Smoked Shotgun Shells Recipe

Pyramid tower of smoked shotgun shells on a gray plate.

5 stars (5 reviews)

These restaurant-style smoked shotgun shells feature a delicious combo of sausage and cheeses stuffed inside tender manicotti pasta, all wrapped in bacon, and doused in barbecue sauce. They're easy to make and great to serve with creamy dipping sauces!

Prep Time35

Cook Time1 30

Total Time2 5

Course: Appetizer, Main, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine: American, Southern

Servings: - 14 rolls

Calories: 386kcal

Author: Sommer Collier

Equipment

1 Smoker

Ingredients

8 ounce box manicotti shells
16 ounces ground pork sausage or ground beef
8 ounces cream cheese
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
1 ½ tablespoon BBQ rub seasoning or steak seasoning
1/3 cup pickled jalapeno diced
16 ounces long thin-sliced bacon strips NOT thick-cut
18 ounces BBQ sauce

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Set out a large mixing bowl and a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. In the bowl, combine the sausage, cream cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, barbecue seasoning, and diced jalapeños. Mix by hand until very smooth.
Use your hands to pack the meat mixture into the manicotti shells. Make sure there are no air pockets inside the manicotti - I find it best to pack the meat mixture from one end and push it all the way through to the other end.
Wrap each manicotti with a thin long strip of bacon. Stretch the bacon so that it fully covers the manicotti shell and can be tucked under on both ends.
Place the stuffed and bacon-wrapped manicotti shells in the baking dish. Pour the barbecue sauce over the top and allow the pasta shells to soak in the sauce for at least 30 minutes.
Once the manicotti are wrapped and soaking in barbecue sauce, preheat the smoker to 250°F.
After 30 minutes of soaking, gently move the shotgun shells out of the baking dish and onto the smoker grates. Try to retain as much barbecue sauce on the shotgun shells as possible. If needed, brush/pour extra over the top so there's a nice thick coating.
Smoke the shotgun shells at a consistent 250°F for 90 minutes. At this point check one of the shotgun shells by squeezing to see if the pasta inside is soft. It should be a perfect al dente, slightly firm but fully cooked through. If they need a little longer, leave them on the smoker for another 10 to 20 minutes.

Notes

Recipe Adjustment: If you are concerned that the pasta shells won't fully cook on the smoker (based on the thickness of the dried shells or thicker bbq sauces) add 1/4 -1/2 cup of water to the bbq sauce before adding the shells to soak.

Serve warm as-is, or with a side of creamy dipping sauce like ranch dressing, blue cheese dressing, or Caesar dressing!

Homemade smoked shotgun shells will keep well for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Place them all in a container with a lid, or wrap them individually in plastic wrap before sealing in a bag.

They'll keep well in the freezer for up to 3 months sealed in an airtight bag. Thaw them in the fridge overnight before rewarming them.

Nutrition