Smoked Venison Shotgun Shells
A hearty venison appetizer featuring ground a venison and cheese mixture stuffed into manicotti shells, wrapped in bacon then smoked and lathered in your favorite barbecue sauce.
- Prep Time: 2.5-4.5 hours
- Cook Time: 1-1.5 hours
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 8-10 Servings As An Appetizer 1x
- Method: Smoker
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 pound ground Venison
- ½ pound ground Pork
- 1 (8 ounce package) Cream Cheese
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
- 2 tablespoons Diced Jalapeños (Optional)
- 2 tablespoons BBQ Seasoning, Divided (more to taste if desired)
- 1 (1 pound) Package Thin Sliced Bacon or 2 (1 pound) packages Regular Cut Bacon
- 1 box Manicotti Shells, Uncooked
- 1/2 cup Barbecue Sauce
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine ground venison, pork, cream cheese, shredded cheese, jalapeños and a tablespoon of bbq seasoning. Mix well then stuff mixture into manicotti shells.
- Wrap stuffed manicottis with bacon then set onto a wire rack. You can wrap with a whole slice or I did only a half slice for some of mine. Place onto a baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Set into the fridge for 2-4 hours to soften.
- When you’re reading to cook, preheat your pellet grill to 275 degrees.
- Remove the plastic wrap and dust shotgun shells with bbq seasoning over top.
- Place a wire rack onto the smoker and smoke for 1-1.5 hours, and then turn the heat up 350°. Brush the shells with barbecue sauce. Once the grill comes up to temp and the bacon fat has mostly rendered and is starting to crisp, you can also gently roll the shells and paint the other side if desired.
- Cook until the bacon is desired crispiness and make sure the internal temperature of the meat reaches at least 160°.