Meatsplosion Dogs with cheese & bacon

Seasoned breakfast sausage stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon and then grilled til crispy? Yes, the meatsplosion dog is a real thing.

I’ve been wanting to come up with a new hot dog post for a while. They’re such a fun summer grilling snack, not to mention a great way to cater for a crowd. I’d already made these pretzel bun dogs with beer cheese sauce, and was brainstorming other fun combos.

I liked the idea of bacon-wrapped dawgs, but reckoned it was just a little too simple. So I used that as a jumping off point, and wondered what else I could use in place of a pre-cooked wiener. Finally, after much crazy scribbling in my recipe notebook, I came up with an idea that I wasn’t exactly positive would work, but I was gonna give it a helluva shot.

As I started to think about how it would work, I realised I had effectively dreamed up a single-portion version of the famed Bacon Explosion. Also known as the BBQ Fatty, it’s basically a giant meatloaf of sausage, often stuffed with cheese that’s wrapped in a huge blanket of bacon weave, then smoked until done. My version? Similar, but faster! Yup, these babies are ready in about 15-20 minutes, because they’re grilled, not smoked.

Basically, you form a thin rectangle of breakfast sausage on a board, then place a layer of cheese in the middle, before pinching both sides together and sealing the cheese in, and finally wrapping the whole thing in bacon. I used fontina for the cheese, but you can use any kind of cheese that melts well – asiago, cheddar, gruyere or even good ol’ Monterey jack.

Meatsplosion dogs - cheese stuffed & bacon wrapped

Ingredients

• 1.5 lb breakfast sausage (or any sausage mix)
• 8 strips bacon
• 4 oz cheese, cut into small cubes or shredded
• 8 hot dog buns
• Optional condiments like mustard or ketchup

Instructions

1. It's best to prepare the sausage in advance, 1-2 hours before cooking to allow the shape to firm in the fridge.
2. Prepare a clean board, and have the ground sausage, bacon and cheese ready to assemble into sausages.
3. Taking a handful of sausage (about half a cup), press it into a rectangle shape on the board, no wider than the buns you are using. Layer a row of cheese in the middle, and pinch together both sides of the sausage to seal it in, making sure to seal the ends, too. If the sausage gets too sticky, you can use a little water on your fingertips.
4. Roll the formed sausage in bacon, starting at one end and twisting until covered. Lay on a plate and repeat with remaining ingredients until all 8 dogs are formed.
5. Cover and place the plate in the fridge for at least an hour to make sure the shape holds.
6. Heat a grill using the two-zone method. Instructions can be found in the link above.
7. Lay the sausages on the cool side of the grill, and cook for 10-12 minutes, turning occasionally. This step allows the sausage to cook thoroughly without burning the bacon.
8. Transfer the sausages to the direct heat, and cook turning every 2-3 minutes until bacon is crisp.
9. Remove sausages from grill and place in buns, finish with condiments if desired. Allow them to cool a few minutes before eating, as the cheese inside will be extremely hot.