These bite size Cheddar Sausage Balls are a classic Southern appetizer. Made with biscuit mix, country sausage and lots of cheese, there’s no wrong time to serve these bite size nuggets. Most often I serve them at the holidays but they work great for brunch gatherings and tailgating, too. Bonus Air Fryer instructions included!

Easy Cheddar Sausage Balls Recipe

The classic recipe uses only biscuit mix like Bisquick, breakfast sausage and cheddar cheese leaving plenty of room to personalize them with seasonings and flavor twists. They’re well worth the effort and incredibly tasty, you won’t be sorry for being persistent. Once you make this easy appetizer, you’ll be hooked. To make these Easy Sausage Balls:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium size mixing bowl use a whisk to sift together the biscuit mix, garlic salt, dry mustard and paprika.
Add the green onion, sausage, shredded cheddar cheese and water.
Using your hands, mix until all of the ingredients are fully moistened and evenly distributed. Be patient, this may take a few minutes as the mixture is stiff.
Roll into approximately 1-inch balls and place on the baking sheet. Leave about an inch between each one. You can use a meatball scoop to evenly divide the sausage mixture.
Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden.
Serve immediately with mustard for dipping.

How to Make the BEST Southern Cheddar Sausage Balls

Ingredients you’ll need to make homemade Cheddar Sausage Balls: One pound of breakfast sausage, biscuit mix i.e. Bisquick, water, green onions, shredded cheddar cheese, garlic salt, paprika and ground mustard.
Kitchen tools you’ll need: Large bowl, whisk, measuring cups and spoons, small scoop, cheese grater and sheet pans.
What’s the best kind of sausage to use for sausage balls? Do yourself a favor and choose a quality breakfast pork sausage to make these sausage balls. I used Jimmy Dean brand and find that it’s not terribly greasy which can cause the sausage balls to shrink while baking. You can use mild or hot, go with your preference.
Is biscuit mix the same thing as Bisquick? Yes, it is. Feel free to use your favorite brand to make this sausage balls recipe.
While the ingredients are super simple if you’ve never made sausage balls before you may think they’re too dry as the dry ingredients take some work to incorporate them together evenly. The mixture is supposed to be still so keep working with it until it comes together.
After forming the sausage mixture into balls, they can be frozen and baked when you need them. Place them onto a sheet pan and freeze solid, then place them into a plastic freezer bag or container for storing.
You can bake frozen sausage balls straight from the freezer. When doing so, you’ll need to add 5-10 minutes to the baking time. It’s also perfectly fine to let them sit on the prepared pan for 10-15 minutes at room temperature to thaw slightly.
Should I use freshly grated cheddar cheese for sausage balls? For the best end result, I highly recommend that you grate the cheese yourself to ensure it’s freshness. While shredded cheese in a bag is convenient it’s more dry than freshly grated cheddar.
After baking the sausage balls, serve them hot with additional mustard for dipping. I recommend sweet-hot mustard, honey or Dijon mustard.
Store baked Cheddar Sausage Balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Reheat in single servings in the microwave or in a 350°F air fryer.
How to Cook Sausage Balls in an Air Fryer:
Spray the basket of an air fryer with cooking spray.
Prepare the sausage balls per the recipe.
Arrange in the basket leaving room between each for air to circulate.
Cook in batches at 350°F for 10-12 minutes. (Cooking time can vary slightly with different types of air fryers.)

More Easy Appetizer Recipes to Make

Sausage balls are the sort of two-bite snacks that are holiday staples here in the South. They’re ideal for tailgating, brunch, tea time or any occasion when small bites are on the menu. Other recipes using sausage that you may like to try:

Gooey homemade Mozzarella Sticks.
Dijon Sausage Rolls made with puff pastry.
Grab some tortilla chips and for dipping in this cheesy Rotel Dip.
Kicked Up Creole Sausage Balls for Mardis Gras and holiday parties.
Make your own Crudité platter with this Easy Veggie Dip.
Sausage Cream Cheese Bites for weekend brunch.
Crisp Fried Ravioli with warm marinara for dipping.
Cheesy Dijon Sausage Cups made with wonton wrappers.

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