We smoked this dip using our Green Mountain Grill Pellet Smoker, but you can create this dip without a pellet smoker too! Optional ingredient additions, substitutions, and alternative cooking methods will be provided at the end of this section. 

You'll want to use a large and deep aluminum pan or baking dish when smoking the dip. Your pan must be deep enough to contain all of the ingredients as the cheese melts. 

Set your smoker to 250 degrees fahrenheit. Brown the ground beef and breakfast sausage, crumbling as they cook. Drain grease and place the beef and sausage into the pan you'll be using on the smoker. Add all other ingredients to the pan, and mix. (You can leave everything separate if you'd prefer, we mixed everything simply so the cubes of cheese would be dispersed throughout the pan as it melted) 

Smoke the mixture for 30 minutes, then stir. Your dip may be ready at this point! That totally depends on your judgement of its consistency/thickness. Ours wasn't quite done at this point so I let it smoke for another 15 minutes. 

Once the mixture reaches your desired consistency, remove from the smoker and enjoy! We used tortilla chips to make nachos, yum!

Optional Additions: diced bell peppers, pickled jalapenos, diced habanero peppers, minced garlic, cumin, cajun seasoning, cilantro, hot sauce/sriracha, ground cayenne pepper

Adjustments/Substitutions: 

• 1/2 cup of beer or milk to thin the dip if it's too thick, stir in throughout the cook

• 2 lb cubed Velveeta block and 8 oz shreeded mexican style cheese instead of the entire 4 lb cubed Velveeta blocks

• You can use 2 lb of ground beef or 2 lb of sausage instead of 1 lb each, honestly you can sub in any protein here! Or no protein at all! This could easily be adjusted to be a smoked cheesy veggie dip instead

• If you're not actually using a smoker to cook the dip, you can add liquid smoke to your mixture to get that delicious smoky flavor

Alternative Cooking Methods

• Charcoal Grill: Soak woodchips in water for 30 minutes before starting the grill. Follow all of the same prep steps. Once the dip is on the grill, replenish woodchips every 20 minutes or so, allowing the dip to smoke for 30-45 minutes or to desired consistency. 

• Slow Cooker: Follow all of the same prep steps. Add all ingredients to the slow cooker. Set to high for 45 minutes to an hour (keep an eye on it to avoid burning!) or set to low for 1-2 hours. Since nothing really has to "cook" here, you're really just watching for the cheese to melt. Stir periodically  and set to warm once desired consistency is reached. Adding liquid smoke to the mixture helps achieve that smoky flavor here!

• Oven-Baked Skillet: Use a deep cast iron skillet, and follow all of the same prep instructions. Preheat oven to 275. Place in the oven for 30-45 minutes. Stir periodically to check consistency.