Gordon Ramsay Spicy Sausage Rice Recipe

Gordon Ramsay’s spicy sausage rice is a one-pot dish of Italian sausage meat crumbled out of its casing, seared with red onion, pepper, and smoked paprika, then simmered with rice in chicken stock and white wine. Everything cooks in one pan in about 30 minutes.

This recipe comes from the Ultimate Cookery Course cookbook and his YouTube video where he calls it “an amazing way to take spicy Italian sausages to a completely different level.” He describes it as “like an old-fashioned jambalaya, a bit like risotto but without the need for stirring.”

The technique that makes this better than other sausage rice recipes is what Ramsay calls “blasting the rice.” Before adding any liquid, he sears the dry rice in the pan for 30 seconds so it absorbs all the fat, paprika, and sausage flavour. Then the wine deglazes the pan and “washes all that flavour from the bottom of the pan into the rice.” Every grain ends up seasoned from the inside out.

Gordon Ramsay Spicy Sausage Rice Recipe

Recipe by Sophie LaneCourse: DinnerCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

25

minutes

Calories

520

kcal

Total time

35

minutes

One-pot spicy sausage rice from Gordon Ramsay’s Ultimate Cookery Course. Italian sausage meat crumbled from the casing, seared with smoked paprika, simmered in stock with rice. His famous “blasting the rice” technique.

Ingredients

• Olive oil, for frying

• 1 red onion, peeled and sliced

• 1 red pepper, deseeded and chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced

• 5 spiced sausages, such as Italian chilli

• 1 heaped tsp smoked paprika

• 200g (7 oz) long-grain rice

• ½ glass of white wine

• 500ml (17 fl oz) chicken stock

• 4 spring onions, trimmed and chopped

• 1 tomato, chopped

• Small bunch of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

• Fry the onion: Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a heavy-based casserole dish over medium heat. Fry the red onion for 5 minutes until soft but not coloured. Ramsay says you can “never rush cooking an onion” and to always give it 5 to 6 minutes.
• Add pepper and garlic: Add the chopped red pepper and sliced garlic. Cook for 2 minutes. Don’t dice the pepper too fine because it needs to hold its texture through 20 minutes of cooking.
• Crumble the sausage: Turn the heat up to maximum. Slit the sausage skins and crumble the meat directly into the pan. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes until coloured. Ramsay says to turn the heat up because “the minute that sausage goes in everything cools down.”
• Add paprika: Stir in the smoked paprika and mix through. Season with salt and pepper.
• Blast the rice: Add the rice and stir well for about 30 seconds so it absorbs the fat and flavour. Ramsay calls this “blasting the rice” and it’s what gives every grain that smoky, spiced taste.
• Deglaze and simmer: Pour in the white wine and scrape any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add the chicken stock, bring to a simmer, turn the heat down, and cook gently for 15 to 20 minutes until the rice is tender and the liquid is almost entirely absorbed.
• Finish off the heat: Remove from the heat. Gently fold in the spring onions, chopped tomato, and parsley. Ramsay is specific about turning the gas off first so “everything doesn’t become overcooked.”

Notes

Ramsay says you can use any sausage: “chorizo, merguez, pork or beef, depending on how spicy you want it.” The stock-to-rice ratio is 2:1. If using chorizo, skip the extra paprika. This keeps well in the fridge for 2 days and reheats with a splash of stock.

FAQs

Why does Ramsay take the sausage out of its casing?

This is the key to the whole recipe. Ramsay says “you get more flavour from the sausage when you take them out the casing.” He slits the skin and crumbles the meat loose into the pan.

Loose sausage meat has more surface area touching the hot pan, so it browns faster and releases more fat and flavour. That fat then coats the onions, pepper, and eventually the rice.

It also means the sausage seasoning, whatever spice blend is inside, dissolves into the dish rather than staying trapped inside the casing.

What does “blasting the rice” mean?

Before adding any liquid, Ramsay stirs the dry rice into the sausage and vegetable mixture for about 30 seconds. He calls this “blasting the rice” and says it’s how restaurant kitchens get more flavour into a rice dish.

Those 30 seconds let each grain absorb the fat, paprika, and sausage juices. When the stock goes in afterwards, the rice is already seasoned on the outside so the flavour cooks in from both sides.

It’s the same principle Ramsay uses in his saffron pilau and his perfect rice method. If you skip this step and just pour stock straight onto raw rice, the grains cook but they taste of nothing.

Why does Ramsay use red onion instead of white?

In the video he’s specific: red onion because it’s “less acidic than a big white Spanish onion and a lot more flavoursome.”

Red onion has more natural sugar, which caramelises faster and adds sweetness to the dish. White onion is sharper and can taste harsh in a one-pot recipe where everything cooks together.

If you only have white onion, it still works. Just cook it for an extra minute or two to soften the bite before adding the other vegetables.

Why does Ramsay turn the heat up before adding sausage?

He says “turn up the gas to maximum because the minute that sausage goes in everything cools down.” Cold sausage meat drops the pan temperature. If the heat is too low, the meat steams instead of searing.

Steamed sausage meat goes grey and releases water instead of fat. Seared sausage meat goes golden brown and releases flavour. The high heat ensures the meat colours quickly.

Once the sausage is browned and the paprika is in, you turn the heat back down for the rice to simmer gently. The high heat is only for the searing stage.

Can you use different sausages?

Ramsay says you can use “any sausage you want: chorizo, merguez, pork or beef, depending on how spicy you want it.”

Chorizo makes it smokier and you can skip the paprika since chorizo already has it. Merguez adds North African spice with cumin and harissa. Plain pork sausages work if you want it milder for kids.

For a different Ramsay recipe using the same crumbled sausage technique, his sausage pasta from the same cookbook splits the sausage meat into tagliatelle with cherry tomatoes instead of rice.

How do you know when it’s done?

The rice is ready when it’s tender and the liquid is “almost entirely absorbed.” You should still see a little moisture at the bottom of the pan, not bone dry.

If the rice is still hard but the liquid has gone, add a splash more stock and cook for another few minutes. If the rice is done but there’s too much liquid, take the lid off and let it evaporate on a gentle heat.

The spring onions, tomato, and parsley go in at the very end, off the heat. They stay fresh and crunchy because they don’t cook. That contrast between the soft, spiced rice and the raw, bright garnish is what makes the dish look and taste alive. If you have leftovers, cold sausage rice works brilliantly as a base for his fragrant fried rice the next day.