This chicken breakfast sausage is one of my favorite ways to kickstart the morning. It’s seasoned with savory herbs and spices, perfectly juicy, and tastes amazing alongside fried eggs and sautéed greens for a well-balanced, high-protein breakfast.
My Favorite Chicken Breakfast Sausage
After taking a bite of this homemade chicken sausage, there’s no way I’m going back to packaged versions again (no matter how convenient they are). This homemade version is every bit as flavorful and juicy, and you know exactly what’s going into them. Plus, they’re so easy to make and perfect for breakfast meal prep — just like my breakfast casserole and breakfast egg muffins. I also love that they’re easy to store (fridge or freezer) and after a quick reheat breakfast is ready! Here’s what else makes them a morning staple for me:
- They’re a great protein boost. Since I’ve been working out more, I’m always looking for tasty, high-protein options for breakfast. These chicken breakfast sausages check both boxes with ease!
- They’re super easy to make. I specifically made this recipe with all dried spices so not chopping or dicing was necessary. I have a chunkier version with diced onion and tarragon in my healthy meal prep cookbook, but this version is great for a quick-and-easy breakfast.
Chicken Breakfast Sausage Ingredients
- Ground Chicken: A pack of ground chicken is typically made from a blend of white and dark meat, which is what you want for homemade breakfast sausages to ensure they’re not super dry. And if you want to use pork instead for a deeper flavor, go for it!
- Maple Syrup: A touch of maple syrup brings a hint of sweetness and adds those cozy fall vibes, while also keeping the patties moist.
- Dried Seasoning Blend: I’m keeping it simple with all dried herbs and spices in this recipe. You’ll need dried sage, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, nutmeg, salt, and black pepper.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below.
How To Make Chicken Breakfast Sausages
Make the patty mixture. In a large bowl, use your hands to mix the ground chicken, maple syrup, salt, dried sage, garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme, black pepper, and nutmeg, until well combined.
Form balls. Use a medium-sized cookie scoop or your hands to form 12 balls. If you want larger patties though, feel free to form bigger ones. Just keep in mind the nutritional information listed below is for 12 sausages.
Cook the sausages. Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Add six balls to the pan and use your fingers to press them flat (wet your fingers to prevent them from sticking). Cook the patties for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Then, repeat with a second batch and add an extra splash of oil if needed.
Storage Tips
- Store for the week: They will last for 4 to 5 days in the fridge in an airtight container.
- Freeze for later: I almost always make a second batch to keep stored in my freezer. Store them in freezer-safe containers (with parchment paper in between layers) and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy, let them thaw in the fridge overnight to make the reheating process easier. But you could also reheat straight from the freezer, they’ll just take about 30 seconds longer.
Ways To Serve
- Complete a classic breakfast plate: I love enjoying two patties alongside fried eggs or scrambled eggs, with extra veggies such as sautéed spinach, and crispy oven-baked bacon. You could even add a side of these sweet potato hash browns.
- Make a breakfast sandwich: These would be great for making a breakfast sandwich layered with a fried egg, sliced avocados, leafy greens or microgreens, cheese, and a schmear of your favorite hot sauce. And if you’re gluten-free like me, use sweet potato toast for your bread!
- Breakfast burrito or taco: You can layer these inside a breakfast burrito or sauté the seasoned meat (instead of forming sausages) for breakfast tacos. Don’t forget my pico de gallo or salsa verde to go with it!
More Easy Breakfast Ideas
- Shakshuka: The #1 breakfast recipe on this website for good reason!
- Overnight Oats or Oatmeal: The best ways to prep oats for nutritious mornings.
- Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash: A delicious veggie-heavy breakfast.
- Or browse through more delicious breakfast ideas!
If you make this chicken breakfast sausage recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below! Your review will help other readers in the community. And if you’re hungry for more healthy food inspiration (and exclusive content), join my free newsletter.
Description
Video
Equipment
- Zwilling Non-Stick Pan My go-to set of non-stick pans!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Mix together. In a large bowl, use your hands to mix together the ground chicken, maple syrup, salt, dried sage, garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme, black pepper, and nutmeg, until well combined.
- Form balls. Use a cookie scoop or your hands to form 12 balls.
- Cook. Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Add six balls to the pan and use your fingers to press them flat (wet your fingers to prevent them from sticking). Cook the patties for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Repeat with a second batch, and add a splash more oil if needed.
- Serve. Transfer the breakfast sausages to a serving plate and enjoy!
Lisa’s Tips
- Store for the week: They will last for 4 to 5 days in the fridge. Just store them in an airtight container.
- Freeze for later: I almost always make a second batch to keep stored in my freezer. Store them in freezer-safe containers (with parchment paper in between the layers) and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy, let them thaw in the fridge overnight to make the reheating process easier. But you could also reheat straight from the freezer, they’ll just a bit take longer.
