Ingredients
1 lb. ground pork sausage
2 c. Bisquick
4 c. shredded cheddar
2 tbsp. freshly chopped parsley, plus more for garnish
1 tbsp. paprika
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
Preparation
Step 1Preheat oven to 350° and line a baking sheet with parchment. In a large bowl, mix together pork sausage, Bisquick, cheddar, parsley, and paprika until combined and season with salt and pepper.Step 2Using a small cookie scoop, place tablespoon-size balls of mixture onto prepared baking sheet. Step 3Brush tops of balls with olive oil and bake until deeply golden and no longer pink, 25 minutes.Step 4Garnish with parsley before serving.
Can they be made ahead of time? You can make the sausage mixture up to 24 hours in advance. Shape the mixture into balls and refrigerate them on a parchment-lined baking sheet until ready to bake. What’s a substitute for Bisquick? If you don’t want to use Bisquick or another boxed biscuit mix, no problem. Simply swap in 2 cups all-purpose flour, 3 tsp. baking powder, and 1/2 tsp. salt for this recipe. What kind of sausage can I use? Our favorite sausage for sausage balls is ground Italian pork sausage— you can use sweet or spicy! —but you can also use chicken or turkey sausage. Just make sure it’s the kind you buy raw; if it comes in links remove them from the casings. Pre-cooked sausage links will not work for this recipe. Want to spice things up? You could use Mexican (not Spanish cured) chorizo! For a breakfast version, try using herbaceous, maple-y breakfast sausage. Can I change up the cheese? Always! We love cheddar since it’s always a crowd-pleaser, but stirring in some Parmesan would totally give these even more dimension. But honestly, most of your favorite cheeses will likely work in these bites: Gruyère, pepper jack, mozzarella…the options are endless! Tip: Because there are no wet ingredients, these may seem crumbly when forming into balls — don’t fear! Make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature (and you may need to work at the mixture a bit), and they will form. Made this version of the classic? Let us know how they came out in the comments below! Editor’s note: This intro was updated to add more information about the dish on October 3, 2022.
