Barbecue folks have the best appetizers and best appetizer names. That's what happens when it takes hours and hours to smoke meats. You play around and cook snacks in the mean time. Here are some of the classic BBQ appetizers.
- Fatty - Breakfast sausage chub stuffed with cheese, peppers, or whatever, seasoned with BBQ rub, sometimes wrapped in a bacon weave, and smoked.
- Atomic Buffalo T**** (ABT's) - Jalapenos stuffed with a cheese mixture, seasoned with BBQ rub, wrapped with bacon and smoked
- Stuffed Fritos - See my previous post
- MOINK Balls - covered in today's post
- Armadillo Eggs - covered in today's post
MOINK Balls
If you have ever spent 30 seconds on a BBQ forum, you have probably seen or heard of MOINK Balls because they are wildly popular. They are the creation of Larry "The BBQ Grail" Gaian. Here is the funny story behind the name.
Here's the Cliff Notes version. If you don't have a smoker or smoke capable grill, you could cook these indirect at a very low heat on a gas grill.
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Wrap meat balls in 1/2 strips of bacon, impale with a tooth pick and season with your favorite BBQ rub. I used Drapers AP Rub. |
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Smoke at 250f for an hour. |
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Glaze with your favorite BBQ sauce. Tonight I used Blues Hog Original. Not my favorite but my family loves the super sweet sauce. Smoke another 30 minutes. |
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Eat. Wait....remove toothpicks first. |
Armadillo Eggs
Did you know that an armadillo can grow as large at 132 pounds? I do only because Trevor had to do a research paper on the armadillo a few weeks ago.
Anyway, when I first started trying to learn about barbecue 10 years ago, I heard about Armadillo eggs. They are a jalapeno (or jalapeno boat) de-seeded, stuffed with a cheese mixture, wrapped in sausage, seasoned with rub, and then smoked for an hour. It's kind of like a spice Scotch Egg without the egg.
We LOVE ABT's but since the jalapeno in Amradillo Eggs is wrapped in sausage, it doesn't cook as much. That leaves it spicier and not as tender. So if you like spicy, make them as Armadillo eggs.
My family likes a milder version that uses a diced jalapeno/cheese stuffing. Because they turn out round, we call them Sea Turtle Eggs.
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Armadillo Eggs (oval) and Sea Turtle Eggs (round) |
Sea Turtle Eggs
Source: Nibble Me This
Serves: Makes one clutch of sea turtle eggs
Ingredients
- 1 lb Jimmy Dean Sage Breakfast Sausage, cut into 10-11 slices
- 1/2 cup cream cheese*
- 1/2 cup shredded colby-jack cheese*
- 2 jalapeno chile, de-seeded and finely diced
- 1 1/2 tsp Draper's AP rub or your favorite BBQ rub (divided)
- Preheat a charcoal grill set up for indirect heat to 250f. Add a chunk or two of cherry, hickory or whatever smoking woods that you have on hand.
- Mix the cream cheese, cheese, jalapeno and 1/2 tsp of BBQ rub together.
- Place about 1 tsp of the cheese mixture on each slice of sausage. Pull up the edges of the sausage and seal, forming it into a round, golf ball sized "egg".
- Season your "eggs" with the remaining 1 tsp of BBQ rub.
- Smoke the "eggs" for about 90 minutes.
Notes
- I used whipped cream cheese...new to me, that stuff is awesomely good.
- Feel free to sub any other cheese.
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This an an armadillo egg being made. |
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Smoking with cherry wood. Armadillo eggs in front, Sea turtle eggs in back. |
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Don't panic if you get a few ruptures. |
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Sea turtle egg cut open, armadillo egg in the rear. |
Holy cow...and the whole thing just started..so you have a few more weekends eating like this. I am realizing I don't know a whole lot about the BBQ world because I have never heard of any of these...I want all three right now, but I think i would try the sea turtle eggs first because I love jalapeno and like the idea of it being chopped up in the cream cheese - holy yum! I love the sage sausage, too.
ReplyDeleteAhh your inspiring me to dust of my Weber! Maybe this weekend, these apps look well tasty!!
ReplyDeleteTake care
I've not made moinks or armadillo eggs, but you make them look too good not to try.
