• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 8 good-quality sausages, such as Cumberland or pork and fennel, pricked with a fork
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 green pepper, halved lengthways, deseeded and thickly sliced
• 1 red pepper, halved lengthways, deseeded and thickly sliced
• 400 g/14 oz tinned pulses, such as borlotti beans,
• butter beans, cannellini beans, chickpeas or kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 400 g/14 oz/scant 12/3 cups tinned chopped tomatoes with herbs
• 60 ml/2 fl oz/¼ cup Beef Stock,
• Vegetable Stock or ready-made stock
• 2 bay leaves
• Worcestershire sauce
• freshly ground black pepper
• chopped parsley leaves, to serve
• Dijon, wholegrain or German sweet mustard, to serve

Heat a large frying pan over a high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, add the oil and sausages and fry for 3–5 minutes until browned all over, working in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan, if necessary. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausages to the slow cooker as they brown.

Pour off any excess oil from the pan, leaving about 1 tablespoon. Add the onion and fry, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and peppers and fry for a further 1–3 minutes until the onion is softened. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the vegetables to the cooker.

Stir in the pulses, chopped tomatoes, stock and bay leaves and season with Worcestershire sauce and pepper. The ingredients will not be completely covered with liquid.

Cover the cooker with the lid. Cook on LOW for 4 hours until the sausages are cooked through and the peppers are tender. Remove and discard the bay leaves and add a little more Worcestershire sauce and pepper, if you like. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with some mustard.