Cheesy Sourdough Sausage Balls Recipe

These sourdough sausage balls are based on the sausage ball recipe from the back of the original Bisquick baking mix box.

I’m always looking for more great discard starter recipes and these turned out practically perfect. And they taste just like the original version.

We like to do snacks on Christmas Eve, and these Sourdough Sausage Balls are always on the table. They go to a lot of pot-lucks, get-togethers, and game day events, too!

Recipe Notes

The recipe calls for sharp cheddar cheese, but if you like your food to have a little kick, give Homemade Pepper Jack Cheese a try instead!

And feel free to play around with the recipe. If you like a little more flavor, try adding other herbs like garlic or parsley.

This is a great appetizer to serve warm or cold, and are great for dipping.

They pair particularly well with homemade ranch dip, with my home canned Marinara Sauce, or with a Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce.

And they also freeze beautifully.

So make up a double batch, and toss them in the freezer so they’re ready for next game day.

If you do freeze them, let them thaw completely and serve cold, or warm them for about five minutes in a 350°F oven.

The uncooked sausage balls can also be frozen. That allows you to make only the amount you need.

Go ahead and pop them in the oven frozen. They will need to bake about 5 minutes or so longer when frozen.

I don’t recommend using chicken or turkey sausage for these because they’re so lean that the balls will be dry. That said, you could double the amount of butter to keep them a little more moist.

Sourdough Sausage Balls

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 tablespoon dried chives
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 lb grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup sourdough starter (unfed is fine)
• 4 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 lb pork sausage (regular sausage or hot sausage both work well)

Instructions

Start by preheating your oven to 350°F.

Then go ahead and prepare your baking sheets. Grease or line the baking sheets with parchment paper, whichever you prefer.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, blend the flour, baking powder, sea salt, chives, parmesan cheese, and sharp cheddar cheese. Make sure it’s well mixed.

Melt the butter. I like to use my cast iron butter melting pot.

I just put it in the oven while it’s preheating, and it’s melted by the time I need it.

Now add the melted butter and the sourdough starter and mix really well again. It should look dry and crumbly.

Break up the sausage up into small chunks and mix that in. 

It’s really important that the sausage mixture is well combined so there aren’t any big lumps of ingredients.

I like to use a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop to form the sausage into 1-inch balls.

You could also just use a couple of spoons.

Put the sausage balls one inch apart on the baking sheets.

These guys need to bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until they are golden brown.

Remove the pan from the oven and pop the sausage balls into a cloth lined basket to keep warm or cool completely on a wire rack.

Serve warm or cold with dipping sauces.

Makes 5 dozen Sourdough Sausage Balls.

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 or 6 days, or you can freeze them for about 3 months.

Other sourdough discard recipes you will love: