When it comes to pig shots there is no limit to the variations that you can try. We all love bacon and these make a perfect side dish for a party or a family gathering. The only limit to these is your imagination. The ones we are making today have cheddar at the base of them, a lot of cream cheese, some chopped onions and a sprinkle of rub.
The preparation time for these is about 30 minutes, normally less that this but if its your first time then allow yourself that much time. Cooking is about an hour and a half. We recommend using apple wood, it really brings out the flavor in the bacon.
Lets Get Started
Lets get started. You are going to need the following ingredients. 10-12 sliced of bacon. It is preferable to pick the thick cut. Some smoked sausage (use your favorite.) 8oz of cream cheese. A decent amount of cheddar, i like the strong stuff but if you prefer mild then go with that. About a quarter of an onion finely diced. Finally, some rub mix, you will most likely have one at home that you use for your pork dishes.
The first think you need to do is to cut your smoked sausage into round slices. About a cm thick will be perfect. These will form the base of your smoked pig shots. With the sausage sliced it is time for the bacon. If it is too thin then it will not hold its shape properly. Take a knife and cut the bacon in half. Half is enough to create the outside of the shot and it will double the amount of shots you can make. You are looking at making 20-24 shots.
Make sure your cream cheese is soft. If it a little hard then just leave it out in the kitchen for an hour. When the cheese is soft it is time to make the cheese filling. Put the cheese into a bowl and add about three table tablespoons of your chosen rub. Mix it up well. Place the cheese mixture into a zip bag. Seal it off and cut of a corner of the bag. You are going to use this for piping the cheese into your bacon shots. It is time to sort out the cheese. Cut the cheese into small cubes. A similar size to the sausage slices is perfect. They cant be too big or they wont fit properly into the wrapped bacon. You can use grated cheese if you like but i like to have a really big hit of cheddar cheese when i bite into the pig shot.
Time to Assemble.
With everything ready it is time to start assembling the ingredients. You want to use the sausage slice as the base. Wrap a slice of the bacon around this. You will need to put a toothpick through the middle to keep it in the right place. You will find that the more you make these the easier it will become.
Place the piece of cheddar at the bottom on top of the sausage and pipe in the cream cheese. Put the diced onions on top. About half a teaspoon of onion should be enough. To finish them off a light sprinkle of rub will be great.
Your pig shots are ready so now we need to get the smoker ready. We need to get the smoker up to 250 degrees. If you are not using a smoker you can also do on a grill over an indirect heat.
Put all your pig shots on a tray and place into the smoker. Earlier I recommended that you use apple wood with this smoke. I still recommend this as it really does work extremely well with the bacon. You are going to smoke for about ninety minutes. This may go up or down a little but they are ready when the cheese has melted and the bacon is firm and cooked to your liking.
Of course, unlike other meats these do not need to be rested. You can serve them up as soon as they are ready.
These really are a tremendous crown pleaser but they can get even better! How about using homemade bacon instead?
Can you please recommendation a rub
Thank you