Traeger Smoked Onion Bombs

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Smoked onion bombs are the unexpected appetizer that will amaze your guests with an explosion of flavor!

These onion bombs are classic crowd-pleasers that can be made in advance and are easy to smoked to perfection on your grill. You would be able resist slow-cooked onion shells stuffed with a delicious meat and cheese mixture!

Why You’ll Love This Smoked Onion Bomb Recipe

• These onions are highly customizable smoked appetizer. Switch up the filling and play with additional ingredients for a real flavor bomb!
• Who doesn’t love anything that is wrapped in crispy bacon?

• Smoked onion bombs are a delicious recipe Traeger recipe that is different from than standard appetizers you see at all cookouts.
• Make this recipe in advance for easier cooking on the day and a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.
• The inexpensive ingredients won’t break your budget.

What You’ll Need To Cook Smoked Onion Bombs

Yellow Onions (look for perfectly round ones)

Medium Cheddar Cheese (cut into cubes)

Pork Sausage Meat

Cloves Of Garlic (minced)

Egg (lightly beaten)

Milk

Breadcrumbs

Your Fav Rub

BBQ Sauce

Bacon

Worcestershire Sauce

Brown sugar

Traeger Pellet Grill

Traeger Hickory Wood Pellets 

Meat Probe (built into your Traeger)

How To Make Traeger Smoked Onion Bombs

Step 1: Prepare The Onions For Stuffing

– Slice both ends of your onions off with a sharp knife and remove the paper skin.

– Slice the onions in half to create thick rings.

– Remove the inside of your onions and mince them with a fine dice, put aside.

– Place the large rings aside, ready to be stuffed, as they will be the exterior shell for our bombs. 

Step 2: Make The Onion Bomb Stuffing 

– Combine the sausage meat (after removing the casing) with the minced onion, beaten egg, milk, minced garlic, breadcrumbs, BBQ rub & BBQ sauce in a mixing bowl.

– Season with salt, ground pepper, brown sugar & the Worcestershire sauce.

– Mix until combined.

Tip: At this point in the recipe, you can get creative. Want to use a different kind of meat like leftover brisket or turkey? Go ahead!

What about adjusting the ingredient amounts with what you prefer? Like it hot? Get some cayenne pepper in there!

Step 3: Assemble The Onion Bombs

– Scoop a portion of the stuffing into the bottom round of the onion rings.

– Press gently into the center stuffing and add a cheese cube.

– Top with another onion ring stuffed sausage.

– Seal up the edges to make sure your cheese doesn’t fall out.

Note: Your stuffed onion bombs should be nice and round!

Step 4: Wrap The Stuffed Onion Bombs With Bacon

– Wrap the seam of each onion bomb with a piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick.

– Wrap a second piece of bacon from the top to bottom and then back up. Make sure you are sealing any holes on the ends.

– Secure with another toothpick.

– Cover with the rest of the BBQ rub.

Step 5: Start Smoking The Onion Bombs On Your Traeger 

– Load the hickory pellets, prime, and set the Traeger Pellet Smoker to a temperature of 250°F.

– Place directly on the smoker grates and cook until the internal temperature reaches 155°F (roughly 3 hours)

Step 6: Basting The Onion Bombs & Finish Smoking

– While smoking the onion bombs with the lid down, baste them with BBQ sauce.

– Continue smoking until the bombs reach a further internal temperature of 175°F

– Let them cool slightly before serving!

What Is An Onion Bomb?

Think of an onion bomb as the ultimate BBQ appetizer. A bit of a gimmick like the smoked shotgun shells (be sure to check out our other recipe)!

Now, a gimmick it may be… But a tasty one nether the less! The BBQ culture has lots of playful and creative dishes that usually start as an experiment. 

An onion bomb combines a sweet and tangy onion exterior with a salty and meaty center. With a warm blanket of savory smoke, who could resist one?

What Temperature To Smoke Onion Bombs At

Smoke the onion bombs at a temperature of 250°F. This ensures the onion softens while the ground sausage meat cooks. 

How Long To Smoke Onion Bombs

Smoking the onion bombs will take around 4 hours. Remember there are 2 stages of smoking. One for the initial cooking and the second basting stage.

What Internal Temperature To Reach For Smoked Onion Bombs

The internal temp of the onion bombs needs to be around 170°F. Don’t let the title of this dish make you forget we are using raw sausage meat!

Unwanted bacteria from pork can make you and your guests very sick!

How To Accurately Monitor The Internal Temp

Place the temperature probes into the thickest part of the largest onion bomb. This ensures that every other bomb will be cooked to perfection.

Note: A Traeger Electric Pellet Grill typically will come with 2 built-in temperature probes. Use them to your advantage!

What Wood Chips to Use for Onion Bombs

We find a strong smoking wood like Hickory or Oak complements the sweet onion and salty pork mixture. 

But the below will also work well;

– Applewood for a mild and sweet smoke to compliment the onion and pork without a strong flavor.

– Cherrywood for a balanced flavor that burns slowly.

– Pecan wood for a strong but still sweet flavor. 

How To Store Smoked Onion Bombs

– Leave the smoked bombs to cool for 20-30 minutes and then place in an airtight container. 

– Refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Can You Freeze Smoked Onion Bombs

We don’t recommend freezing the smoked onion bombs as they will fall apart and get freezer-burned!

What To Serve Onion Bombs With:

If your serving apart of appetizers and sides;

Smoked Turkey Dip

Duck Jalapeno Poppers

Cheesy Smoked Potatoes

if your serving alongside a main

Cowboy Pork Chops

Smoked Lamb Kabobs

Smoked Pork Crown Roast

More Traeger Recipes

If you’re looking for more Traeger grill recipes, I have over 80 for you. These have been tested to ensure they work and taste delicious.

Traeger Smoked Corish Hen
Traeger Cuban Sandwich
Traeger Egg Salad Sandwich
Traeger Broccoli
Traeger Turkey

Smoke On!

Charlie

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