# Smoked chicken bombs



## sue7298 (Mar 20, 2021)

I smoked the chicken breast bombs exactly as the recipe called for. I smoked them at 230 degrees and removed them from the smoker when they reached 165 degrees.  all the cream cheese was melted out of the chicken breasts. Anyone have any ideas on how to prevent this? I would like to make them again for family that is coming over but want them to turn out with the cream cheese still in the chicken breast


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## tropics (Mar 20, 2021)

You need to tell us how the chicken was prepared, to stuff with the cream cheese.
Recipe would also be very helpful
Richie
Welcome to SMF from Ma


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## sue7298 (Mar 20, 2021)

tropics said:


> You need to tell us how the chicken was prepared, to stuff with the cream cheese.
> Recipe would also be very helpful
> Richie
> Welcome to SMF from Ma


*hicken Bombs (Cream Cheese & Jalapeño Stuffed Chicken Breast)*

Smoked chicken breasts are good all on their own however, if you want to try something different and really, really good, stuff them with a mixture of cream cheese and diced jalapeño wrapped in bacon to hold it all together, add a lot of great flavor and to keep the meat moist in the absence of the skin.

Prep Time25 mins
Cook Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: Entree
Cuisine: Hot Smoking

Servings: 4 -6

Author: Jeff Phillips

*Ingredients*

4-6 chicken breasts
8 oz cream cheese
3 jalapeños
2 slices of thin bacon per piece of chicken
Jeff's original rub recipe
*Instructions*
*Step 1: Brine (optional)*

To brine the chicken breasts make a solution of: 1 quart of cold water, ¼ cup of coarse kosher salt and ¼ cup of brown sugar.
Stir well until everything is dissolved.
Place the chicken breasts into a zip top bag or other plastic or glass container and pour the brine over the chicken to cover. Place in the fridge for about 2 hours to brine.
Once the brining is complete, remove the chicken from the brine and rinse well under cold water. Pat dry and set aside.
*Step 2: Make the Cream Cheese/Jalapeño Mixture*

Leave the cream cheese out on the table for about an hour to soften.
Place a block of cream cheese or about 8 oz into a small to medium sized mixing bowl.
Deseed, clean and dice 2-3 jalapeño peppers depending on how well you like jalapeño and how spicy the jalapeños are.
Put the diced peppers into the bowl with the cream cheese and stir to combine.
*Step 3: Season and Stuff the Chicken Breasts*

Brush a little olive oil onto the chicken breasts then season the top side with Jeff's original rub.
Add a heaping tablespoon of the cream cheese/jalapeno mixture on top of the rub.
Fold the chicken over on top of itself. To make it easier to fold, you can make a shallow cut at about the halfway point of the chicken breast widthwise.
Once the chicken is folded coat the entire outside of the chicken breast with a little olive oil and season generously with Jeff's original rub.
*Step 4: Wrap with Bacon*

Lay 2 thin slices of bacon across the stuffed chicken breast.
Lift the chicken up and hold it with one hand while you wrap the bacon "artistically" around the chicken.
*Step 5: Smoke Cook the Chicken*

Place the stuffed chicken on a Bradley rack, cookie sheet or something similar to make it easy to carry them out to the smoker.
Set up your smoker for cooking with indirect heat at around 240°F if possible.
If your smoker has a water pan, it's a good idea to use it.
I used pecan but you can use any smoking wood that you desire and have available.
Once the smoker is ready, place the stuffed chicken directly on the smoker grate and insert a probe from a digital probe meat thermometer (if you have one) so you will know the exact time it is finished.
You can also use a super fast meat thermometer such as the Thermapen but this requires you to open the door several times and you stand the chance of overcooking the chicken if it happens to get done sooner than you expect.
*Step 6: Serve*

When the chicken is done cooking, remove it from the smoker and let it rest for a couple of minutes before serving.


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## Colin1230 (Mar 20, 2021)

Welcome to the forum Sue.
I have the same problem with the chicken grillers we get at the meat market at our grocery store. I learned to put foil under them and set them on the grill with the opening up and I don't turn them.
I hope this is helpful and again, welcome.


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## sue7298 (Mar 20, 2021)

Colin1230 said:


> Welcome to the forum Sue.
> I have the same problem with the chicken grillers we get at the meat market at our grocery store. I learned to put foil under them and set them on the grill with the opening up and I don't turn them.
> I hope this is helpful and again, welcome.


Thank you. I will try that next time. I have a electric vertical masterbuilt. Nothing fancy but does have a built in thermometer probe


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## Wurstmeister (Mar 20, 2021)

Welcome to the forum Sue from South Carolina.  There is nothing wrong on adding more bacon to cover the opening or securing it with tooth picks. And definitely use the foil as Colin1230 mentioned.

My Thought:  Forgo the folding/wrapping - flatten the breast(s)  just to even the thickness.  Spread cheese mixture over chicken, roll up jellyroll-style.  Wrap the breast lengthwise using 1 slice per end to cover the openings and secure with wooden toothpicks. Wrap remaining bacon around the breast meat covering the end pieces, secured with tooth picks at the ends and maybe one more in the middle.


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## Colin1230 (Mar 20, 2021)

Lots of folks here have Masterbuilt Electric Smokers (MES). You should be able to find help with whatever you need. It's a great place to be.


