Bisquick Sausage Balls

Bisquick sausage balls come together in minutes with just five simple ingredients, making them the ultimate bite-sized comfort food. They’re moist, meaty, and packed with flavor, perfect for dipping or serving as an easy appetizer. A guaranteed crowd-pleaser for holidays, parties, or even casual weekends!

Love More Appetize Recipes? Try My Spinach Garlic Meatballs Stuffed With Mozzarella or this Cranberry Meatballs next.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Quick to make and always a hit, these bite-sized snacks pack big flavor without the fuss. They’re hearty enough to satisfy a crowd, versatile enough for breakfast or parties, and guaranteed to disappear fast from any table. Simple, tasty, and absolutely foolproof!

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Ingredient List

For the Sausage Balls:

• 2 cups Bisquick baking mix
• 1 pound raw pork sausage (Jimmy Dean Original is my go-to)
• 16 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated
• ½ cup whole milk
• 1½ teaspoons Italian seasoning

Makes about 28 sausage balls

Substitution Notes:

• No Bisquick? Mix 2 cups flour + 2 teaspoons baking powder + ¼ teaspoon salt (I keep this combo in a jar)
• Cheese drama: Sharp cheddar or bust in my house, but my sister uses pepper jack and swears by it
• Sausage swap: Hot breakfast sausage if your crowd can handle heat, mild if you’ve got picky eaters

Why These Ingredients Work

Bisquick isn’t just lazy cooking – it’s smart cooking. The mix already has the perfect fat-to-flour ratio that makes these tender without being mushy. Raw sausage sounds gross until you realize it’s doing all the heavy lifting flavor-wise, plus those rendered fats keep everything moist. Sharp cheddar cuts through the richness better than mild cheese ever could. That splash of milk keeps things from getting too dense, and Italian seasoning makes your kitchen smell like an actual restaurant instead of a cafeteria.

Essential Tools and Equipment

• One big mixing bowl (seriously, go bigger than you think)
• Cookie scoop (the 1-inch kind – changed my life)
• Rimmed baking sheet
• Non-stick spray (don’t cheap out here)
• Box grater if you’re grating your own cheese

My cookie scoop cost eight bucks at Target and it’s the best kitchen investment I’ve ever made. Every ball comes out identical, which means they all cook at exactly the same rate. No more burnt edges and raw centers.

How To Make Bisquick Sausage Balls

Step 1: Prep Your Workspace

Heat your oven to 350°F and spray that baking sheet like you mean it. I learned this lesson the expensive way when my first batch welded itself to the pan and I had to throw the whole thing out.

Step 2: Get Your Hands Dirty

Everything goes in one bowl – Bisquick, raw sausage, grated cheese, milk, and seasonings. Roll up your sleeves because you’re mixing this by hand. Work it until it looks like really chunky cookie dough that sticks together when you squeeze it.

Step 3: Shape ‘Em Up

Use that cookie scoop to portion everything out, then roll each scoop into a rough ball. Don’t stress about making them perfect – mine look like lumpy golf balls and people still go crazy for them. Just press gently so they don’t fall apart.

Step 4: Let the Oven Work Its Magic

Bake for 20-25 minutes until they’re golden brown all over. I always check at 20 because my oven runs hot and nobody wants little hockey pucks. They’re done when they don’t jiggle if you shake the pan.

Step 5: Serve Hot

Get these to people while they’re still warm – that’s when the cheese is all melty and the texture is perfect. If I’m throwing a party, I dump them in my slow cooker on the warm setting because cold sausage balls are just depressing.

You Must Know

Raw pork sausage needs to hit 160°F internally or you’ll make people sick. When in doubt, cut one open – no pink allowed. I use an instant-read thermometer because I’m paranoid like that.

Personal Secret: Let your mixture sit for ten minutes after mixing. Sounds stupid, but it lets the Bisquick absorb the liquid properly and makes the final texture way better. I usually use this time to clean up my disaster of a kitchen.

Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

• Grate your own cheese – the pre-shredded stuff has weird coating that makes everything gluey
• Room temperature ingredients mix better, so pull everything out thirty minutes before you start
• Don’t overwork the mixture or you’ll get tough sausage balls that nobody wants
• Light hands when rolling – you’re not making meatballs here

Flavor Variations & Suggestions

• Spicy version: Hot sausage plus a pinch of cayenne (my teenage nephew’s favorite)
• Herb overload: Fresh chives, parsley, and sage instead of Italian seasoning
• Smoky twist: Use already-cooked smoked sausage, crumbled up
• Holiday special: Add dried cranberries and fresh sage for Thanksgiving
• Tex-Mex style: Chorizo, pepper jack, and diced jalapeños

Make-Ahead Options

You can make these three different ways:

Option 1: Form the raw balls and freeze them on a cookie sheet. Once frozen, bag them up. Bake straight from frozen, adding five extra minutes.

Option 2: Bake them completely, let them cool, then freeze. Reheat in a 350°F oven for ten minutes or microwave for thirty seconds.

Option 3: Make the mixture up to 24 hours ahead and keep it covered in the fridge. Form and bake when you’re ready.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

If your mixture seems wet, add more Bisquick a tablespoon at a time. Too dry? Splash in more milk. The mixture should hold together when you squeeze it but not be sticky. Size matters for even cooking – aim for golf ball size or slightly smaller. Don’t crowd your pan or they’ll steam instead of browning. That internal temp thing isn’t optional with raw sausage.

Serving Suggestions

These work for literally everything:

• Holiday parties (they disappear faster than the expensive cheese)
• Game day with ranch dressing for dipping
• Brunch alongside fresh fruit and coffee
• Potluck dinners (always bring extras because people will ask)
• Quick dinner with a bagged salad when you can’t adult anymore

Dipping ideas: Ranch, honey mustard, or that spicy mayo everyone’s obsessed with now

How to Store Your Sausage Balls

Counter: Two hours max, then they need to go in the fridge Fridge: Three days covered, though they never last that long in my house Freezer: Three months, raw or cooked Reheating: Ten minutes at 350°F in the oven, or thirty seconds in the microwave

Allergy Information

Contains: Wheat (gluten), dairy, possibly soy depending on your sausage

Substitutions:

• Gluten-free: Use gluten-free baking mix instead of Bisquick
• Dairy-free: Dairy-free cheese shreds and plant milk work fine
• Lower sodium: Pick reduced-sodium sausage and cheese

Questions I Get Asked A Lot

Q: Can I use turkey sausage?

Sure, but they’ll be less rich. I add an extra tablespoon of butter to compensate.

Why do mine fall apart?

Mixture’s too dry. Add milk one tablespoon at a time until it holds together.

How do I know they’re cooked?

Golden brown, firm when poked, and 160°F internal temp. Cut one open if you’re not sure.

💬 Made these? Drop a comment and let me know how they turned out! Bonus points if you tried one of the flavor variations.