Cooking for 24 people
Ingredients
- 8 oz.
cream cheese (softened)
- 1 cup
cheddar cheese
- 2
garlic cloves (finely diced)
- 6
jalapeños (cut in half, then each side cut in half)
- 1 lb.
ground pork sausage
- 1 lb.
ground Italian sausage
- 1/2 lb.
ground chorizo
- 24 slices
bacon
- 1 cup
Ranch dressing
- 1/3 cup
ground chipotle powder
- 1/3 cup
turbinado sugar
- 1/3 cup
ground ancho chile powder
- 1/3 cup
paprika
- 1/3 cup
kosher salt
- 1 tbsp.
ground cumin
- 1 tbsp.
onion powder
- 1 tbsp.
dried thyme
- 1 tsp.
dried marjoram
- 1 tsp.
cayenne
- 2 tbsp.
green peppercorns (crushed)
- 1 tsp.
celery seed (or ½ tsp celery seed powder)
- 1/2 tsp.
ground allspice
- 1/2 tsp.
cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp.
ginger
1Food Prep
Mix together your BBQ rub ingredients and store them in an airtight container.
Then, in a large bowl, add your chorizo, Italian sausage and ground pork sausage and blend together until well combined.
Apply your rub to the meat 1 hour before cooking.
Mix together the cream cheese, cheddar cheese and garlic until well blended. Give it a taste and add salt if needed.
Remove the stems from your jalapeños and cut them in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds then cut the sliced jalapeños in half, so one jalapeño should get you 4 quarters.
Place about 1 tsp. of the cream cheese filling in each jalapeño quarter.
Take about ⅓ cup of the sausage mixture and pat it into a 3” circle and place the stuffed jalapeño in the center of the sausage mixture. Wrap the sausage mixture around the stuffed jalapeño until it’s completely covered, and form it into an egg shape.
Wrap each sausage egg with 1 strip of bacon making sure the seam is down. You now have an Armadillo egg
2Grill Prep
Fuel: We recommend Kingsford® Original Charcoal Briquets
Temp: 250°F (Low Heat)
3The Cook
When you’re at temp, put cooking oil on a folded paper towel. Grab the oiled paper towel with long-handled tongs and oil the grate thoroughly.
Place your Armadillo egg on the cooler side of the grill. Close the lid and cook for 1–1½ hours, or until the sausage is cooked to an internal temperature of 160ºF.
Remove from the grill and enjoy with ranch dressing.
Credit: Recipe courtesy of “Secrets to Smoking” by Bill Gillespie (Page Street Publishing Co.)
For safe meat preparation, reference the USDA website.
