Keto Air Fryer Sausage Balls
This easy recipe for 3 Ingredient Air Fryer Sausage Balls are made from pork sausage, cheddar cheese and almond flour. They are then cooked in the air fryer in under 20 minutes. Makes a great keto or low carb appetizer for any holiday or game day event.
Once I made the decision to start following a low carb, keto lifestyle I found that there were so many satisfying foods that would make it sustainable long term.
I absolutely love sausage balls as an appetizer or as an addition to breakfast and so I experimented with a couple ingredients to make the best keto sausage balls right in the air fryer!
My favorite air fryer: Ninja Foodi
What You’ll Need To Make Air Fryer Sausage Balls
Breakfast Sausage: I purchase the Jimmy Dean Natural breakfast sausage because it tastes great and has all natural ingredients. Any breakfast sausage will work, even if you make your own (recipe below).
Shredded Cheddar Cheese: Gives a nice cheesy kick to the sausage balls. Feel free to use mild or sharp cheddar based on your personal preference.
Almond Flour: Almond flour is used in this recipe to make these sausage balls keto and low carb. You could also use Bisquick or an all purpose baking mix if you’re not following a low carb lifestyle.
How To Make Keto Air Fryer Sausage Balls
1️⃣ Prepare Your Air Fryer: Grease your air fryer basket by spraying some avocado oil on the bottom. I also like using a piece of aluminum foil on the bottom in order for the oil to catch which makes for an easy clean-up. You can preheat the air fryer, but it is not necessary.
2️⃣ Mix All Ingredients: In a medium-sized bowl, add the ground sausage, cheese, and almond flour and mix with your hands until all ingredients are evenly combined.
3️⃣ Form Sausage Balls: Form meat mixture into 1 inch balls. You could make them bigger or smaller, however, make sure you adjust your cooking times.
4️⃣ Air Fry Sausage Balls: Add each sausage ball in a single layer to the basket of your air fryer and air fry at 375 degrees for 16-18 minutes or until sausage is cooked all the way through.
Homemade Breakfast Sausage
If you’d rather make your own sausage it’s simple to make your own 5 ingredient breakfast sausage using this recipe.
⌛ Can I Make Sausage Balls Ahead?
Yes! Simply roll all the sausage balls and place on a sheet pan in a single layer making sure they don’t touch. Place in the freezer for at least 2 hours to freeze. Then add them to a plastic bag. They will keep for 3-5 months in the freezer.
📝 If you are planning on cooking your sausage balls within a shorter amount of time, they can be pre-rolled and placed in an airtight container for up to 2 days before cooking.
🧊 Air Fryer Frozen Sausage Balls
If you have sausage balls that are frozen, you can still cook them directly in your air fryer without having to thaw them in the fridge.
1️⃣ Add frozen sausage balls to the bottom of your air fryer basket.
2️⃣ Air fry them at 300 degrees for 10 minutes,
3️⃣ Flip them over, then cook them at 375 for another 7-8 minutes until they are cooked through completely.
📃 NOTE: Keep checking on them to make sure they are fully cooked through. These times and temperatures are an estimate to start with and will vary depending on size of sausage balls and air fryer.
Storing, Reheating & Freezing
Storing: You can store cooked and cooled sausage balls in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Freezing: You can freeze cooked or uncooked sausage balls by placing them on a sheet pan in a single layer to freeze overnight. Once they are completely frozen, add them to an airtight container or freezer safe bag for up to 3 months.
Reheating: If your sausage balls are not frozen, reheat them in the air fryer by cooking them at 320 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until warmed through.
FAQ ❔
In order to keep the sausage balls from drying out, the perfect ratio of flour to meat needs to be achieved as in this recipe. You also want to make sure you are not cooking them too long as they can dry out from the heat circulated air.
When storing cooked leftover sausage balls, they do need to be in the fridge to keep them safe from bacteria.
If you’re not using sausage balls as an appetizer or breakfast, they can be served with many different sides such as green salads, rice, pasta, baked beans or French fries.
More Keto Air Fryer Recipes:
- Air Fryer Jalapeno Poppers
- Air Fryer Bacon
- Air Fryer Scotch Eggs
- Air Fryer Croutons
- Air Fryer Popcorn Chicken
- Air Fryer Salmon Patties
Keto Air Fryer Sausage Balls
Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Pork Sausage
- 1 cup Almond Flour
- 1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Instructions
- Prepare Your Air Fryer: Grease your air fryer basket by spraying some avocado oil on the bottom. I also like using a piece of aluminum foil on the bottom in order for the oil to catch which makes for an easy clean up. You can preheat the air fryer, but it is not necessary.
- Mix All Ingredients: In a medium sized bowl, add the ground sausage, cheese and almond flour and mix with your hands until all ingredients are evenly combined.
- Form Sausage Balls: Form meat mixture into 1 inch balls. You could make them bigger or smaller, however make sure you adjust your cooking times.
- Air Fry Sausage Balls: Add each sausage ball in a single layer to the basket of your air fryer and air fry at 375 degrees for 16-18 minutes or until sausage is cooked all the way through.
Just got an air fryer for my birthday and can’t wait to make this tonight. Please clarify something — how many meatballs in a serving? Your nutrition information is confusing and indicates 1 meatball for 258 cal./3g carbs???
This recipe yields about 20 meatballs. The nutrition facts will vary based on the types of ingredients you use. 1 meatball is 200 to 275 calories and 1 to 3 carbs. This nutrition calculator can help you get a more precise number. -Krista (Team Thyme & JOY)
How many people does this 3-ingredient Keto Sausage Balls recipe serve?
It makes 20 meatballs, which is a nice size appetizer for 4 to 5 people. -Krista (Team Thyme & JOY)
How many are in a serving?
This recipe yields about 20 meatballs. 1 meatball is 200 to 275 calories and 1 to 3 carbs. I hope that helps! -Krista (Team Thyme & JOY)
So delicious…
Daaaammnnn!!!
That was literally my reaction when I bit into one of these balls. -Krista (Team Thyme & JOY)
I’ve made these for years….except I much prefer Italian Sausage. Since being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes I switched to using Carbquik instead of Bisquik. Lowers the carb count and doesn’t have an affect on my blood sugar. May try almond flour next time to see how it compares, taste wise.
I wasn’t familiar with Carbquick before now, so I looked into it. Wow. This stuff revolutionizes keto baking! Thanks for sharing! -Krista (Team Thyme & JOY)