I tried out the Pig Shots BBQ recipe floating around social media, a recipe for beginners, and was happily surprised by the result. Here’s what happened.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Servings: 5+
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cooking time: 45 minutes – 1hr
- Resting time: None
- Total time: 1hr – 1hr 15 minutes
TLDR Ingredients list:
- Thick cut bacon
- Thick sausage slices
- Cream cheese
- Your favorite rub
- Cocktail sticks
If you’re wondering what pig shots are, let me enlighten you — it’s an easy to make appetiser that will impress your guests (and likely keep kids happy) at your next cookout.
The staple ingredients are what your doctor will advise you to enjoy in moderation — meat and cheese. In particular, bacon, hot dogs (or hot link/sausage slices if you’re feeling fancy), and cream cheese.
In short, you create a mini tower with sausage as the base, wrapped bacon as the walls, and fill it with creamy cheese before throwing it in the smoker.
I came across Kent Rollins’ recipe for smoked Pig Shots recently. If the name rings a bell, its because Kent — also known as Cowboy Kent — started in Netflix’s Barbecue Showdown, in Season 3.
There’s a few other great recipes for this tasty appetizer out there, including Meat Church‘s option with a honey bent, or Ninjacue’s recipe using boubon and maple syrup. But I chose to try out Kent’s after coming across it on TikTok, considering just how easy it is and kid-friendly if you disregard the inclusion of jalapenos.
Full ingredients list:
- Thick cut bacon or doubled streaky bacon
- Thick hot link cylindrical slices – or – hot dog, cut into thick circles (around 1/2 inch)
- A small tub of cream cheese (or whipped cream cheese)
- Jalapenos
- Your favorite rub
- Cocktail sticks
INSTRUCTIONS:
1: Take your cream cheese out of the fridge. You will want it at room temperature. Preheat your smoker to 350f.
2: Put your cream cheese into a bowl and add your favorite rub, mixing it thoroughly. I like to use Angus & Oink’s Pigasus honey and jalapeno rub.
3. Spoon the cream cheese into a ziplock bag. A piping bag, too, would work well.
4. Grab your smoked sausage or hot dog and cut into 1/2 inch disks.
5. Roll out your bacon and set a sausage disk at the bottom of your bacon strip. Carefully roll the bacon around the sausage and fix in place with a cocktail stick. Make sure it’s flush as the sausage will be acting as a base.
6. Set them upright and grab your ziplock or piping bag. If you’re using a ziplock, snip a hole in one bottom corner and begin adding the filling.
7. Be generous, but not too generous — you don’t want the filling to bubble over in your smoker. (Check out Kent’s recipe for a deviation including jalapenos and more sausage.) If you like, sprinkle some more of your rub on top of your pig shots.
8. Throw them in your smoker and leave them for roughly 30 to 40 minutes. When the bacon looks crispy and the filling golden, it’s ready! Don’t forget to remove the cocktail sticks before serving.
NOTES:
-I did try this recipe at 225f as I had ribs set at this temperature. To save you the trouble, don’t -you need the higher temperature for a crispy, delicious result.
-Consider using different glazes for the bacon. Maple syrup, bbq sauce, honey, bourbon, or even an apple-based glaze could be amazing.
-If you want to spice it up, add the Jalapenos or consider roughly chopping your favorite chilli and adding it to the cheese mix.
Interested in more of our recipes and tips? Check out our dedicated BBQ Tech recipe section.
