Low-Carb Sausage Balls (Gluten-Free, Paleo)

Most low-carb sausage balls are loaded with cheese. But, with these tasty keto almond flour ones, you won’t need to rely on cheese for flavor. There’s no need to load keto sausage balls with cheese. If you’ve gone dairy-free, you’ll love that these meatballs made with almond flour are low-carb, gluten-free, and paleo-friendly too!

Jump to:

• Ingredients Needed For Low-Carb Sausage Balls
• How To Make Low-Carb Sausage Balls
• Frequently Asked Questions About Keto Sausage Balls
• More Appetizer Recipes
• 📖 Recipe

For a crowd pleasing appetizer, change up the meat in your meatballs with sausage. Not only do these balls make a great appetizer, they are perfect for breakfast too!

You can make these tasty meatballs way in advance because they freeze well. And, you can freeze them either cooked or uncooked. But they last longer if frozen uncooked.

One thing you may notice in these low-carb sausage balls is that there’s no cheese. That’s because there’s plenty of flavor from the sausage and seasonings. But, you can always choose to add it in if you’d like.

This appetizer recipe is really easy! However, it takes a little time to form the balls, so you’ll want to make them when you aren’t pressed for time. It’s a great item to add to your weekend meal preparation.

Ingredients Needed For Low-Carb Sausage Balls

The ingredients are fairly simple – in fact, you probably already have everything that you need. It’s almost the same ingredients as traditional meatballs.

Here’s what you need:

Sausage

The best kind of sausage is ground pork. Always avoid anything that says “maple” on the label because that means it has added sugar. If you want the sausage balls to have some kick, choose spicy sausage.

Almond Flour

Make sure you use almond flour, not almond meal. Almond meal is made by grinding up the almonds with the skin on, which means it has a grainy texture. If you use almond meal, it might make the sausage balls have a grainy texture too.

Baking Powder and Egg

You can replace the baking powder with 1 ⅓ teaspoons baking soda and ⅔ teaspoon cream of tarter. The egg binds it all together!

Spices

Use your favorite spices and seasonings in the sausage balls recipe. I used Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. I’m sure onion powder and some red pepper flakes would taste delicious as well!

If you want to use more spice, choose a mild sausage or else the seasoning in the meat will compete and could be overpowering.

Cheese

The cheese is completely optional. If you love cheese, use about 3 cups of grated cheddar. I always recommend that you grate your own instead of buying shredded cheese.

Packaged shredded cheese from the store has hidden ingredients used to prevent it from caking and sticking together.

Please note: Check out the recipe card at the bottom for a full list of ingredients used to make this low-carb recipe.

Quick Tips:

• Use parchment paper on top of the baking sheets. Not only does this make clean-up easier, but it prevents the sausage balls from sticking.
• Serve them as either an appetizer or with your favorite marinara sauce on top of zucchini noodles.
• Add these sausage balls to your meal prep for the week. They are high in protein!

How To Make Low-Carb Sausage Balls

All of the steps are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. First, I have some helpful photos of the process, along with some additional tips.

Use A Large Mixing Bowl

First, you’ll want to grab a large mixing bowl to dump all the ingredients into.

Put Everything In The Bowl

Add in the ground sausage and egg first. Then, pour in almond flour, Italian seasonings, and garlic powder.

Mix It All Together

After adding in the spices, it’s time to blend everything together. You can mix with either your hands or a rubber spatula.

Form The Sausage Balls

Once you’ve fully combined the ingredients in the bowl, form the mixture into balls using your hands or a meat baller.

Bake The Sausage Balls

After placing all of them on a lined baking sheet, bake the sausage balls for about 20 minutes.

Dipping Sauce for Low-Carb Sausage Balls

If you like dunking meatballs in sauce, you can use a commercially prepared low-carb ketchup or keto BBQ sauce. However, I like to make my own homemade sauces.

You may also want to try serving them with a simple low-carb cheese sauce. Because the balls are seasoned, I wouldn’t use a spicy cheese dip.

Frequently Asked Questions About Keto Sausage Balls

Before we get to the recipe card, here are some questions people often ask about it.

How do you store leftover sausage balls?

Store cooked low-carb sausage balls in the refrigerator in an airtight container or a resealable plastic bag. They will stay fresh for up to 5 days.

How many carbs are in sausage balls?

If you follow my recipe, there are just 2g net carbs in each ball. The number of carbs will go up if you add dipping sauce.

Can you have sausage on a low-carb diet?

Yes, sausage is an excellent type of protein if you are on a low-carb diet. Just make sure that you choose meat that doesn’t have any hidden carbs in the ingredients. Sources of hidden carbs in sausage include maple, sugar, and any fillers.

That’s about everything you need to know to make low-carb sausage balls. They are some of my favorite things to eat for lunch and make fantastic snacks at parties too!

More Appetizer Recipes

Planning a party or get together with friends and family watching carbs? You’ll want to have a variety of low-carb finger foods. Here are some of my favorites:

• Salt And Vinegar Wings combine that saltiness you crave with the tanginess of vinegar.
• Cucumber Sandwiches With Cream Cheese are a popular tea party item, but there’s no reason not to serve them at other gatherings!
• Taco Dip With Meat can be served with lettuce wraps. Or serve them with a batch of low-carb tortilla chips!
• Keto Popcorn is basically puffed cheese, and it is amazing how tasty it is. It’s also really popular at parties.
• Low-Carb Crackers are both keto and paleo-friendly and are excellent to use in low-carb dips.

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📖 Recipe

First published on June 19, 2015. Post updated on June 3, 2021, with new images and additional recipe information.