with your hands try to keep the sausage as cold as possible at all times. From what I understand if the existing fat “melts” it results in a dry sausage patty. Mix it cold and after you’ve made the patties it’s probable best to refrigerate till ready to cook.

This is why I add a bit of olive oil into the mix so it has a bit more fat content. I also put a heavy spritz of olive oil cooking spray in the pan before putting a new group of patties in.

GOOD THINGS COME IN THE END

After all that and you mouth now watering, you willprobably be disappointed that you can’t cook and eat it right away. Thesausages need to be stored in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 8hours before cooking to let the seasoning mingle. However, it’s well worth thewait. This is another recipe that is good to make in a large batch. Form andfreeze the uncooked patties to be thawed and cooked when needed.

Preparing this great spicy Italian sausage recipe is reallyeasy. I like it just as well as its saltier store bought counterparts. Youwon’t miss the salt and you’ll have a healthy lowered sodium and fat sausageyou’ll want again and again.

Nutrition Information – The information shown is provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be substituted for a doctor’s or nutritionist’s advice. Please understand that not everyone’s sodium requirements are the same, therefore some recipes may be higher than you’re allowed. Always consult with your doctor for your recommended daily sodium allowance.

OTHER RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE

• Spicy Low Sodium Chorizo
• Low Sodium Southwest Wrap
• Warm Low Sodium Buttermilk Pancakes

As always, please let me know how you like this recipe in the comments! I get motivated when I hear from you and am interested to learn about how you liked and served your low sodium Italian sausage. And please share any tips you might have.