I saw a similar recipe to this one a while back, and it has been in the back of my mind since. I have to confess, I am generally not the biggest Italian sausage fan. It is not something I’d go out of my way to eat. I don’t dislike it, but I don’t really love it either. However, I do completely love giardiniera and olives and capers and we used to eat this amazing pizza that had chopped giardiniera on it so this seemed like it could be the Italian sausage to change my mind.
I am happy to report that I really did love this, and I would make it again. I would also make this relish and use it on other sandwiches or on a pizza for sure. Hmmmmm… I think pizza using it might be coming up soon. The garlic aioli here really helps to round out the flavors and offsets the acidic relish. It is a great combo. I served these on my favorite sandwich rolls, but hot dog buns or other sausage rolls would work too.
Italian Sausage with Giardiniera Relish and Garlic Aioli
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh italian sausage links hot or mild
- 4 sandwich rolls
For aioli:
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- salt to taste
For the relish:
- 3/4 cup pitted castelvetrano olives if you can't get these you can sub regular jarred olives just use about 1/4 cup
- 1 cup giardiniera drained
- 1/4 cup capers drained
Instructions
- To make the aioli, mix everything well and taste and adjust seasoning. Add a little water to thin the mixture out if needed.
- To make the relish, combine the olives, giardiniera and capers in a food processor and pulse until chunky.
- Cook sausages on the grill or in a stove top pan until browned and fully cooked. Toast the rolls lightly in the oven then top with sausage, relish and aioli and serve.