Meet the bacon wrapped armadillo egg. These are like jalapeño poppers on steroids! Imagine jalapeños stuffed with a cream cheese mixture, incased in ground sausage and wrapped in bacon. This classic Texas bbq staple are fun to prepare and have lots of tasty surprises in the middle.
Why are they called Armadillo eggs?
Although Armadillos don't lay eggs, this dish got their name because when they are wrapped in bacon they resemble an armadillo's tough exterior shell.
They are similar to the famous Scotch Eggs which are made with a soft boiled egg that is incased in ground pork sausage then coated with bread crumbs and deep fried.
What are Armadillo eggs made of?
Armadillo eggs are jalapeños peppers that have been cored out then filled with a cream cheese and shredded cheese mixture. They are then incased in ground pork, seasoned with a homemade bbq seasoning and wrapped tightly with bacon. I like to finish mine with a nice glaze of bbq sauce too.
Can I substitute the ingredients in the armadillo eggs?
If you don't want to eat pork or have dietary restrictions, try beef armadillo eggs or even chorizo armadillo eggs! They both make a great substitute. You can also experiment with different types of cheeses for the filling as well as bbq sauces for the glaze.
What kind of wood should I use?
My favorite wood to use is cherry. This wood gives a sweet and smokey flavor to the meat and also helps with the overall color. Oak, pecan and apple are also great choices here.
Can I make armadillo eggs in the oven?
Although you won't get the smokey flavor, you can absolutely make them in your oven or air fryer for that matter.
Place the bacon-wrapped armadillo eggs onto a wire rack on top of a baking sheet and place them in your oven at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165 degrees. If you want really crispy bacon, bake them for a little longer.
Ingredients needed to make armadillo eggs:
Jalapeno peppers
Cream cheese
Shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheese
Slices of bacon
Bbq seasoning
Bbq Sauce
Breakfast sausage or ground pork sausage
Bacon wrapped armadillo eggs recipe:
Prepping the jalapeños
To start, take large jalapeños, cut the tops where the stems are and remove the seeds. You want the entire jalapeño hollowed out for the cream cheese filling.
Typically I take the back of a spoon push it into the jalapeno, twist and pull out. This usually does the trick. If there are any excess pieces inside the pepper just rinse them out in your sink.
Also pro tip: when handling jalapenos I recommend wearing gloves. If not make sure you wash your hands really good and avoid touching your eyes for a while.
Making the filling.
Once the jalapeños are ready its time to make the filling. In a medium bowl combine a block of cream cheese with shredded cheddar, mozzarella and a little bbq seasoning.
Mix that all together to combine so you can pipe the filling into each pepper.
A piping bag works great but if you don't have one, place the filling into a ziplock bag and cut one corner. Then carefully push the filling through that corner to fill each pepper.
Wrapping the jalapeños.
Take your ground sausage and flatten it out so its about 4 times as wide as your pepper. Then incase each pepper with the sausage. Add more sausage as need to incase the whole thing.
The jalapenos should be completely incased in the sausage so it has an egg shape. Season the ground pork with a sweet rub or try my homemade bbq seasoning.
Then take 1-2 strips of bacon and wrap each armadillo egg tight with bacon from top to bottom. Any excess bacon you can tuck underneath the back side so it doesn't come unraveled.
If need be use a few toothpicks to keep everything secure.
Smoking the bacon wrapped armadillo eggs.
Preheat your smoker to 250°F and place each armadillo egg directly on the grill grates. Smoke these until they reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees.
It will take about an hour to an hour and a half but every smoker is different so make sure you keep an eye on the temps. Once they reach 160 degrees take your favorite bbq sauce and brush each armadillo egg.
Raise the temperature of the smoker to 300 and cook for another 15 minutes. The higher temperature will allow the sauce to tack up and really adhere to the bacon.
Remove them off the smoker and allow them to cool down on your cutting board for another 10-15 minutes before eating.
I like to cut them in half and just pick them up to eat. They make for a great appetizer and the sausage, bacon, jalapeno and cheese are the perfect combination!
How to store and reheat:
These are best eaten right after they are made. However, if you do have any leftovers, place them in an airtight container and in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave or airfryer for best results.
Must try recipes like this one:
Jalapeño poppers pigs in a blanket
Smoked Pig shots (with maple bourbon glaze)
Print
Bacon wrapped armadillo eggs recipe
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
Ingredients
- 8 medium jalapeños
- 1 block of cream cheese (softened)
- 4 tablespoons bbq seasoning (All purpose or homemade)
- ¼ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 lbs ground pork sausage
- 1 package of thin cut bacon
- ½ cup of bbq sauce
Instructions
- Slice tops of each jalapeño pepper and core out to remove seeds.
- In a medium bowl combine cream cheese and shredded cheeses together, stir well to combine.
- Use a spoon or a piping bag to get cheese filling inside each jalapeño.
- Incase each jalapeño with ¼ lb of pork sausage and season with bbq rub of your choice. Should look like an egg.
- Wrap each armadillo egg with 2 pieces of thin cut bacon and smoke at 250°F until the internal temperature reaches 160°F. (An hour to an hour and a half)
- Brush bbq sauce onto each armadillo egg, increase the temperature to 300°F and cook for another 15 minutes.
- Remove armadillo eggs from the grill, allow to cool down and serve.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
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