Smoked Armadillo Eggs
These smoked armadillo eggs put a Southern twist on a Texas BBQ classic. Jalapeños get stuffed with homemade pimento cheese made with sharp cheddar, pepper jack, and smoked gouda. Then they're wrapped in seasoned pork breakfast sausage, covered in bacon, and smoked low and slow at 275°F until the bacon is rendered and the peppers are tender. A quick bbq sauce glaze at the end makes them sticky, smoky, and impossible to stop eating. Plus, you'll have extra pimento cheese to serve with crackers, so it's basically a 2-in-1 game day appetizer.
Servings: 12 armadillo egg halves
Ingredients
For the Pimento Cheese:
- 6 oz sharp cheddar cheese freshly grated
- 6 oz pepper jack cheese freshly grated
- 4 oz smoked gouda cheese freshly grated
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup diced jarred pimentos drained
- 2 tablespoons grated yellow onion *see notes
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- fresh cracked black pepper to taste
For the Armadillo Eggs:
- 6 large jalapeño peppers
- 2 lb pork breakfast sausage we used 1 lb hot and 1 lb regular
- 1 tablespoon 'Que That Barbecue Seasoning plus more for sprinkling
- 1 lb regular cut bacon 2 slices per egg
- ½ cup bbq sauce for glazing (optional)
- toothpicks optional
Instructions
Make the pimento cheese:
- In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, butter, mayonnaise, garlic powder, cayenne, salt, and black pepper until smooth. Stir in the pimentos and grated onion.
- Gently fold in the grated cheddar, pepper jack, and smoked gouda until evenly combined. Don't over-mix. *You will only need about 2 cups of pimento cheese for the armadillo eggs. The rest can be refrigerated and served with crackers as another appetizer.
Assemble the armadillo eggs:
- Preheat a pellet grill or smoker to 275°F.
- Slice each jalapeño in half lengthwise. Scrape out the seeds and white membrane with the back of a spoon or a paring knife. Remove the stems.
- In a bowl, mix the sausage with 1 tablespoon barbecue seasoning. Divide into 6 equal portions, about ⅓ lb each.
- Fill each jalapeño half with pimento cheese, pressing it in firmly. Press the two halves back together to form a whole stuffed pepper.
- Pat one sausage portion into a thin, even patty on a sheet of foil or parchment. Set a stuffed jalapeño in the center, fold the sausage up around it, and pinch the seams closed. Shape into an egg so no filling shows. Repeat with the remaining peppers.
- Wrap each egg in 2 slices of bacon, stretching the bacon to cover as much as possible. Tuck the ends underneath or secure with toothpicks.
- Lightly sprinkle the outside of each egg with more barbecue seasoning.
Smoke and glaze the armadillo eggs:
- Place the eggs on the grill grates and smoke at 275℉ for about 2 hours, until the bacon is rendered and the sausage reaches an internal temperature of 160°F.
- Brush the eggs with bbq sauce. Turn off the grill and let them sit for a few minutes so the sauce can tack up.
- Remove from the grill and rest 5-10 minutes. Remove any toothpicks, slice in half, and serve warm.
Notes
- Dried minced onion can replace the grated onion in the pimento cheese. Rehydrate it in just enough water to cover, then drain.
- Grate cheese from the block. Pre-shredded cheese has anti-caking agents and won't blend as smoothly.
- Eggs can be assembled up to 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate, then put them straight on the preheated smoker.
- For milder eggs, use all regular breakfast sausage instead of half hot sausage.
- Leftover pimento cheese keeps in a covered container in the fridge for up to 5 days.