Spicy Armadillo Eggs

Get ready to spice up your next backyard barbecue or game day tailgate party with these mouth-watering Armadillo Eggs. Meat and spice lovers will adore the delicious combination of cream cheese filled jalapeño peppers wrapped in spicy chorizo sausage and bacon. Glaze them with your favourite BBQ sauce for the perfect final touch.

Summer means backyard barbecues, spicy Mango Margaritas , and lots of laughs with friends and family. These bacon wrapped appetizers are a huge hit with those who love the heat, especially when I serve them with a cooling Watermelon Feta Mint Salad.

Spicy Armadillo Eggs

Believe it or not, this blog recipe made it onto the blog way back in 2015 as ‘Dinosaur Eggs’. I guess that name was a nod to my educational background (I have a degree in Paleontology) and to the province of Alberta.

It turns out that Armadillo Eggs is the most common name for these little bacon wrapped beauties and that literally no one ever searches for Dinosaur Eggs unless they are a paleontologist.

While this is still the original recipe that I wrote back in 2015 (why change a good thing?), the written information and photos are all brand new. Photos don’t lie… these Armadillo Eggs are as tasty as they look!

From the creamy inner cream cheese core to the sticky sweet barbecue sauce glaze, each layer brings a whole new flavour to this barbecue appetizer.

If you love bacon and spice, this one is for you. If spice isn’t your thing, reduce the heat by using mild chorizo or Italian sausage… but be warned, jalapeño peppers can vary in heat level, and you never know what you’re going to get!

Do you love bacon wrapped jalapenos as much as we do, you will also love bacon wrapped jalapeno stuffed pineapple kabobs. Whew… what a (delicious) mouthful!

What Are Armadillo Eggs?

Despite the name, Armadillo Eggs do not contain eggs, though they are egg shaped and contain a yolk-like inner core. This Texas BBQ snack is a cheese stuffed jalapeño popper enclosed in a layer of sausage meat (like a Scotch egg) before being wrapped in bacon.

Recipe Ingredients

Can you believe there are only 5 ingredients in this Armadillo Eggs recipe? This is not counting the mixture of herbs and spices in the chorizo (as predetermined by the sausage maker).

• Jalapeños
• Cream Cheese
• Chorizo Sausage
• Bacon
• Barbecue Sauce

Try to choose vibrant green jalapeños without any soft spots or blemishes. They should be large enough that a spoon handle fits inside (more on that later) but small enough to be wrapped in the suggested amount of chorizo sausage and bacon.

Use a block of Philadelphia brand regular cream cheese, not light or whipped cream cheese. I highly recommend filling them with my delicious Pimento cheese if you want to get extra fancy.

Note: You’ll need a piping bag to pipe the cream cheese mixture into the jalapeños if you use pimento cheese instead of plain cream cheese.

I use spicy pork chorizo sausage meat in this Armadillo Egg recipe. However, you can substitute either mild chorizo, or use spicy or mild Italian pork sausage instead. They would also be delicious with a homemade English breakfast sausage mixture. Be sure to buy fresh sausage meat that is packaged or in casings and not dried chorizo sausage.

Long streaky thin cut bacon rashers are the best for wrapping. I recommend always buying extra, depending on if you want complete coverage or not. I promise these Armadillo Eggs will still be delicious if they are not 100% covered in bacon.

Finally, feel free to use your favorite BBQ sauce for the final glaze. Any style of barbecue sauce will do, except for mayonnaise based Alabama style BBQ sauce.

How to Make Armadillo Eggs

Start by preparing the jalapeños. I highly recommend you wear gloves for this part!

First, cut the very top of the stem end off the jalapeños then scrape the innards (including seeds) out. The long handle of a coffee or bar spoon works well to remove the innards easily with a few twists and scoops. Discard the stem/seeds.

To stuff the jalapeños, cut a block of cream cheese into strips the same size as the inside of the jalapeño. Insert the cream cheese strips into the jalapeños. You won’t need more than 4 ounces cream cheese unless you make a double batch. Save the remaining cream cheese for another use.

Pro tip: Many recipes use Pimento Cheese, a spicy cheddar cheese mixture, to stuff the jalapeños and it’s delicious! Mix up a batch and place half (reserving half for another use) inside a piping bag fitted with a medium nozzle. Pipe the pimento cheese filling into the jalapeños.

Next, remove chorizo sausage meat from casings and divide it into 8 equal portions. Preheat barbecue or oven to 350 F.

Let’s wrap the jalapeños. First, divide one sausage portion into two and place both on wax or parchment paper. Cover with another piece of paper and use a flat surface (like a baking sheet) to flatten each the meat.

Place the stuffed jalapeño on one flattened sausage oval then cover it with the other. Using your hands, press the sausage together well so there are no cracks. The jalapeño must be completely sealed inside the chorizo.

Lastly, wrap a piece of bacon around the jalapeño chorizo ball. If you prefer, you can skip the bacon and cook the armadillo eggs without it.

How to Cook Armadillo Eggs

There are many ways to cook Armadillo Eggs. Essentially, they cook at a low temperature to reach 160 F, then a quick burst of high heat to caramelize the glaze. This recipe is a combination of oven and gas barbecue. However, you can cook Armadillo Eggs in an oven, barbecue, smoker, and yes… even an air fryer.

Place the bacon wrapped eggs on aluminium trays. Barbecue/bake them at 350 F for an hour, or until they reach an internal temperature of 160 F.

Remove the Armadillo Eggs from heat and increase barbecue/oven temperature to 375 F (400 F for extra crispy). Brush with barbecue sauce and return to the heat for another 10 minutes. Apply a second glaze if you like. The final temperature of the chorizo sausage should be 165 F.

How to make Smoked Armadillo Eggs

By the way, smoked Armadillo Eggs are extra delicious! The method is very similar to my smoked meatballs which smoke at a much lower temperature (325 F). Once the BBQ/smoker is at temperature, add the wood chips and place the pan directly on the grill.

Close the lid and smoke for 60 minutes or until the eggs reach an internal temperature of 150 F. Next, increase the smoker temperature to 375 F (400 F for extra crispy) and apply the BBQ sauce. Cook for an additional 15 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165 F and the Armadillo Eggs are glazed with caramelized sauce.

Storing and Reheating Leftovers

If you have any leftovers, store Armadillo Eggs in the fridge for 4-5 days or freeze them for 2-3 months. Thaw them overnight in the fridge before reheating.

To reheat, preheat oven to 350 F (or air fryer to 300 F) and cook until they reach an internal temperature of 165 F. Brush with extra barbecue sauce.

Hi! I’m Bernice Hill and I’ve been the sole recipe developer, photographer, and writer at Dish ‘n’ the Kitchen for the past eleven years. It is my pleasure to share easy to follow recipes that are delicious, nutritious, and approachable for the whole family.

If you make this Spicy Armadillo Eggs recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comments section or in the ratings. Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Pinterest for my latest recipes. Also, if you do make this recipe, please share your photos and tag me on Instagram. I hope you like this recipe!