These are the BEST classic Southern sausage cheddar balls! A little spicy and extra flavorful thanks to cayenne pepper and Worcestershire sauce, and so simple to make in advance for your next party or tailgate. These savory, succulent bite-sized snacks have just 6 ingredients and are delicious on an appetizer table with easy pimento cheese dip and sour cream guacamole. They also freeze really well!
Ahh....Bisquick.
The ingredient that we, admittedly, know we could make from scratch, but just can't quit as a society because it really, really simplifies things.
You've had these before, right? 3 Ingredient Sausage Balls. They're sausage. They're biscuit. They're cheesy. They're absolutely foolproof.
Jump to:
- Recipe Summary: Spicy Sausage Cheddar Balls
- Literally What Are Sausage Cheddar Balls
- Ingredients
- Leftover Sausage Pro Tip
- How to Make Sausage Cheddar Balls
- Sausage Cheddar Balls FAQs
- What to Serve with Sausage Balls
- Make Ahead and Leftover Storage
- More Easy Appetizer Ideas
- Did You Make Sausage Cheddar Balls?
- Recipe
Recipe Summary: Spicy Sausage Cheddar Balls
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Servings: 6-8 as an appetizer
- Method: quick assembly, quick bake, super simple!
- Main Ingredients: Bisquick, Italian sausage, sharp cheddar cheese
- Dietary Concerns: full of protein!
- Why You'll Love It: Classic Southern appetizer that is so simple to make in advance for parties or tailgates!
Literally What Are Sausage Cheddar Balls
If you've never had Southern sausage cheddar balls before, the gist is this: sausage, cheddar cheese, and Bisquick or other baking mix get combined and formed into balls (like making meatballs!), then baked.
The result is a puffy, cheesy, delightful snacky bite that is WAY more than the sum of its parts. I add a few spices for extra flavor, but the base recipe for these only has three ingredients!
Ingredients
- Bisquick or other baking mix (most places have store brands that work great!).
- Bulk sausage: I like spicy Italian here to make the sausage cheddar balls super spicy, but you can use regular Italian sausage or breakfast sausage for a more classic Southern flavor. If you can only find sausage links, just squish the sausage out of the casings before proceeding with the recipe.
- Sharp cheddar cheese: Grate your own if you can! It'll blend better with the other ingredients and produce a better end result.
- Worcestershire sauce for flavor, and cayenne pepper for heat.
The last two ingredients are my additions, so you could leave them out. However, the dark umami flavor that Worcestershire sauce adds plus the heat of the cayenne....it makes the "baking mix" (ha) taste a leeeetle bit more upscale. If you were looking for your baking mix to taste upscale.
For full ingredient list with quantities, see the recipe card below.
Leftover Sausage Pro Tip
If you have some extra sausage, use it in some other recipes!
How to Make Sausage Cheddar Balls
First, set yourself up. You'll need baking sheets sprayed with cooking spray (or prepped with parchment paper or silicone baking mats), so get that out of the way before your hands get covered in raw meat, and preheat the oven to 350F.
- Add the ingredients into a large bowl.
- Mix the ingredients together using your hands, really mashing the baking mix into the sausage and cheese - it'll seem crumbly at first, but be patient and wait for it to all come together.
- Form the mixture into 1-inch balls with your hands or a little cookie scoop. They'll look small, but they'll puff up a bit in the oven.
- Bake the sausage cheddar balls for 15-20 minutes until they're lightly golden at the edges.
Let the sausage balls cool just a bit before serving them. They are WONDERFUL fresh out of the oven, but also great at room temperature if you need to make them earlier in the day or a day in advance.
Sausage Cheddar Balls FAQs
Yes! Either baked or just with the dough rolled out (same as you would freeze balls of cookie dough), these work really well made in advance and frozen, then reheated in the oven (if already baked) or freshly baked straight from frozen.
Mix it just a little bit longer if things seem really crumbly. The proportions here work really well, but some sausage blends have a little less water and fat than others. Keep working the dough with your hands, and it'll all eventually moisten and come together enough to squish into balls.
