I had this idea to buy my husband a smoker a few years ago and knew it would go one of two ways:
1) My husband would take full reign and make it "his" project. He'll take care of researching/buying wood chips, watching the meat temp all day, cleaning the thing afterwards... woohoo! Or...
2) I will have to run the smoke show. Which would be OK, but I'm definitely crossing my fingers for option #1.
Happy to report my husband took on our weekend smoking project with both hands! I stock up on meat (usually snagged on sale and tucked into the deep freezer until ready) and he does the rest. Hooray for me! This also gives me more time and energy to come up with side dishes.
One of my favorite sides to make in the smoker are stuffed sweet mini peppers or jalapeno peppers!
6-8 mini sweet peppers halved and seeds removed OR 3-4 medium sized jalapeno peppers halved and seeds removed. *See pro-tip below:
Stir together 1/2 block softened cream cheese, 1/4 block of shredded sharp cheddar cheese, 1/2 tsp or more of garlic powder (or freshly minced!), and black pepper to taste. *For an extra salty oomph, top with crispy bacon bits, YUM!
Stuff your peppers, line them on a foil pan that fits inside your smoker and smoke for 45 minutes. The beauty of this recipe is the peppers are forgiving and can go in with whatever temperature you currently have going on for the meat!
These beauties are also fantastic grilled, griddled, air fried or baked!
*Pro tip! Jalapeno seeds and inside membrane (the white fleshy stuff) is where the heat lies, the more you remove, the less spicy it will be. Jalapenos are known for their heat, BUT the taste of the pepper alone is pretty dynamite. Don't let the heat scare you from eating jalapenos! Take care to scrape out those insides and you'll enjoy a tastey heat-free pepper.
Tools we love:
- RSVP Jalapeno corer