ReplyDeleteMeatballs wrapped in bacon? Jalapenos wrapped in meatballs? It's like meat heaven and I just entered through the pearly white gates!! OMG.. I want it all!!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, those moink balls look so GOOD! My family would devour them. I wonder how many I'd have to make in order to call them a meal? I am definitely making them soon! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThose sea turtle eggs look great!!
ReplyDeleteCould it ahve been beef + pork = boink?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the grate in use in the armadillo eggs picture?
ReplyDeleteWow!Those armadillo eggs look amazing! They filling sounds creamy and spicy!!! I am drooling here!
ReplyDelete@Anonymous - That actually isn't a grate. It is a "pizza screen" that I bought for $4.99 from Gordon Food Service. Just happened to notice it this weekend while shopping there and it seemed like a Frogmat. It's good for doing soft items that might sink into normal grill grates, like fatties and armadillo eggs.
ReplyDeleteAwesome idea on the pizza screen. Never seen one of those before. Amazon carries them. I'm guessing you have it directly on the grate. Is that a 17" or 18"?
ReplyDeleteOMG any one of these need to be in my tummy NOW. Seriously. All of them. Think anyone would notice if I brought those instead of Scotch Eggs to a party??
ReplyDeleteI have done the Jalpeno with stuffed jack cheese and wrappped in bacon.The only problem is I could make them all day and no one would get enough for a large crowd. They are deeeelicous. We just call them Poppers.
ReplyDeletePersonally I' a little partial to MOINK Balls, but I'm adding those Sea Turtle Eggs to my appetizer menu.
ReplyDeleteThanks for MOINK Ball love...
Larry
All of these apps look amazing, and I know from experience they taste great! I'd like to add that they are really easy to make.
ReplyDeleteMost of the work is prepping / cleaning the jalapeños, and wrapping the bacon. Half strips of the bacon makes things easy, as you've said.
Nice job breaking down the categories of MOINK balls, Armadillo eggs, and the Sea Turtle eggs. Who knew? :)
Fascinating names. Guess I don't hang around in the right circles.
ReplyDeleteSam
Best article yet!!! ;-)
ReplyDeleteI love all of these appetizer recipes! YUM!
ReplyDeleteKim in MD
I think you have a typo here...Armadillos don't lay eggs. They reproduce using photosynthesis. GREG
ReplyDeleteI've had armadillo eggs on my list to things to make for about 70 years. This post made me instantly hungry. And please God, don't ever let me see an armadillo that weighs over 100 pounds.
ReplyDeleteHeehee these all look outrageously good and the names are funny! I would gobble these up and not be able to eat the main meal! So yummy.
ReplyDeleteGood lord... you are killing me with both of those bad boys. YUM!
ReplyDeleteHoly heck! Sausage with a jalapeno popper on the inside?!! You are on a creative roll my friend! I want these right now. Right now I tell ya! Some interesting names too.
ReplyDeleteThe sea turtle eggs are fantastic! Great idea! And thanks for turning me on to the cast iron grates. Got a set for my Performer and my old gasser. Next, getting a set for my Smokey Joe. Thanks for the post(s)!
ReplyDeleteI CANNOT wait to make armadillo eggs. YUM!
ReplyDeleteI have not been able to get those turtle eggs out of my head since I saw them. We are heading down to the ranch this weekend and I will be making up a batch of these for sure.
ReplyDeleteyou stupid people! you don't DONT... EAT FREAKING SEA TURTLES. what if you were a baby sea turtle, on the verge of birth, and some person ate you?!?!?! you are crazy. >:(
ReplyDeleteAnonymous that posted on Jan 16, 2014: you are an idiot!
ReplyDeleteGood grief, how stupid can one person be!!!
i agree Anonymous they are unborn baby turtles and we just eat them this is freaking horrible
ReplyDeletethis is illegal you stupid people will be arrested for eating 1 single sea turtle egg.
ReplyDeleteIn regard to armadillo eggs, I smoked some fresh jalepenos till the were just soft on a BGE. Halved and deseeded them and proceeded with the armadillo egg recipe. Added even more smokiness, a soft bite, and slightly less spicy (I did a side-by-side comparison with some uncooked jalapenos).
ReplyDelete