Smoked Shotgun Shells: 5 Filling Ideas

If you’re looking for a delicious appetizer, you have to try smoked shotgun shells. This recipe includes five different fillings for any occasion.

What are smoked shotgun shells?

Smoked shotgun shells gained a ton of popularity on social media in 2021. They are a fun, meaty appetizer you can make on your grill or smoker.

They’re manicotti noodles stuffed with a ground meat and cheese mixture wrapped in a piece of bacon. They get their name because the shape of the pasta shell resembles a shotgun shell.

The key to making them just right is to use uncooked manicotti noodles and original-cut bacon. Here’s why:

• If you cook the manicotti, the noodles will be too floppy, making them too hard to stuff.
• If you use thick-cut bacon, it will take too long to render and become crispy and the filling will get overcooked.

There is one very important step to this recipe!

You must let the stuffed, wrapped noodles rest in the fridge for several hours. The moisture in the meat will soften the noodles, so they cook when they’re smoked.

If you skip this step, the noodles will be chewy and/or crunchy.

I recommend resting them for at least six hours. So you can make them the night before you want to smoke them, or make them in the morning and smoke them in the early afternoon.

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Ingredients

This smoked shotgun shells recipe is made with the flavors of Oktoberfest with bratwurst, cabbage and stone-ground mustard. For different fillings, see below.

• Bratwurst: Bratwurst is simply seasoned ground pork. Look for uncooked bratwurst links in the meat case at your local grocery store. Remove the meat from the casings. Or make my homemade bratwurst recipe and just don’t case the meat.
• Manicotti or Cannolloni Shells: These are large tubed pasta shells. They’re generally 3-4 inches long and 1 inch in diameter. Be sure to use them uncooked.
• Bacon: Look for original bacon, not thick-cut. I usually use Oscar Mayer Original for bacon-wrapped dishes.
• Cheddar Cheese: Use shredded – pre-shredded or shred your own.
• Cabbage: I buy pre-shredded. It’s located in the produce section near the lettuce. It’s also great for making coleslaw.
• Onion: Diced white or sweet onion.
• Stone Ground Mustard: Since this is a German-inspired recipe, I use stone ground mustard, you can also use senf or yellow or Dijon mustard. In addition to mixing the mustard into the meat, I use it as a dipping sauce.
• SPG: SPG is simply a blend of salt, pepper and garlic that’s already combined. If you don’t have SPG, you can make your own with equal parts kosher salt, coarse-ground black pepper and granulated garlic or garlic powder.
• BBQ Rub: You’ll season the outside of the shotgun shells with this rub. For the bratwurst stuffed shells, I use a savory rub. When I make traditional shotgun shells, I use a sweeter rub.

Substitutions: Instead of bratwurst, you can use any ground meat. You can also switch up the cheese with other shredded cheeses or cream cheese and use any veggies.

See the full recipe card below for servings and a full list of ingredients.

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Other Smoked Shotgun Shell Variations

• Classic: Use ground beef, Monterey Jack cheese and diced onions. Brush with barbecue sauce.
• Southwest: Use chorizo, pepper jack cheese or Oaxaca cheese, diced onion and jalapeno peppers. Brush with raspberry chipotle sauce after one hour.
• Breakfast: Use breakfast sausage with mild or sharp cheddar cheese. Brush with maple syrup after one hour.
• Italian: Use mild or hot Italian sausage, mozzarella cheese and diced onions. Don’t brush with sauce. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese after you remove it from the grill. Serve with marinara.

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How to smoke shotgun shells

1. STEP ONE: Remove the bratwurst meat from the casings and place the meat in a large bowl. Mix with the cheese, cabbage, onion, mustard and seasoning.

2. STEP TWO: Stuff the meat mixture into 14 uncooked manicotti shells, being careful not to break them.

3. STEP THREE: Wrap each stuffed pasta tube with a slice of bacon. Place on a sheet pan or baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least six hours or overnight.

PRO TIP: Because the noodles are uncooked, it's important to refrigerate the bacon-wrapped shotgun shells. This step softens the manicotti tubes, so you don't have crunchy pasta.

4. STEP FOUR: Heat your smoker to 300F degrees.

Settings for different grills

You can cook this recipe on a gas grill, charcoal grill, pellet grill or Ninja Grill. The key is to cook it over indirect heat. Set your grill up with a temperature of 300F degrees with an indirect heat zone.

Gas Grill: If you’re using a gas grill, leave one burner off and turn at least one burner on. Adjust the burner temperature, until the grill temperature gauge registers between 300F degrees. You’ll cook the shotgun shells over the grill grate that has the burner turned off.

If you want to add smoke flavor, fill a smoke box or foil pouch with wood chips and add it to the hotter side of the grill.

Charcoal Grill: If you’re using a kettle-style charcoal grill, push the hot coals to one side. Place the grill grate over the coals and cook the shotgun shells over the side where there are no coals. If you’re using a drum smoker or ceramic cooker, use the diffuser to block the direct heat.

Pellet Grill: Pellet grills are automatically set up with an indirect heat zone because they have a metal diffuser plate that rests over the fire pot. Simply, turn the grill to 300F degrees and let it heat up. Then, you can place the appetizers anywhere on the grill.

Ninja Grill: The smoker setting on the Ninja Grill is engineered to provide indirect heat that circulates from the convection fan from the top. Simply add wood pellets and set the temperature and time.

5. STEP FIVE: Sprinkle the shotgun shells with your favorite BBQ rub, place in a single layer on grill grates and smoke for one hour, flipping once.

6. STEP SIX: The shotgun shells are ready when the bacon is cooked through and the internal temperature of the stuffing is at least 165F degrees.

OPTION: After one hour, you can brush the shotgun shells with your favorite BBQ sauce and continue cooking for another 10-15 minutes. 

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How to serve smoked shotgun shells

Once the smoked shotgun shells are done, transfer them to a serving platter and serve them with a side of stone-ground mustard for dipping.

When you take a bite, you’ll get the great cabbage and mustard flavors of a traditional bratwurst.

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Storage

Leftover shotgun shells can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. Reheat in a microwave or air fryer.

To make these in advance, wrap bacon around the shells and then freeze. When you’re ready to smoke them, thaw them in the fridge overnight and then smoke.

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