Question about cheese filled ABTs

I'm going to try to answer your question as well as give you a little bump on this so that you can get more input.

There are literally bazillions of threads on ABT's on SMF as well as the internet in general. I think if you do a search on them and skim a few threads you will get a good idea of what to do. Basic steps are very simple.....core or slice your jalapenos, removing as many seeds and membranes as desired. You can use other types of peppers if you want; I've also used mini sweets and poblanos, and those worked great too and packed less heat. Fill with your choice of filling (precooking meats, shrimp raw, in general). Wrap or drape with a thin slice of bacon, par cooked if you want to ensure a crisp bacon when completed. Smoke at 225 deg F for 2 to 3 hours until the pepper is tender and the bacon is cooked. Throw on a grill or under the broiler for a few minutes if you really want to crisp up your bacon.

I would personally find just cream cheese and shredded cheese to be a very unsatisfying and textureless filling. I always like some kind of something with some substance in there, usually ground sausage for me, but lil' smokies and shrimp are other popular choices. The cream cheese and shredded cheese will do fine smoked for that length of time, although I think they are better if you let them sit on the counter and cool down a little bit before eating to let the cheeses firm up a little.

This is just my 2 cents. Others may have different opinions.

Good luck and have fun!
Clarissa

 

I will second the suggestion for par cooking the bacon.

I use 1/2 slice per jap.

Good luck and good smoking.

 

I run 'em a little hotter, 250˚-275˚ and usually get pretty crispy bacon in about 2 hours. One thing I do is buy cheap store brand bacon, the thinner the better. Then I take it a step further and lay it out on my cutting board and take a butter knife and "spread" the bacon out even further. Kind of like the motion you'd use if you were trying to spread peanut butter on the bacon. Thin bacon seems to crisp up more nicely.

 

They got you covered. 2hrs at 225 is what I do.

 

I like to do 2 hours in the smoker at 225 also . Thick or thin bacon dosen't matter to me ... If the bacon is not crisp I just broil it in the oven with the oven door open " So they dont get too much heat " and crisp bacon to your desire.

 

I have found that 1/4 slice (cut bacon in half and then slice lengthwise to create a thin strip) really works well.  Not too much bacon flavor (if that is a bad thing) and allows the taste of the other ingredients to come through as well.  Creates a nice balance of all the ingredients.

Good luck,  John

 

I slice mine lengthwise in half and scoop out the seeds and membrane with a small tea spoon. Coring whole peppers and stuffing with cheese if for the birds. I did some last night and mixed jalapeno jelly in with the cream cheese and it was awesome. I have stuffed with just about everything under the sun. I also just top my ABT's with a piece of bacon. Saves on bacon and bacon is expensive these days. 2 hours 225 degrees. Apple smoke is my prefered. If you want to try something really neat put a little smoky in there too. You can get really fast at prep if you do it in this way and it's quite a bit less messy. No pepper rack needed.

 

I agree on precooking. another thing you can try is rolling the bacon using a rolling pin to thin it out, I use this method when making bacon weaves to make the weave, thinner, larger and it fills in the gaps.

I prefer meat in the Jalapenos, I love cream cheese and can eat it like a candy bar but don't care too much for it in an ABT.



or something like Buffalo Chicken Dip

• I did however like the Taco ones I made that had cream cheese and also my Canoli ABT's but the Canoli Abt's are served cold.

 

Hope this helps

Here's a few notes from my website.

Basic Jalapeno Pepper Preparation​

Pepper Preparation: Cut the tops off the jalapenos, using a potato peeler, core the inside making sure to remove all of the seeds Poke a small hole with a toothpick in the bottom of the Pepper. Place it in a "Chile Grill" or similar holder and salt the inside of the peppers.

Stuffing the Peppers: (see pictures below) Stuff the papers, top off with “Thick Sliced” bacon , if wrapping use thin sliced bacon and secure with a toothpick.

Smoking: Put them in your smoker for 2- 3 Hours at 210 - 225ºF

Serving: Cool for 20 minutes then serve whole or slice in half lay out on a serving tray

Notes: ​

• Peppers are finished when the bacon is done.

• Useful Tools: A "Melon Baller", "Grapefruit Spoon", "Potato Peeler", "corer", "jerky gun", "Ziploc Bag" and "Pastry Bag" are all great tools when making ABT's. For the individual that must have every kitchen gadget, here is an item called a "Pepper Shark", I have not used it, nor endorse it.

• If stuffing the peppers in the cone style make sure to poke a whole in the bottom of the pepper again, after it has been stuffed, the reason for this is, the grease or extra moisture will drain from the pepper, hopefully preventing the pepper from getting mushy, especially with recipes containing wet or greasy ingredients.

• 
  Safety; Use: Wear gloves when preparing hot peppers and safety goggles are suggested as well. I will clean my peppers under cold running water. When you are finished, wash your hands well with soap and water. After touching a jalapeno, be careful not to touch anything, rub your eyes or go to the bathroom before washing your hands.

• Reducing Heat: Removing the seeds and vein will reduce the heat of the pepper, you can also reduce the heat by soaking the peppers in heavily salted water for several hours. Also the longer they cook the mellower the pepper becomes.

• Adding Heat; (technically your not adding heat you are just NOT removing any heat). For hotter peppers leave the vein intact and some seeds as well, and cook for a shorter period of time.

• 
  If you plan on trying these out on individuals with no heat tolerance, be kind enough to serve with a glass of milk or some yogurt.
• 
  Tailgating tip the Loaded Pepper, place a few strips of habanero inside a jalapeno that the vein was left intact, as a hot surprise, just make sure to let everyone know that there is a "Loaded Pepper" in the mix.

There are other methods to cutting these as well, some will cut off the top and slit lengthwise down one side of the pepper to the bottom to leave the pepper intact. Another method is to leave the top on and half the pepper just below the top, sort of butterflying, this works well when using Little smokies. Some will do sort of a slit like a coin purse.

At Black Eyed Pigz they slice lengthwise about a 1/4 of the pepper off the side to allow room to stuff, others split down the middle, stem and everything such as over at Pioneer Woman does, you need a sharp knife and really fresh peppers for this.

Over at Bamaque they use a little cream cheese a little smokie then the halves are put back together again then wrapped in bacon.

The tops can be removed, core and stuff the pepper then placed the top back on, whatever you decide just remember, its supposed to be fun, keep it simple!

Here's my  Taco ABT's

Update to this recipe, added a pack of Lipton onion soup mix, a bit salty for a eighteen, so be sure to make at least 2 dozen or half the soup mix.

Preparation

• Combine all ingredients except for the Jalapenos and warm in microwave, mix well and stuff the peppers.
• Wrap in bacon and toothpick if necessary.
• Place in a 250° preheated smoker for 2-3 hours