- Kick up the heat: Add a dash of cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes for a spicy kick. This will taste great paired with the sweetness of the maple syrup. You could even add chipotle powder for a little smokiness.
Nutrition
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Behind The Scenes
I love making a double batch of these chicken breakfast sausages so I can enjoy a few one week, then freeze the rest for the future. Reheating them is no different that reheating store-bought packaged breakfast sausages. But I love that this version has a an ingredient list with no fillers or additives. There’s so many ways you can serve them up, but I enjoyed these recipe testing leftovers with a simple fried egg and a few slices of avocado – yum yum!
Hi Lisa – Just read your chicken breakfast sausage recipe. I think I will try them. Question, is that 149 calories a piece?
Hi Vilma – Since this makes 12 sausages, each serving is 2 pieces.
I don’t usually review but these were absolutely delicious! I doubled the recipe and didn’t have dried sage so I replaced it with a teaspoon of dried parsley and a teaspoon of dried rosemary and it still worked really well. Was nervous about the amount of maple syrup but the sweet/salty/herby balance is really yummy and more-ish. I will probably experiment with reducing because I want this to be a staple high protein/low cal recipe for us and I think it will still be enjoyable but can 100% recommend eating the recipe as written!
Thanks for taking the time to leave a review, Samara! I’m so glad you ended up loving the way this chicken breakfast sausage turned out.
Is it 149 calories per patty?
Hi Kathi – The nutritional information will be for about 2 patties.
I FINALLY made these today! Holy goodness wow!!!! SO impressed with the freshness and flavor and feeling better knowing what’s in my breakfast sausage. I didn’t delve from the recipe to be able to taste it exactly as you outlined it and man….we all tried 1 from the 1st batch and screamed with excitement. Truly the best sausage I’ve ever had! Made with 2 lbs and they were good size and it still ended up making 19, which I ain’t hating, lol. Absolutely 10 outta 10!!!!! I love your recipes, next is cole slaw. 😍
Hi Amy – Thrilled to hear you finally got around to making this breakfast sausage and that everyone loved it! Can’t wait for you to try the coleslaw next.
How about if I don’t have maple syrup or are there other sweetener alternative? (Even powder like erythritol etc?) Living here in Asia we only have honey (but i find it sweet)
These are by far the best sausages I’ve ever tried and the fact that they’re homemade is an absolute plus. I really truly appreciate these recipes.
I’m so glad you’re enjoying this homemade breakfast sausage recipe, Inelsi!
The nutritional value, is that per pattie?
Thank you for the delicious recipe!
Hi Charli – the nutrition info is for two patties. Enjoy!
I made these chicken sausages this morning. VERY VERY good!
I omitted the sage & nutmeg and added rosemary, fennel seeds, and a bit of cinnamon.
I added everything else but next time I will add more of all the spices.
This is a wonderful recipe.. Thank you!!
Glad you enjoyed this chicken breakfast sausage recipe, Jane! Definitely give the full spice blend a go next time.
HANDS DOWN THE BEST CHICKEN SAUSAGE RECIPE!!
The amount of seasonings is perfect, the combo of seasonings is perfect!
The one thing I add is 1/4-1/2 tsp of baking soda. This plumps up the chicken and keeps it super juicy.
My go to from now on even my 4 yr loves it and she doesn’t like anything that’s not spaghetti, thank you so must ☺️
Good call on the baking soda to give some oomph to the ground chicken! Happy to hear the whole family is loving this breakfast sausage recipe, Alisa.
Love, Love, Love this recipe! Will be making them again this weekend. So easy to make. I’ve used ground turkey as well.
Thrilled to hear you’re loving this chicken breakfast sausage, Linda! I’m sure they’re great with ground turkey as well.
I love these sausages. We will always have a batch of these in the freezer now. Thank you
Hi Vicky – Happy to hear you’ve been enjoying this breakfast sausage recipe so much! It’s always a great idea to have a frozen batch.
Made these for the week. Sooooo good!! Lots of savory flavor.
They’re so great for meal prep. Enjoy!
I’m going to be grinding my own meat. Is it best to use thighs or breast meat? Grind the skin on thighs to not?
I used lean ground turkey breast, cut the maple syrup in half and added crushed red pepper flakes. Delicious! Will keep this winner.
Hi Nan – Great to hear this recipe worked out with turkey breast instead! Sounds like you’ve found your perfect homemade sausage recipe.
Easy to make and yummy! Thank you for this recipe especially during this shortage of eggs we have been experiencing. It is a healthy way to still get our breakfast protein in.
