ABTs...what went wrong?

[freakaccident]

Got my OBS today and decided to smoke some ABTs.  I've never had them before so I have no reference point but IMHO they turned out too smoky and a little on the bland side.

I used the Jim Beam pucks at 225* for two hours.  I used the standard ABT recipe.  Jalapeno's halved and cleaned out, cream cheese, a lil sweet rub on the cream cheese, lil smokie in each one, and then wrapped in bacon. 

Did I over smoke them?  Wrong wood?  Not enough seasoning?  Cooked too long?

Thanks

[SiFumar]

Personally they look great to me!  I do mix seasonings in with the cream cheese and then taste it before stuffing.  Others might have better suggestions.

[freakaccident]

Personally they look great to me!  I do mix seasonings in with the cream cheese and then taste it before stuffing.  Others might have better suggestions.

They were just blah.  Nothing there but smoke.

I read a post about mixing some of the seeds and veins in with the cream cheese.  I may try that tomorrow to improve the flavor and maybe switch to a maple type bacon.  A little more of the sweet rub mixed in with the cream cheese too.  I didn't taste the mixture before I spooned it in.

I just cleaned out the OBS and there was a lot of bacon drippings in the pan but not much cheese so the cheese didn't melt out much.  There was some burnt on the catching tray thing but not much.  I'm still thinking that maybe I don't like the Jim Beam wood pucks.  It's all I have for now so I will just work with it.

[freakaccident]

OH and I forgot to mention that they literally shrunk in half during cooking.

[SiFumar]

I smoke at the most, 40 min and finish on grill.  Also I add shredded sharp cheddar/ jalapeno jack to mixture.  I'm thinking they were a bit overcooked.  We like a bit of cripness left.

[freakaccident]

I smoke at the most, 40 min and finish on grill.  Also I add shredded sharp cheddar/ jalapeno jack to mixture.  I'm thinking they were a bit overcooked.  We like a bit of cripness left.

Awesome!  I'll do that tomorrow.  I am going to try baby back ribs tomorrow and the ABTs will be a nice snack along with a couple of beers.  Ill post pics and updates tomorrow night.

[FLBentRider]

We mix cooked ground sausage and diced habenero peppers in the cream cheese.

That kicks it up a notch.

[Slamdunk]

I only let the smoke roll for an hour. 2 hours perhaps may be a bit too long,

[freakaccident]

We mix cooked ground sausage and diced habenero peppers in the cream cheese.

That kicks it up a notch.

I have considered chorizo instead of the lil smokies all together.  Thoughts?

[pensrock]

Chopped brisket or pulled pork is great in ABT's. I would cut the smoke down to around 40 minutes.

[Habanero Smoker]

Often it is hard to tell from a picture. The picture could be over exposed and every monitor will display colors differently, and it also depends on the brightness and contrast you have it set to.

Chorizo will be a good ingredient to add. I make mine similar to what SiFumar does, and will add lime juice and honey. If you have any left over pulled pork, chop that up fine and mix it in with the cream cheese. I do not wrap the bacon around, but will fry then crumble it and mix that in with the cream cheese. Then I will add different toppings such as crushed pineapple, chopped nuts, jalapeno relish etc. The toppings can go on before or after the ABT's are done. I also parboil the peppers first, keep in mind I don't wrap them in bacon so I don't need to keep them in the smoker too long.

If you have family members or guest that don't like the heat, the mini-sweet peppers that are now hitting the markets are a good substitute. Just don't parboil first or cook them as long as the jalapeno. If you want to wrap bacon around these peppers, then I recommend you first partially cook the bacon in the microwave.

[OU812]

I gotta ask,,,, what did you use to measure the cabnet temp of the smoker?

Them ABTs look burnt to me, no offence.

[freakaccident]

I gotta ask,,,, what did you use to measure the cabnet temp of the smoker?

Them ABTs look burnt to me, no offence.

Maverick Dual probe thermometer.  I only used the cabinet temp probe on the maverick for the ABTs

[freakaccident]

I gotta ask,,,, what did you use to measure the cabnet temp of the smoker?

Them ABTs look burnt to me, no offence.

Maverick Dual probe thermometer.  I only used the cabinet temp probe on the maverick for the ABTs

I just did a test with the Maverick on my home oven and it wasn't pretty but it's due to the tstat in my oven.

I set the oven to 200*.  According to the Maverick:

When the oven cycles on it rises to 234*.
The oven doesn't cycle back on until it dips to 192*.

Apparently my oven isn't very accurate.  I am going to pull the Maverick and test to air temp near my SkyScan Atomic clock/thermo.  Will update a bit later.

[freakaccident]

I gotta ask,,,, what did you use to measure the cabnet temp of the smoker?

Them ABTs look burnt to me, no offence.

Maverick Dual probe thermometer.  I only used the cabinet temp probe on the maverick for the ABTs

I just did a test with the Maverick on my home oven and it wasn't pretty but it's due to the tstat in my oven.

I set the oven to 200*.  According to the Maverick:

When the oven cycles on it rises to 234*.
The oven doesn't cycle back on until it dips to 192*.

Apparently my oven isn't very accurate.  I am going to pull the Maverick and test to air temp near my SkyScan Atomic clock/thermo.  Will update a bit later.

Ok there ya go.  Mav is right on target.