5 Ingredient Italian Sausage Tray Bake With Fennel and Potatoes

Name: 5 Ingredient Sausage, Onion, Fennel, Apple, Potato Tray Bake
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Ingredients: 5 large Italian Fennel sausage links (about 1 ½ pounds, cut into chunks); 1 large onion, chopped into chunks (or 2 medium); 2 gala apples (or other red apple), skin on and cut into chunks; 3 russet potatoes, scrubbed and chopped into chunks; 1/2 large fennel bulb, cut into large slices; 2 tbsp. olive oil; 1 tbsp. fig balsamic vinegar; 1 tbsp. dried oregano; salt and pepper, to taste

A simple one-pan dinner brings together sweet, savory and tangy flavors with almost no prep.

By Michele Sessa

9:00 AM EST on January 14, 2026

Italian fennel sausage roasted with apples, onions, potatoes, and fennel in a simple one pan tray bake.

The smell of sausage and potatoes roasting in the oven always reminds
me of fall dinners growing up in upstate New York. My sister and I would
walk to the local butcher with our mother’s shopping list and buy his
homemade fennel sausage. Gene, the butcher, would always give us both
a thin slice of mortadella or another treat to eat while he wrapped them
up.

We would run home and roast them in the oven with potatoes and
onions, and serve the dish with homemade Italian bread for a rustic
dinner. A nice salad with my grandfather’s homemade tangy vinegar
made from his basement fermented red wine was always served
afterwards. This new recipe puts the vinegar part of my food memory
right into the roasted meat and adds fennel and apples for a vibrant one-pan 5-ingredient meal. Food memories are always the best memories, and this one inspired this new recipe.

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5 Ingredient Sausage, Onion, Fennel, Apple, Potato Tray Bake

Recipe by sarahhallier

0.0 from 0 votes

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Feeds 4-6 with a salad and crusty bread.

Ingredients

5 large 5 Italian Fennel sausage links (about 1 ½ pounds, cut into chunks)
1 large 1 onion, chopped into chunks (or 2 medium)
2 2 gala apples (or other red apple), skin on and cut into chunks
3 3 russet potatoes, scrubbed and chopped into chunks
1/2 1/2 large fennel bulb, cut into large slices
2 tbsp. 2 olive oil
1 tbsp. 1 fig balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. 1 dried oregano
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Whisk together olive oil, fig balsamic vinegar, oregano, and salt and pepper.
Toss all the ingredients in a large roasting pan.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, stirring halfway through until the sausage is cooked and the other ingredients are tender and fragrant.

Notes

Enjoy this terrific tangy one-pan tray dinner with a nice salad and crusty bread. You can substitute the fig balsamic with regular balsamic if desired. Your house will smell as good as this rustic dish tastes!