It’s always good to have variety for breakfast! Happy to hear you’re loving this homemade breakfast sausage, Jen.
Hi Lisa
Is the nutrition listed for one sausage or two please?
Many thanks
Hi Gee – there are two sausages per serving. Enjoy!
I love these sausages and make them all the time. I am not a fan of pork sausages as I feel they weigh me down but these are really tasty and I can get on with my day without feeling sleepy!
Wonderful! I’m happy to hear that you’ve got these chicken breakfast sausages in regular rotation, Linda. Enjoy!
These are so good and filling. Thanks for the delicious recipe Lisa!
You’re more than welcome, Vicky! I’m so thrilled that you loved them. :)
These chicken sausages were fantastic! The recipe was super easy to follow and the flavor was incredible. I didn’t have sage on hand, so I substituted with Italian seasoning, and it worked perfectly. I’ll admit, I’m usually not a fan of maple flavor with meat, but it really grew on me—the balance of sweet and savory was so good! That said, I might reduce the maple syrup a touch next time for a slightly less sweet option. These were such a hit, I’ll definitely double the batch next time because they’re not going to last long! Thank you for such a great recipe—this one’s a keeper!
Glad this recipe changed your mind about a sweet and savory flavor profile! It works extremely well in dishes like this. Enjoy, Tara!
Delicious. A sausage recipe I feel great eating!
The beauty of homemade breakfast sausage! Glad you love this recipe, Jeanne.
Fabulous, simple and tasty recipe!!! I couldn’t stop eating them. I too, added about 1/2 tsp of Red Pepper Flakes and this added just a bit of a kick. Love it! I made another batch and froze them for later…(tomorrow??) I am looking to make more “healthy” recipes, and this did the trick!
Hi Darcy – I’m so glad you enjoyed these chicken breakfast sausages! It’s always a good idea to keep a second batch in the freezer.
I loved these so much that my frozen batch didn’t last long. So I bought more ground chicken and thought I’d try ground turkey. Nope…the ground chicken was the way to go!
I know ground turkey is leaner, but in these sausages, it was too lean. The consistency/texture was just wrong, and maybe a tad too sweet. I’m glad I tried it, but I now know my go-to will be the ground chicken. I know that some of the other comments asked about substituting the chicken with turkey…so from my standpoint, don’t use ground turkey.
Thanks for testing this and sharing your results, Darcy! Seems like ground chicken is the way to go.
I made this sausage to use in our Christmas breakfast casserole! The flavor combination was amazing and I will be using this recipe regularly in our breakfast rotation!
Great idea to use this homemade sausage in your breakfast casserole, yum! So happy you loved it, Jessica.
Wow! My husband, 3 year old and I loved it! I didn’t have any ground chicken so I used a mix of ground pork and beef and it turned out great. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I will not be buying store bought sausage that’s full of nitrates anymore.
I’m glad you and your family loved these breakfast sausages!
Made per instructions. Very easy. We did not think it had much taste. We used 98% lean ground chicken. Will try with ground turkey if make again
Hi Michal – Sorry to hear you felt these were lacking in flavor. You can always feel free to add additional spices if you’d like. Hopefully you’ll enjoy some of my other recipes more!
I made these using ground turkey and they were delicious. So good to not be eating a processed sausage from the store.
Wonderful! So happy you loved these sausages, Tina. And a great swap with ground turkey too!
The family and I have another new favourite recipe from Lisa! The chicken breakfast patties are so delicious, healthy and an easy recipe. Thank you Lisa.😊
So happy you enjoyed them, Cathy!
Lisa, I LOVE this recipe! I love them because I know exactly what is in them and they are healthy (unlike any breakfast sausage in the store). I am also trying to increase my protein intake and these are easy to make and grab and add to a meal. The only problem is my husband and son tried them and love them too so my double batch went so quickly! This recipe will be on my weekly rotation, and definitely added to our Sunday morning breakfast. Thanks
Haha, that is a problem – they disappear fast! You’ll have to sneak a few out quickly before your hubby and son get to them. ;) Enjoy!
Hi Lisa, so glad I found you and your wonderful recipes! For that I thank you for having healthy and delicious! My question is: I would like to add small chunks of apples to the mixture. Would that compromise the recipe? Should I eliminate some of the maple syrup? What is your guess that it would make any difference in the taste. Currently, I buy frozen Chicken and Apple Sausages that are not very healthy. Thank you.
Hi Wendy – Yes, I think you could add small chunks of apple! I’d actually recommend grating the apple and then doing a rough chop for small pieces. Would love to hear how it turns out!
I made this recipe for the first time this week. These sausages are *fantastic*!! A delicious combination of sweet and savory. I generally stay away from commercial sausage for health reasons, but these are both delicious and healthy! Definitely becoming part of the regular rotation.
