Mississippi Lil Smokies | Buns In My Oven (2024)

Mississippi Lil Smokies are your favorite co*cktail sausages slow cooked in the ever popular “Mississippi mix” of ranch seasoning, beef gravy, and pepperoncini peppers! These are a new go-to appetizer for us and they will be for you too!

It’s no secret that I love recipes with Mississippi seasoning. If you’re unsure what that is I’m happy to explain! It’s an odd sounding but delicious and flavorful mix of ranch seasoning and Au Jus gravy mix with pepperoncini peppers.

That all gets slow cooked with meat like my classic Mississippi Pot Roast (the best dang roast!), or this Mississippi Chicken!

In this case we’re using Lil Smokies co*cktail sausages and they’re going to taste amazing with all these flavors.

If you enjoy this recipe be sure to also try my Crockpot Mississippi Beef and Noodles and this Mississippi Pork Roast recipe! As you can see, we’re on a mission to Mississippi alllllll the foods! We’re not kidding when we say we’re obsessed with this combo of flavors and how easy it is to whip up.

Ingredient Notes:

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co*cktail Sausages – These irresistible little co*cktail sausages actually come in a few varieties including beef, pork, and chicken, and sometimes a mix of any of those. Feel free to use whatever kind you like! We’ve even sliced polish sausage into 1 inch rounds and used that here.

Beef Gravy – We’re using the jarred beef gravy you can buy in the store. It’s really simple, no extra work involved. You could always make your own if you’re feeling extra.

Ranch Seasoning Mix – Look for ranch seasoning and NOT ranch dip mix. The dip is much saltier and you’ll notice it in the finished product.

Pepperoncini Peppers – If you’ll eat the peppers, use sliced pepperoncini peppers. If you just want the flavor of them added to the sauce, you can use whole peppers. I’m also adding about a 1/4 cup of juice from the jar. It’s going to add incredible flavor – a touch of heat with a lot of zip and tang.

How To Make Mississippi Lil Smokies:

Gravy: In a bowl whisk together the beef gravy, packet of ranch seasoning, and juice from the jar of pepperoncini.

Combine: Add the sausages to a crockpot, pour the gravy mix and peppers over the top and give it all a good stir to coat.

Note: I’m only using a 2 quart slow cooker here. You really don’t need a full sized 5 or 6 quart crockpot to make this recipe but you can use that if it’s all you’ve got!

Slow Cook: Cover the crockpot and slow cook on low for 4 hours! Once hot, you can serve these with toothpicks as an appetizer!

What To Serve With Lil Smokies:

These Mississippi Lil Smokies make an excellent appetizer but you can also make them into a meal and serve them with the gravy over something starchy like mashed potatoes or rice.

Our Amish egg noodles make a great base for these too.

If you’d like, use a full-sized smoked sausage in place of the lil smokies and cut it into 1 inch rounds before adding to the crockpot. This makes it feel more like a dinner than an appetizer, in my opinion!

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