Slow Cooker Sausage and Sweet Potato Stew. A proposed slow-cooker stew with browned pork Italian sausage, tender sweet potatoes, tomatoes and kale. The formula and timing below are working estimates for a future kitchen trial, not a claim that a batch has been made.
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A different sausage soup for a cold day
This stew brings together browned sweet Italian pork sausage and tender sweet-potato cubes in tomato broth, with chopped kale folded in near the end. The sausage is cooked in a skillet before the slow cooker phase, which develops browning and allows its safe temperature to be verified. The cooker then softens the vegetables with little attention.
This is a proposed six-bowl formula, not a tested dinner. The five-hour-fifty-minute total is conservative and includes sausage browning, a five-hour low cook and the final kale interval. A particular slow cooker may finish the potatoes earlier or later.
Raw sausage needs its own stage
Use raw sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed, rather than assuming a smoked, fully cooked link is interchangeable. Break up and brown it in a skillet, checking that the raw ground-pork sausage reaches 160°F. USDA FSIS gives that temperature for uncooked pork sausage; browning color alone is not a thermometer reading.
Drain excess fat so the broth does not become greasy. Sweet potatoes should be in even three-quarter-inch cubes so they soften at similar speed. A small can crushed tomatoes and three cups low-sodium broth create the liquid; a different sausage and broth brand can shift salt substantially.
Kale is measured after tough stems are removed and is added in the final fifteen minutes. If placed in for the full long cook, it may lose its texture and color. The card contains no lentils, differentiating it from Chefly's existing sausage-lentil soup.
Ingredients for 6 bowls
| Ingredient | Amount | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Raw sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed | 1 pound | Brown and cook to 160°F before transferring. |
| Sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes | 1 1/2 pounds | Keep pieces even. |
| Yellow onion, diced | 1 onion | Base vegetable. |
| Garlic cloves, minced | 3 cloves | Add to slow cooker. |
| Crushed tomatoes | 14 ounces | One small can with juices. |
| Low-sodium chicken broth | 3 cups | Check package ingredients. |
| Dried Italian seasoning | 1 teaspoon | Herb mix. |
| Fine salt | 1/2 teaspoon | Adjust with sausage and broth brand. |
| Black pepper | 1/4 teaspoon | Seasoning. |
| Chopped kale leaves, stems removed | 3 cups | Stir near the end. |
Step-by-step method
- In a skillet break up 1 lb raw sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed. Cook over medium heat about 10–15 minutes until browned and a food thermometer confirms 160°F in the ground-meat pieces. Drain excess rendered fat.
- Place 1 1/2 lb sweet-potato cubes and 1 diced onion in a 6-quart slow cooker. Add the cooked sausage, 3 minced garlic cloves, one 14-oz can crushed tomatoes, 3 cups low-sodium broth, 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp fine salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cover and cook on low about 4–5 hours until sweet potatoes are tender.
- Stir in 3 cups chopped stemmed kale and cook covered about 10–15 minutes until wilted and stew is hot. Taste and record salt and broth thickness for a kitchen test; if desired, mash a few sweet-potato cubes to thicken without adding unmeasured starch.
- Divide into six bowls. Cool leftovers promptly in shallow containers and reheat chilled stew to 165°F on the stovetop or in a microwave or oven, not in the slow cooker.
From skillet to slow cooker
Cook sausage to 160°F, drain and transfer over the sweet potatoes and onion. Add garlic, tomatoes, broth, seasoning, salt and pepper. Follow the six-quart appliance's fill guidance and cover; a lid lifted repeatedly may extend the cooking time.
Check after roughly four hours on low for tender potato cubes, allowing up to five hours in this draft. The stew should have distinct orange pieces rather than a completely puréed base. If a thicker result is wanted, mash a few cooked pieces with a spoon; record whether that is needed in the actual trial.
Stir in stemmed kale and give it ten to fifteen minutes under the lid. Taste after the sausage and broth have seasoned the liquid, not before. Portion into six bowls without bread included in the recipe yield.
When the texture wanders
If potatoes are falling apart, they may have been cut too small or cooked too long. Record the cube size and cooker setting before revising the time. If they remain hard when the broth is hot, extend the covered cook rather than serving a crunchy center.
If the broth tastes salty, the sausage or stock may be contributing more than expected. The proposed half teaspoon added salt should be retested with named products. If fat pools on top, skim rather than stirring all of it back in.
Food.com's turkey-sausage stew uses smoked turkey links, beans and thickening tapioca. This independently written pork-and-kale batch should not inherit its ten-hour clock or its nutrition panel. A heat-safe thermometer is still needed for the raw sausage stage.