Hi Steve – Thrilled to hear you’re loving these homemade chicken breakfast sausages! I agree, they’re much better than the store-bought versions.
I’m not usually one to leave reviews, but these maple sage chicken sausages were incredibly tasty and simple to make! Perfect addition to a Sunday breakfast.
Hi Maddie – Thanks so much for leaving a review and happy to hear these breakfast sausages will be in rotation now!
Yum!!! First time ever leaving a review on someone’s website but these were amazing!!! Tasted better then any sausage I have ever had!!!
Thanks so much for taking the time to write a review, Renee! I’m so glad you enjoyed them. :)
Can you make the breakfast sausage with ground turkey instead of chicken?
Hi Kim – yes, no problem!
Sorry!!
Also is 8% ground chicken too lean?
The leanness of meat is really personal preference, but I don’t think that would be too lean. The maple syrup helps keep them moist as well!
Soooooo I made these last night and they were very easy to make.
Now I didn’t have dried sage and it’s not a spice I’d normally use, so didn’t bother getting it. Swapped that for some oregano and the flavor from that came through a little more than I’d like but still loved them anyways.
Swapped maple syrup for honey as I didn’t have any
Lisa, what other herb would u recommend other than fennel or oregano to substitute the dried sage?
Thanks
I’m glad you enjoyed these chicken breakfast sausages, Victoria! You could also use dried thyme, or an Italian seasoning mix, for a few more flavor options.
I made these omitting the maple syrup completely and they were delicious! So easy to make. Savory. Thank you for another great recipe.
You’re more than welcome, Faith! So happy you enjoyed them.
I didn’t have any ground chicken, so I made these with ground pork and they were wonderful. I’ll definitely make these again with chicken. Yum!
Happy you loved them, Alan! Ground pork is a great swap. And I’m thinking I’ll do a separate pork breakfast sausage version in the future. ;)
My new favorite sausage!
Yay, so happy to hear that!
These sound amazing and I’m sure my kids would love them! Do you think fennel would be out of place here?
Hi Brandi – not at all! I think fennel would be a great addition. It pairs beautifully with chicken. Enjoy!
These look great. I’m really looking forward to trying the recipe. I’m a little confused with “servings -8”. If the recipe makes 12 sausages, wouldn’t the servings be either 12 or 6? How do you get 8? Not a big deal; just curious if I missed something.
Hi Faith – thanks so much for the catch! I’ve fixed it so there’s 6 servings (2 sausages per serving). :)
Easy, delicious, and healthy!
Hi Sarah – Happy to hear you’re loving this chicken breakfast sausage!
I actually cooked these for dinner for a big family and loved how easy and simple the recipe is. I probably used too much maple syrup cause I had more than a pound and was winging it so they turned out a bit sweet but everyone still liked them
Yes, they’re great for a dinner item as well! So glad everyone liked them. Thanks, Olga!
Made the breakfast chicken sausage patties for breakfast. They were delicious with perfect blend of spices. Will not purchase store brand ever again. So easy to make and freeze as well. Thanks again Lisa!
Hi Mary – I’m so happy you loved them! And yes, they’re so much better than the ones you buy in the store. Enjoy!
Tried this delicious recipe with turkey instead of chicken and cooked them in the oven like meatballs. Wonderful! Really like how there is no egg or bread crumb ingredients. Simple and easy. Thank you!
Awesome, so happy you loved them, Denise! And great job tweaking the recipe to your liking. :)
I did it for breakfast, the recipe is perfect! So delicious! Definitely I will use it for dinner ideas! Thanks for the recipe!!!!
Sounds delicious. I can’t have maple syrup. Could I substitute honey for the maple syrup? Can’t wait to try it!
Yes, you can do that. Enjoy!
Oops, no video. ???
Hi Chuck – You can view the video if you turn off your ad blocker!
Can these be baked in the oven, and if so, at what temperature?
Hi Sunny – while I haven’t baked them myself yet, that’s definitely an option! I’d probably bake them at 400F for 15 to 20 minutes, or until cooked through. Enjoy!
Are these sausage patties sweet? If so, is there a way I could make them more savory?
Hi Pam – These sausages are more on the savory side! They just have a touch of sweetness.
Would this work without the maple syrup? My son is on a dr prescribed keto diet so he can’t have any sweeteners… Thanks!
Yes, no problem!
Lisa,
Greetings from Canada! I am writing to thank you for all of your amazing recipes! You need to be on television, your recipes are outstanding! Thank you for sharing your talent with all of us here on YouTube. My best to you!
Aw, thanks so much, Pamela! I sincerely appreciate your kind words and I’m thrilled you’re enjoying all of my recipes and videos. :) xo