Ultimate John Wayne Casserole

Ultimate John Wayne Casserole–a hearty casserole with seasoned sausage, tomatoes, tame jalapeños, a creamy sauce, and a buttery Cheddar Bay Biscuit topping.

Pin this recipe for later!

Ultimate John Wayne Casserole

You may have heard of John Wayne casserole before and my version is just a step up from that. It was one of those meals everyone kept coming back to for another scoop. You may be a little apprehensive when you see jalapenos on the ingredient list. But they’re the pickled tame jalapenos that are basically as spicy as a banana pepper. They don’t add a ton of spice but they do add a ton of flavor. The combination of biscuit, sausage, tomatoes and a creamy layer seem strange but they actually work really well together.

Ingredients/Substitution Ideas

• Ground sausage–or ground beef (add 1 tsp salt and pepper)
• Onion–or shallot
• Garlic powder–or 1 Tbsp minced fresh garlic
• Chili powder
• Cumin
• Tomato sauce
• Tamed pickled jalapeño peppers–find these by the pickles
• Roma tomatoes–or any ripe tomato
• Sour cream–or plain Greek yogurt
• Mayonnaise
• Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuit Mix–or another cheddar biscuit mix
• Cheddar cheese–or Monterey Jack, Colby Jack, or Pepper Jack
• Butter–or margarine

Steps

Heat oven to 350° F. Heat a pan over medium high heat. Add in the sausage and break it up. Add in the onion, garlic powder, chili powder and cumin. Brown for 5 minutes. Drain off excess grease, if there is any.

Stir in the tomato sauce and jalapenos. Bring to a simmer and then remove from heat. Stir in the tomatoes. Set aside.

In a small bowl stir together the sour cream and mayonnaise. 

In a separate bowl stir together the biscuit mix (set aside seasoning mix for later) with the cold water and cheddar. Stir just until combined.

In a 9×13 inch pan spread the sausage mixture. Then drop dollops of the sour cream mixture over the top. Finally add dollops of the biscuit mixture. 

Bake for 25 minutes. Turn the heat up to 425° and bake for 5 more minutes, until top is golden brown. Stir the melted butter together with the seasoning mix and use a pastry brush to brush over the top of the biscuit topping. Serve and enjoy!

Notes/Tips

• Serve with roasted vegetables.
• I cut this recipe in half and made it in a square 8×8 inch baking dish*.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. You can freeze leftovers for up to 2 months.
• Other recipes you can make with pickled jalapenos are Instant Pot Haystack Supper and Trash Can Nachos.

Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for. 

Pin this recipe for later!

Print

More recipes with sausage…

*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.