Sausage Balls

If you’ve been to a Southern holiday party, a tailgate, or a church potluck, you’ve eaten these. Sausage balls are one of those recipes that gets passed around on index cards because they’re impossibly easy and everybody asks for the recipe. Four ingredients: bulk sausage, sharp cheddar, Bisquick, and a splash of water. Mix, roll, bake, done.

The sharp cheddar does more than just add cheese flavor. As it melts, it binds the sausage and Bisquick together and creates pockets of crispy, golden cheese on the outside of each ball. Use the sharpest cheddar you can find. Mild cheddar melts too smoothly and you lose that tangy bite.

Rolling them walnut-sized is the sweet spot. Smaller and they dry out in the oven. Bigger and the centers stay raw while the outside overbrowns. Uniform size matters here since they all bake on the same sheet for the same 15 minutes.

Pro Tips

• Don’t overmix. Combine the ingredients just until everything holds together. Overworking makes the sausage balls dense and tough.
• Use your hands, not a spoon. Body heat softens the sausage and cheese and makes the dough easier to shape.
• Space them an inch apart on the cookie sheet. They spread slightly as the fat renders out.
• Freeze uncooked balls on a sheet pan, then transfer to a bag. Bake from frozen, adding 3 to 5 extra minutes.

Variations

• Use hot sausage and add diced jalapeño for a spicy kick.
• Mix in ¼ cup crumbled bacon for a sausage-bacon ball.
• Serve with a honey mustard or ranch dipping sauce on the side for parties.