Name: Air-Fryer Sausage Balls
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 1½ cups (7½ ounces/213 grams) all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoon baking powder; ¼ teaspoon table salt; ¼ teaspoon pepper; 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper; 4 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into ½-inch pieces; 12 ounces bulk breakfast sausage; 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese , shredded (1 cup); ¾ cup buttermilk

Why This Recipe Works

This recipe is inspired by a Southern cocktail party staple that lies closer to biscuits than meatballs—think little biscuit balls with sausage and sharp cheddar cheese. While some recipes call for biscuit mix, we used pantry ingredients to set our own ratio of dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, and cayenne) for the dough. A few pulses in the food processor gave us sausage and cheese bits that were just the right size for incorporating into the dough mixture. Buttermilk added flavor and helped the balls hold their shape. About 7 minutes in the air fryer produced crisp, golden-brown sausage balls with moist, flavorful interiors.

Before You Begin

Some air fryer models have preheating functions; the cooking-time range in this recipe is intended to work with either a cold or a preheated air fryer. Serve these sausage balls with your favorite dipping sauce (mayonnaise dressed up with hot sauce and honey is an easy option).

Instructions

Pulse flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, and cayenne in  food processor until combined, about 3 pulses. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 12 pulses.  Add sausage and cheddar and pulse until mostly combined but some sausage pieces remain, about 8 pulses. Transfer mixture to bowl and stir in buttermilk until combined.

Using your wet hands, roll  1 tablespoon dough at a time  into 1¼-inch ball; transfer balls  to baking sheet or large plate. (Shaped sausage balls can be refrigerated, covered, for up  to 24 hours or frozen for up to  1 month; thaw overnight in  refrigerator before cooking.)

Arrange up to 20 sausage balls in even layer in air-fryer basket. Place basket in air fryer and set temperature to 400 degrees. Cook until balls are golden brown and register 160 degrees, 7 to 8 minutes, flipping balls halfway through cooking. Transfer sausage balls to serving platter and tent with aluminum foil. Repeat with remaining sausage balls. Serve.