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The Hairy Bikers Sausage Casserole is an indulgent and flavorful comfort food recipe you need in your life. If you aren’t familiar with Hairy Bikers recipes, you are in for a treat. You’ll love this sausage and butter bean casserole with bacon, onion, garlic, and herbs for a delicious family dinner. This sausage casserole BBC Good Food recipe was written for a UK audience, but I’ll show you how to make it across the pond too!

➕ Hairy Bikers Sausage Casserole
The sausage casserole Hairy Bikers recipe originally appeared on BBC in The Hairy Bikers: Mums Know Best episode. Here are the ingredients for this Hairy Bikers cassoulet:
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil (olive oil or sunflower oil)
- 5-12 good quality pork sausages (use 5-6 Italian sausages in the US or 12 chipolatas in the UK)
- 6 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch (2.54cm) pieces (thick-cut bacon or rashers of rindless streaky bacon)
- 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 14 ounce can diced tomatoes (400g)
- 1 ¼ cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar (either brown sugar or dark brown muscovado sugar)
- ¼ teaspoon each dried marjoram, dried basil, dried oregano, dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 fresh thyme sprigs
- 3½ fluid ounces red wine (about 0.4 cup)
- 14 ounce can butter beans, drained (400g)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Get a printable recipe card at the end of the post!
Recipe Substitutions
You may not be able to find all of the ingredients for the original Hairy Bikers casserole depending on your location. For example, the popular chipolata sausages in the UK taste like American Italian sausages, but are the size of our breakfast sausages. Using 12 Italian sausage in this recipe would be a lot of sausage, so cut it down to five or six.
You can also find Cumberland sausages in the UK; these are often sold in a long coiled link. You’d need to cut those down to use them in this recipe.
Canned butter beans may also be hard to find, though some stores sell Goya brand butter beans in a can. If you can’t find them, cook dried butter beans then drain and measure 1½ cups to use in this recipe. Alternatively, substitute the butter beans for cannellini (white kidney beans) or another white bean.
The Hairy Bikers say the wine in this recipe is optional, but we loved the extra flavour it added and would not skip it. You can use white wine if there’s no red wine in the house. I don’t recommend using beer.
Also, though you can use regular paprika in this recipe, the smoky flavor of smoked paprika here is amazing. The Hairy Bikers offer hot chilli powder as an alternative to paprika if you’d like to make it spicy.
Finally, if you’d like to change up the carbs, make a sausage casserole with potatoes. Simply skip the beans entirely and add some chopped potatoes when you add the chicken broth to the recipe (see below).
⭐ How to Make Hairy Bikers Sausage Casserole
Here are the step-by-step directions for the sausage and bean casserole Hairy Bikers’ recipe copycat:
- Heat oil over medium heat in a cast iron frying pan. Add the sausages and brown for 10-15 minutes, turning occasionally. Transfer sausages to a Dutch oven or a large flameproof casserole dish (stovetop safe) and set aside.
- Fry the bacon pieces in the frying pan until brown and crisp, and add to the sausages.
- Fry the onions in the bacon fat left in the frying pan for about 5 minutes. After they start to get soft, add the garlic and cook a few minutes more, stirring frequently. The onions should turn golden brown.
- Add in the paprika, tomatoes, chicken stock, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, sugar and herbs. Stir in the wine and let the contents of the frying pan come to a simmer.
- Carefully pour the tomato mixture in the frying pan into the sausages and bacon in the Dutch oven. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover the pan loosely with a lid, and let it simmer gently for about 20 minutes. Stir it occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Stir the butter beans into the casserole and cook for 10 minutes more, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve with rice, bread, or mashed potatoes (if desired).
We love this recipe with my air fryer garlic bread and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. It’s so hearty and filling- the perfect meal for chilly evenings! This is easily one of my favorite casserole recipes, and only slightly thicker than a stew.
FAQs
How many calories are in a sausage casserole?
According to BBC, 1/6 of the sausage casserole provides 423 calories, 23.5 grams protein, and 16 grams carbohydrates. My sausage casserole copycat recipe provides 442 calories for 1/6 of the recipe. The calories in sausage casserole depends on the ingredients in the recipe and your portion size.