Leftovers and a serving idea
Serve with crusty bread if desired, but bread is not included in six stew portions or the image prompt. Chefly's sausage-lentil soup offers a different legume-forward bowl; if the site's complete body inventory reveals a sweet-potato version hidden under another title, this candidate should convert to an update.
Cool and refrigerate leftovers promptly. USDA guidance calls for reheating leftovers to 165°F and does not recommend reheating cold food in a slow cooker. A final quality window and whether sweet-potato cubes stay intact after refrigeration need a kitchen test.
Questions before cooking
Can I use a precooked sausage?
That is a different ingredient and timing. The base uses raw pork sausage, browned and checked to 160°F before slow cooking.
When does kale go in?
Near the end, about ten to fifteen minutes before serving, so it wilts without cooking for five hours.
Can I reheat it on the keep-warm setting?
Do not use the slow cooker to reheat chilled leftovers. Heat to 165°F using a stove, microwave or oven.
Further reading and related Chefly recipes: Food.com's turkey-sausage and sweet-potato stew; Chefly sausage lentil soup. These are relevant references and other dishes, not evidence that this proposed formula was tested.
Recipe-card handoff — preview, not a native plugin card
Slow Cooker Sausage and Sweet Potato Stew. Category: Dinners. 6 bowls. Prep approximately 20 minutes; cooking approximately 330 minutes; additional cooling/chilling approximately 0 minutes; total approximately 350 minutes excluding preheat. Not kitchen-tested; nutrition not calculated.
Ingredients: 1 pound Raw sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed; 1 1/2 pounds Sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes; 1 onion Yellow onion, diced; 3 cloves Garlic cloves, minced; 14 ounces Crushed tomatoes; 3 cups Low-sodium chicken broth; 1 teaspoon Dried Italian seasoning; 1/2 teaspoon Fine salt; 1/4 teaspoon Black pepper; 3 cups Chopped kale leaves, stems removed.
Instructions: In a skillet break up 1 lb raw sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed. Cook over medium heat about 10–15 minutes until browned and a food thermometer confirms 160°F in the ground-meat pieces. Drain excess rendered fat. Place 1 1/2 lb sweet-potato cubes and 1 diced onion in a 6-quart slow cooker. Add the cooked sausage, 3 minced garlic cloves, one 14-oz can crushed tomatoes, 3 cups low-sodium broth, 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp fine salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cover and cook on low about 4–5 hours until sweet potatoes are tender. Stir in 3 cups chopped stemmed kale and cook covered about 10–15 minutes until wilted and stew is hot. Taste and record salt and broth thickness for a kitchen test; if desired, mash a few sweet-potato cubes to thicken without adding unmeasured starch. Divide into six bowls. Cool leftovers promptly in shallow containers and reheat chilled stew to 165°F on the stovetop or in a microwave or oven, not in the slow cooker.
Allergens: Check sausage casing/seasoning and broth for wheat, soy, milk and other allergens. Review packaged ingredients and cross-contact before serving.
Print
Slow Cooker Sausage and Sweet Potato Stew
- Total Time: 350 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Six bowls of sweet-potato and pork-sausage stew with tomato and kale.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Raw sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed
- 1 1/2 pounds Sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
- 1 onion Yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves Garlic cloves, minced
- 14 ounces Crushed tomatoes
- 3 cups Low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon Dried Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon Fine salt
- 1/4 teaspoon Black pepper
- 3 cups Chopped kale leaves, stems removed
Instructions
- In a skillet break up 1 lb raw sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed. Cook over medium heat about 10–15 minutes until browned and a food thermometer confirms 160°F in the ground-meat pieces. Drain excess rendered fat.
- Place 1 1/2 lb sweet-potato cubes and 1 diced onion in a 6-quart slow cooker. Add the cooked sausage, 3 minced garlic cloves, one 14-oz can crushed tomatoes, 3 cups low-sodium broth, 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp fine salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cover and cook on low about 4–5 hours until sweet potatoes are tender.
- Stir in 3 cups chopped stemmed kale and cook covered about 10–15 minutes until wilted and stew is hot. Taste and record salt and broth thickness for a kitchen test; if desired, mash a few sweet-potato cubes to thicken without adding unmeasured starch.
- Divide into six bowls. Cool leftovers promptly in shallow containers and reheat chilled stew to 165°F on the stovetop or in a microwave or oven, not in the slow cooker.
Notes
Recipe-development draft; not kitchen-tested. Timing and yield are estimates. Nutrition has not been calculated.
Untested conservative estimate: brown fresh pork sausage 15 minutes, slow-cook up to 5 hours on low, wilt kale 15 minutes. Sausage must reach 160°F; actual cooker timing varies.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 330 minutes
- Category: Dinners
Nutrition
- Serving Size: One sixth of the finished stew without bread
