The best slow cooker sausage casserole recipe, sausages cooked in a slow cooker with stock, onions and mushrooms. A delicious and easy to prepare slow cooker recipe idea.
The sausage, onions, mushrooms and beef stock give this dish a rich flavour. While the garlic and dried herbs add subtle notes of spice. With all these ingredients combined together, your family will love this recipe!
How to make Slow Cooker Sausage Casserole?
Watch our video to see how easy it is to prepare this hearty slow cooker meal. The majority of cooking is in the morning. Then it is left all day to cook, ready to enjoy later on in the evening.
Ingredients for sausage casserole.
The ingredients needed for cooking a sausage casserole recipe in the slow cooker are as follows.
These first 3 ingredients are best when cooked before you transfer to the slow cooker.
Sausages
We like to use good quality sausage with a high pork content, so we know exactly what we are eating! Like the Heck sausages which contain 97% pork.
Onions
We like to use red onions, white or brown onions can be used instead. Sautee the onions in olive oil in a frying pan slowly over low heat with the lid on. Cook until soft before adding a splash of balsamic vinegar to add an extra rich sweetness to the casserole.
Bacon Lardons
I love the savoury, salty flavour bacon lardons add to this sausage casserole. You can cut up stips of bacon instead.
Mushrooms
Sliced chestnut mushrooms or white mushrooms or use whole baby button mushrooms.
Sundried Tomato Puree & Garlic.
Sundried tomato puree adds a great depth and richness to the sausage casserole, it can be substituted with tomato puree.
Fresh or Dried Herbs in a slow cooker?
When using a slow cooker, it is important to use dried herbs. Due to the long period of cooking time, fresh herbs do not do well in the slow cooker.
We use dried mixed herbs and a couple of bay leaves.
If you really wanted to add fresh herbs you can add them at the end of cooking.
Cornflour
Cornflour is brilliant for slow cooker recipes as it helps thicken the sauces up. We use it in with the stock during cooking. And also add more at the end to thicken up the sausage casserole gravy.
It is important to first mix the cornflour with an equal amount of water to prevent lumps from forming.
Stock
We like to use beef stock made from a stock cube with boiling water. I highly recommend using a low salt version, the bacon is already supplying us with a salty flavour.
Do not be tempted to add more liquid, the browned sausages will be sat on top of the ingredients and won't be submerged in the liquid.
This is normal and during cooking, more liquids will be released from the food and steam. and your sausages will have liquid over them by the end of cooking time as can be seen below!
Do I have to brown sausages before slow cooking?
You don’t have to brown sausages before putting them in the slow cooker casserole dish.
But they taste and look a lot better when you do. Who wants an anaemic soft-skinned sausage on their plate?
Sausage casserole cooking time in the slow cooker?
For best results cook this simple sausage casserole in the slow cooker on the low setting for 6 hours.
If you have not got the time you can cook in the slow cooker for 4 hours on the high setting.
Slow cookers are fantastic for slow-cooked meals. However due to the lid being on during the whole cooking time the casserole is naturally going to be too runny.
To resolve this we thicken the gravy up adding cornflour in the casserole dish after it has finished cooking.
How to thicken slow cooker casserole?
If you want to make the casserole gravy thicker, after the full cooking time.
Mix 1 tablespoon of cornflour with 1 tablespoon of water, mix until lump-free, then and add to the pot.
Cook on high and keep the lid off. It will thicken within 15 to 30 minutes whilst you prepare the side dishes.
What to serve with Sausage Casserole?
We like to serve our slow cooker sausage casserole on top of a bed of creamy mashed potatoes and peas.
Alternatively, serve with roast potatoes and vegetables. On top of rice, or chop the sausages up and mix them together with freshly cooked pasta.
📖 Step by Step Recipe
Slow Cooker Sausage Casserole with Onion and Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 2 Red Onions cut into rings
- 1 teaspoon Balsamic Vinegar
- 6 Sausages
- 100 grams Bacon Lardons
- 190 grams Mushrooms We like chestnut mushrooms
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Puree or 2 cloves minced
- ½ tablespoon Sundried Tomato Puree or 1 tablespoon regular tomato puree
- 500 ml Beef Stock I reccomend using reduced salt cubes
- ½ teaspoon Mixed Herbs
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 1 tablespoon Cornflour
Instructions
- In a pan, gently sautee red onion rings in olive oil over low heat with the lid on for about 6 minutes or until soft, stirring occasionally.1 tablespoon Olive Oil, 2 Red Onions
- Add a splash of balsamic vinegar to the onions once softened and stir through with the lid off.1 teaspoon Balsamic Vinegar
- Meanwhile in another pan and fry off bacon lardons for 2 minutes.100 grams Bacon Lardons
- Place sausages in a medium hot pan, use a fork to pierce skin to allow fat to escape during cooking.6 Sausages
- Keep turning sausages until browned on all sides. They do not need to be cooked through, they will finish cooking in the slow cooker.