How long does sausage casserole last in the fridge?
You can keep sausage casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. If you want to keep leftovers for longer, store them in the freezer.
Can you freeze sausage casserole?
Yes, this sausage casserole recipe freezes beautifully for up to 3 months. Defrost the casserole in the fridge for 24-48 hours before reheating. I like to reheat portions for 1-2 minutes on high in the microwave.
How to make a slow cooker sausage casserole Hairy Bikers recipe?
Make this a slow cooker sausage casserole by transferring the fried ingredients to a crock pot instead of a casserole dish. Slow cook for 3-4 hours on low instead of simmering them on the stove.
👩🍳 More Sausage Recipes
After you make this simple sausage casserole, here are more sausage recipes to try:
- Instant Pot Italian Sausage Soup
- How to Cook Chicken Sausage
- Chicken Feta Sausage Recipe
- Air Fryer Sausage and Peppers
- Pork Sausage in Air Fryer
- Polish Sausage in Air Fryer
- Homemade Italian Fennel Sausage (this one would be perfect to use in this recipe)
Watch How to Make It!
Hairy Bikers Sausage Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil (olive oil or sunflower oil)
- 5-12 good quality pork sausages (use 5-6 Italian sausages in the US or 12 chipolatas in the UK)
- 6 slices bacon cut into 1-inch (2.54cm) pieces (thick-cut bacon or rashers of rindless streaky bacon)
- 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 14 ounces canned diced tomatoes (400g)
- 1 ¼ cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar (either brown sugar or dark brown muscovado sugar)
- ¼ teaspoon dried marjoram
- ¼ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 fresh thyme sprigs
- 3½ fluid ounces red wine (about 0.4 cup)
- 14 ounces canned butter beans drained (400g)
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat oil over medium heat in a cast iron frying pan. Add the sausages and brown for 10-15 minutes, turning occasionally. Transfer sausages to a Dutch oven or a large flameproof casserole dish (stovetop safe) and set aside.
- Fry the bacon pieces in the frying pan until brown and crisp, and add to the sausages.
- Fry the onions in the bacon fat left in the frying pan for about 5 minutes. After they start to get soft, add the garlic and cook a few minutes more, stirring frequently. The onions should turn golden brown.
- Add in the paprika, tomatoes, chicken stock, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, sugar and herbs. Stir in the wine and let the contents of the frying pan come to a simmer.
- Carefully pour the tomato mixture in the frying pan into the sausages and bacon in the Dutch oven. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover the pan loosely with a lid, and let it simmer gently for about 20 minutes. Stir it occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Stir the butter beans into the casserole and cook for 10 minutes more, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve with rice, bread, or mashed potatoes (if desired).
Notes
💭 Expert Tips from Dietitian Summer Yule
This is a level 3 recipe (weight maintenance and active lifestyles). This sausage casserole recipe isn’t exactly a one pot meal, because it really benefits from the addition of bread, rice, or potatoes. Also, though it provides some protein and fiber, it’s relatively high in fat due to the sausages and bacon. To lighten up this meal, you could use chicken sausage or make it a vegetarian sausage casserole. Another great lower calorie option is to make a Hairy Dieters sausage casserole using less oil, more vegetables, and no bacon. Here is an example that adds carrots and celery to the dish. Nutrition information is for one serving and varies according to the ingredients you use.
nutrition info disclaimer
All recipes on this website may or may not be appropriate for you, depending on your medical needs and personal preferences. Consult with a registered dietitian or your physician if you need help determining the dietary pattern that may be best for you.
The nutrition information is an estimate provided as a courtesy. It will differ depending on the specific brands and ingredients that you use. Calorie information on food labels may be inaccurate, so please don’t sweat the numbers too much.
“To taste” means to your preferences, which may have to be visual to follow food safety rules. Please don’t eat undercooked food x
Nutrition
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Hello! I’m Summer, a registered dietitian and home chef who loves to cook, eat, and create recipes for you! Every recipe on this site has been tested by me to help ensure your success in the kitchen. All eaters are welcome here 🙂