Once they're cooked, nope! It's meat, yes, but these are fine in a container on the countertop for a day or two. After that, freeze them or stick them covered in the fridge.
What to Serve with Sausage Balls
I love these as an appetizer with any other fun snacks or tailgating foods, but truly these can stand alone with some pretzels, pickles, and other no-cook munchies before a meal.
Here are some of my other favorite appetizers that I make for big parties!
- peach jalapeno salsa
- jalapeno corn dip
- cajun crab dip
- homemade ranch for chips and veggies
- homemade potato chips
Make Ahead and Leftover Storage
I love these fresh, but honestly they're delicious made a day in advance and kept at room temperature in a container or sealed bag on the counter.
To make these in advance, you can make the dough and form it into balls, then freeze the balls and bake from frozen 1-2 extra minutes to be sure they're cooked all the way through.
Or, you can make the recipe exactly as directed and freeze the cooked and cooled sausage balls, then reheat them in a 300F oven for about 10 minutes until they're thawed and slightly crispy on the outside again. Both freezing methods work really well!
(if you're into appetizers that can be made in advance and frozen, gluten free turkey meatballs freeze REALLY well and are great tossed in buffalo sauce!)
More Easy Appetizer Ideas
Recipe
Spicy Sausage Cheddar Balls
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups Bisuick or other baking mix
- 1 pound bulk sausage Italian or Spicy Italian preferred
- 1 pound sharp cheddar cheese grated
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt or seasoned salt
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and prepare a large baking sheet with cooking spray, parchment paper, or a silicone baking mat.
- Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
- Use your hands to combine the ingredients together, taking time to mash all of the sausage with the baking mix. It may take some time, but there shouldn’t be many crumbly bits at the bottom of the bowl.
- Form the mixture into 1-inch balls; I like to use a melon baller or cookie scoop for this. Place the formed sausage balls about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the sausage cheddar balls for 15-20 minutes until cooked through and golden brown on the outside. Repeat with any dough that didn’t get baked on the first round. Cool just slightly, then serve warm or at room temperature. YUM.
Notes
- Size: I prefer to make these sausage cheddar balls on the small side for a truly poppable eating experience – they’re perfect this way for snacking at stand-up party events. If you like them larger, make them closer to 2-inches in diameter and plan to cook them for 5-7 minutes longer.
- Make Ahead: These sausage cheddar balls can be made in advance and kept stored covered on the counter for 2-3 days. Alternatively, you can make the dough and store it in the fridge for a few days before freshly baking, or store the formed-but-raw sausage balls in the freezer for several months. Bake frozen sausage balls from frozen, and add 2-3 minutes to the cooking time.
- Spice: The cayenne pepper makes these a little bit spicy. If you’d like to enhance the spice, use hot Italian sausage. You CAN add up to one whole minced jalapeno to the dough as well, if you’re feeling extra on all counts.
- Sausage: Italian sausage is best with this spice blend, but breakfast or any bulk sausage you like works in this recipe.
This recipe was originally published in November 2012. It has been updated with new pictures and more clear instructions.
Lora says
These were so flavorful and easy to make for a party or tailgate. The cheddar, sausage, cayenne, and Worcestershire give them the perfect savory bite.
Jessie says
These are SO good, I can't stop eating them. I love the pop of heat from the cayenne. Will make again.
Tanya says
I made these for a get-together at my place as a snack and they disappeared so fast! The spicy sausage with the sharp cheddar and little kick from the cayenne was right on spot. I loved how easy they were to prep ahead, and they baked up so golden and flavorful. Served them with a creamy dip and it was loved by everyone!
Lindsay says
I've made these a million times over the years, and often add some chopped fresh jalapeno for extra flavor and spice.
Kavi says
I made these last Thanksgiving using gluten-free Bisquick and they were a huge hit!
funnyloveblog says
Great to know! I've never tried the GF version - that's so nice for people who need to avoid gluten to still be able to enjoy these!