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Texas Trash Dip is a popular appetizer dip made with refried beans, cream cheese, and sour cream – but we had to up the flavor by smoking the dip on the pellet grill and adding in ground beef for a meaty version. The result is a flavor-packed, crowd-pleasing smoked dip that will have you coming back for more!
Meaty Texas Trash Dip on the Smoker
Texas Trash Dip is a popular appetizer dip made with refried beans, cream cheese, and sour cream – but our meaty version includes smoked ground beef, and we cook it on the smoker or pellet grill for extra smoky goodness! The result is a flavor-packed, crowd-pleasing smoked dip that will have you coming back for more!
Equipment
- 12" cast iron skillet or grill-safe casserole dish
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds 80/20 ground beef
- 8 oz block cream cheese
- ½ tablespoon Spice That Jalapeno All-Purpose seasoning, or your favorite all-purpose seasoning
- 2 whole jalapeños
- 2 tablespoons bacon grease, or cooking oil
- ¼ large sweet onion, finely diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 29 oz can pinto beans, with juice
- 16 oz can refried beans
- 3 tablespoons Fiesta That Mexican seasoning, or your favorite taco or Mexican seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste
- 8 oz sour cream
- 7 oz can diced green chiles, drained
- 8 oz monterrey jack cheese, shredded
- 8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 8 oz bag Mexican cheese blend, shredded
- tortilla chips or corn chips for serving
- fresh or pickled jalapeno slices for garnish
Instructions
- Heat pellet grill or smoker to 250℉ with your choice of pellets or wood.
- Place block of cream cheese on a small foil-lined sheet tray. Sprinkle the top of the cream cheese block evenly with about ½ tablespoon Spice That Jalapeno All-Purpose seasoning, or your favorite all-purpose seasoning. Place the two whole jalalpenos on the sheet tray alongside the cream cheese block.
- Break up ground beef into small chunks and spread out in an even layer on a separate small foil-lined sheet tray.
- Place the tray of ground beef and the tray of cream cheese directly on the grill grates, and smoke at 250℉.
- Make the refried beans – While the beef and cream cheese are smoking, heat a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add 2 tablespoons bacon grease or cooking oil. Sauté the onions in the skillet until tender and lightly colored, about 5-6 minutes. Then add minced garlic and sauté an additional 1 minute.
- Add the 29 oz can of pinto beans with the juice to the onions and garlic. Heat about 2 minutes, and add 1 tablespoon Fiesta That Mexican seasoning. Then use a potato masher or spatula to mash to desired consistency.
- Add the can of refried beans, and mix all beans together. Continue to cook and mash until desired consistency is reached. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- After 1 hour and 15 minutes on the smoker, remove the tray of smoked ground beef, but leave the cream cheese on to continue to smoke. Transfer ground beef to a large skillet. Continue to brown the beef over medium heat, while breaking the clumps apart into smaller crumbles, about 5-7 minutes. Drain the beef and stir in 2 tablespoons Fiesta That Mexican seasoning (or your favorite taco seasoning) plus ½ cup water. Stir together well and continue to cook until sauce is reduced.
- Make the cream cheese mixture – Remove the smoked cream cheese from the grill and transfer to a large mixing bowl. Allow the smoked jalapenos to cool a bit, then seed and dice. Add the diced smoked jalapenos to the cream cheese, along with 8 oz sour cream and the can of drained green chiles. Stir together well.
- Adjust the pellet grill or smoker temperature up to 300℉ to heat while you assemble the dip.
- Assemble the Texas Trash Dip with ground beef – Spread about half of the refried beans into an even layer in the bottom of a 12" cast iron skillet or grill-safe casserole dish. Then sprinkle about half of the smoked ground beef crumbles on top.
- Spread about half of the cream cheese mixture on top of the ground beef layer. Sprinkle with about ⅓ of the shredded cheeses.
- Continue to layer the other half of the ingredients, creating a second layer of each – the remaining refried beans, smoked beef crumbles, and cream cheese mixture. Then sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheeses. Place the skillet on the smoker, and cook at 300℉ for about 30 minutes.
- Adjust the grill temperature up to 350℉. Top the dip with fresh or pickled jalapeno slices for garnish. Continue to cook at 350℉ for another 15-20 minutes, or until the dip is hot and bubbly and the cheeses are melted.
- Carefully remove the dip from the grill. Allow to cool about 10-15 minutes before serving with tortilla chips or corn chips.
Notes
- For the refried beans – We like to make our own refried beans with sautéed onions, garlic, and canned pinto beans. You can skip a few steps and use all canned refried beans instead if you wish.
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