- Into the slow cooker add mushrooms with cooked onions and bacon lardons.190 grams Mushrooms
- Add sundried tomato puree, garlic, herbs and bay leaves.1 teaspoon Garlic Puree, ½ tablespoon Sundried Tomato Puree, ½ teaspoon Mixed Herbs, 2 Bay Leaves
- Mix together cornflour with equal amount of water until smooth and lump free.1 tablespoon Cornflour
- Pour cornflour mixture in with the beef stock and stir well.500 ml Beef Stock
- Pour stock over the top of all the ingredients and stir through.
- Pop the browned sausages on top.
- Pop the lid on. Cook for6 hours on Low (Recommended for best results)or4 hours on High
- Keep the lid on the whole time. Do not feel tempted to lift it to look inside or stir it! This will affect the total cooking time.
- After the full cooking time take the lid off and give a good stir.
- If you like a thicker gravy mix 1 tablespoon of cornflour with 1 tablespoon of water and add to the pot. Turn on high and keep the lid off. It should thicken within 15 minutes.
- Ready to serve, perfect with mashed potato
and peas.
Video
Nutrition
More Slow Cooker Recipes
If you enjoy our Slow Cooker Sausage Casserole with Onion and Mushrooms. Then you will probably like some of our other slow cooker recipes too.
Our slow cooker chilli con carne is another meaty choice.
Or check out our large choice of slow-cooked recipes for the oven.
From delicious slow-cooked Italian pot roast. Melt in your mouth Greek lamb Kleftiko or slow cooked lamb shoulder. Our popular British slow roast silverside beef or Croatian Lamb Peka, there's bound to be something you like.
Frances Webb
This recipe is absolutely delicious. I usually do the recipe for 4 people and would like to do it for 8 people. What volume slow cooker do I need for 8 people.
Marianne
A hit with my family . Made for the second time today but with more sausages for my greedy men
Luke and Kay
Thank you for taking the time to review our Slow Cooker Sausage Casserole with Onions and Mushrooms Recipe, Marianne! We're delighted to hear that it was a hit with your family and that you had to make a second serving of this delicious casserole due to the high demand from your hungry men. 🙂
Gemma
Can I freeze and reheat?
Kay
Hi Gemma, yes, you can freeze this recipe, but make sure to defrost fully and when reheating, the casserole needs to be piping hot throughout before consuming, enjoy 🙂
Mairi
I'm not very good at cooking. How much cornflour is needed for this recipe?
Kay
Thanks, Mairi, our mistake this should have been in the recipe card 🙂
Mix 1 tablespoon of cornflour with 1 tablespoon of water, mix until lump-free, then add to the pot.
Enjoy the recipe 😉
Rigby
Best Sausage Casserole I have come across, not full of tomatoes, tastes proper meaty.
Well done great recipe
Kay
Thank you so much, Elaine, for the comment and rating; it is appreciated 🙂
So pleased to hear you thought our slow cooker sausage casserole the best you have cooked 😉
Chrisi
Absolutely glorious! Best sausage casserole I’ve ever made - assuming the balsamic was what lifted it but what a great tip!
Kay
Thank you so much Chrisi 🙂
It's fantastic to hear you thought our slow cooker sausage casserole was the best you have ever made 😉
Toni
It was a huge hit at my house! I will definitely make it again!
Kay
Thank you, Tony
It's brilliant to hear that our sausage casserole was a big hit 😉
Enjoy!!
Brenda
Is it ok to double ( or more) to cater for 6 rugby hungry teenagers?
Kay
Thanks, Brenda, for the question?
Yes, you can double the ingredients; just go to the x2 section on the recipe card; that will help 🙂
Enjoy!
serena
So perfect for a chilly Saturday!
Kay
Thanks Serena 🙂
This is the perfect winter warmer recipe; enjoy!!
Amy Roskelley
This is great. Definitely share more slow cooker recipes!
Kay
Thank you so much, Amy
We will be sharing out more slow cooker recipes soon 🙂
Enjoy!!
Kayla DiMaggio
This sausage casserole was amazing! I loved all the flavors!
Kay
Thank you so much, Kayla
Glad you loved all the flavours 🙂
Audrey
My family loved this recipe and I loved it because the slow cooker makes things so easy!
Kay
Thanks, Audrey
Great to hear the family loved the slow cooker sausage casserole 🙂
Lara
My husband LOVES this meal. A real family pleaser, and perfect for a comforting weeknight dinner.
Kay
Thanks, Lara
Glad your husband liked the sausage casserole 🙂
It's a perfect winter warmer recipe 😉
Linda
Love this casserole! So easy to make and flavorful. Plus, it's my comfort food after a long hectic day
Luke
Thank you, Linda 🙂
This is the perfect winter warmer comfort food, so glad you like our sausage casserole 🙂
Enjoy!!