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## bigfurmn (Mar 20, 2021)

Welcome from Minnesota Sue. Another thing you will find around here, we love pictures of people's cooks. Before, during, sliced and even plated. Nice thing about doing that is when you have an issue people will usually notice and have the advice to help make sure it doesn't happen again.


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## Brokenhandle (Mar 20, 2021)

Welcome from Iowa! If you don't have one already invest in a different probe... the ones that come with the smoker are typically off by 25 degrees or more. Inkbird,  a site sponsor or thermoworks both have decent ones.

Ryan


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## sue7298 (Mar 20, 2021)

Brokenhandle said:


> Welcome from Iowa! If you don't have one already invest in a different probe... the ones that come with the smoker are typically off by 25 degrees or more. Inkbird,  a site sponsor or thermoworks both have decent ones.
> 
> Ryan


Thank you


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## sue7298 (Mar 20, 2021)

bigfurmn said:


> Welcome from Minnesota Sue. Another thing you will find around here, we love pictures of people's cooks. Before, during, sliced and even plated. Nice thing about doing that is when you have an issue people will usually notice and have the advice to help make sure it doesn't happen again.


I will post next time I do it


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## sue7298 (Mar 20, 2021)

Colin1230 said:


> Welcome to the forum Sue.
> I have the same problem with the chicken grillers we get at the meat market at our grocery store. I learned to put foil under them and set them on the grill with the opening up and I don't turn them.
> I hope this is helpful and again, welcome.


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## sue7298 (Mar 20, 2021)

Thank you. I will definitely use the foil


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## chef jimmyj (Mar 21, 2021)

Some good suggestions above. I find Cutting a Pocket is a much better method for keeping a melting filling in the breast. This can be accomplished from one side or from the Thick end. If wrapping in Bacon, cutting a pocket from the side works well. Take your time, making sure not to cut through the breast. The Video below shows the technique and how Piping the filling can be done. Keeping the Entrance Hole as small as possible greatly  helps at  keeping the filling in the breast. Carefully hold your Thumb on the knife at the Max Depth you wish to cut, insert the knife until your thumb contacts the meat then, slowly cut in one direction, then turn the knife over cutting to widen the pocket in the other. If very careful, you can Eyeball the depth like the Chef in the video. You can use a Tooth Pick to secure the opening ( Warn your guests) or just Wrap in Bacon to help hold the pocket closed. Smoke or Roast to an IT of 155 to 160 and rest for moist breast meat....JJ


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## sue7298 (Mar 21, 2021)

chef jimmyj said:


> Cutting a Pocket is a much better method for keeping a melting filling in the breast. This can be accomplished from one side or from the Thick end. If wrapping in Bacon, cutting a pocket from the side works well. Take your time, making sure not to cut through the breast. The Video below shows the technique and how Piping the filling can be done. Carefully hold your Thumb on the knife at the Max Depth you wish to cut, slowly cutting in one direction then turning over the knife to widen the pocket in the other. With practice you will be able to Eyeball the depth like the Chef in the video. You can use a Tooth Pick to secure the opening ( Warn you guests) or just Wrap in Bacon to help hold the pocket closed. Smoke or Roast to an IT of 155 to 160 and rest for moist breast meat....JJ



That is an awesome video Thank you. I had heard chicken always has to be cooked to 165


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## tropics (Mar 21, 2021)

Looks like they have you covered Jeffs recipes are pretty good. Try doing as JJ said make a pocket. Get another probe Inkbird usually has lots of sales on here. The smokers probes are off a lot on the ones I had.
Richie


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## DRKsmoking (Mar 21, 2021)

Welcome from Nova Scotia, good answers already.  This place will keep you informed and helped with any problems that you might come across while doing up wonderful meals. And when someone else asks questions and gets answers it helps others....meaning me Thank you
David


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## TNJAKE (Mar 21, 2021)

sue7298 said:


> That is an awesome video Thank you. I had heard chicken always has to be cooked to 165


If you pull 5 or so degrees early then rest the carryover cooking will bring IT to 165


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## sue7298 (Mar 21, 2021)

TNJAKE said:


> If you pull 5 or so degrees early then rest the carryover cooking will bring IT to 165


Thank you and thank you to all who replied. I will definitely get another temp probe before I do any more smoking.  I’m also thinking of buying the traeger electric pellet smoker. It’s not the big one as too many $$$. Any experiences on that smoker vs the masterbuilt


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## chef jimmyj (Mar 21, 2021)

sue7298 said:


> That is an awesome video Thank you. I had heard chicken always has to be cooked to 165



Yes, according to regs by the USDA, 165 is recommended. However, this has a wide margin of error. Going by Pasteurization temps over time, we can cook to lower temps,  hold there for a period of time and get a much better, juicy chicken breast that is just as safe as cooking to 165.

Example: We can see from this chart that a Chicken Breast cooked to 155°F and held there for 45 Seconds is just as Safe as the instantaneous 165°F. However, a Breast at 155°F will be infinitely more tender and juicy than one cooked to 165!








I cook Chicken Breast to 150°F, then as Jake pointed out, let it rest and Carryover heat raises the temp to 155°F. Legs and Thighs I like more cooked and take them to 175°F...JJ


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