Bacon Explosion Fatty...my version

Hey Gang,

Super Bowl Weekend I fired up the Excel 20 for a double experiment. 1 - to try out the BBQ Guru temp control unit; and 2 - to try the 'Bacon Explosion' recipe that is sweeping the barbeque internet by storm.

Here's the break down...

The BBQ Guru worked well in maintaining the pit temp around 225*F. In order to use the BBQ Guru, all of the bottom vents must be closed so, 2 of the 3 vents were completely closed to begin with the 3rd vent remaining full open to accomodate the BBQ Guru adaptor. Since the 3rd vent still had 3 holes open, I plugged them with foil to block airflow through the holes.

Outside temp was in the low 40's F, breezy, but relatively nice out. I had to open one vent full open to the temps up to cooking range, but once that happened, the BBQ Guru did a good job of maintaining.

If you're not familiar with the unit, (I have the older unit), it has 2 wired probes from the monitor unit to the pit. The 'traditional' (meat) probe fit nicely through the probe eyelet in the Excel; the other (pit temp) probe has an 'alligator' clip on the end, so it wouldn't fit through the probe eyelet. I simply inserted it through the 'look-see' door. All was good.

Now, on to the star of the show...the Bacon Explosion Fatty (which I'll be talking about on the BBQEmergency.com Radio Talk Show this weekend)...

The Bacon Weave


1 pound generic Breakfast Sausage + 1 pound Italian Sausage


Bacon Weave Sprinkled with Mojo Rub Seasoning


Sausage combined, flatened, spread over the bacon weave...sprinkled with Mojo Rub and diced sweet onion


Colby and Monterey Cheese layered over sausage mix


Roughly 1 pound of cooked bacon chopped and layered over cheese


Drizzled with Blues Hog BBQ Sauce


Sausage was rolled into a log shape, then bacon weave was rolled around the sausage and sprinkled with more Mojo Rub


Wrapped in foil and chilled for a couple of hours to allow seasoning to blend and to firm up the fatty


Excel 20 (without the Stacker) with the BBQ Guru Attached


Smoked at 225*F for about 4 hours; internal temp to 160*F. With all the extra bacon and fat in this sausage, I was not concerned with it drying out...it was very moist in the end.


Cooking at such a low temperature, didn't render out as much fat from the bacon as I typically like, so I put it over high,direct heat on the frill to melt some of the additional fat out. It wasn't as pretty after the grilling, but it sure was tasty!


All in all, I think this 'Bacon Explosion' should be renamed the Cardiac Arrest Fatty, but since I didn't create it, I'll resist renaming it. The kids LOVED it after resting it for about 10 minutes. I held off on trying it until the next morning when I placed a thick slice of it between two biscuit halves. I prefer my fatty cold. It was excellent, though next time I think I'll add a bit more rub to the inside of the sausage; use a thinner cut bacon in the weave and cook it at a higher temp to render out the bacon more; skip the onions; and glaze it with a spicey barbeque sauce.

Have you made this, or a variation of this, recipe?

I haven't made it yet, but its coming around the corner. What temp do you think you'd take it to next time before pulling it off the heat? It looks awesome! Good job and thanks for the pics.

CrazyQ wrote:

I haven't made it yet, but its coming around the corner. What temp do you think you'd take it to next time before pulling it off the heat? It looks awesome! Good job and thanks for the pics.

Thanks. The last picture didn't turn out as good as I had hoped, but it ended up being very tasty anyhow.

I almost feel obligated to state (for the record) that most health departments recommend cooking pork to an internal temperature of 165*F. Though I pull pork loins off the smoker at 148*F, taking this beheamoth to 150*F to 160*F is a good range for this type of sausage. With all the fat in it, it shouldn't dry out in this millenium, yet it will give the bacon weave plenty of time to render down and become amazing.

Have fun with the recipe, and take pictures!

Carpe 'Que,
Jim Rhino

thanks a lot for the recipe