Recipe: Elk Chorizo Jalapenos

This is an adaptation of a recipe I’ve shared here on the Wild Chef blog in the past. I’ve always felt the original was a little heavy, so I started substituting Greek yogurt for the cream cheese. This has lightened up the chorizo-rice stuffing considerably, which I think makes for a better, cleaner bite. Because the yogurt is softer with a lower melting temperature, the recipe works best if you have a jalapeno rack or other method to stand the peppers up on the grill. If you still want that tongue-coating creaminess, substitute ¼ cup of cream cheese back in for half of the yogurt.

Elk Chorizo Jalapenos

Ingredients

1 lb. elk chorizo
Fresh jalapenos
½ cup plain Greek yogurt
¼ cup cilantro, chopped fine
1 tsp. lime juice
1 tsp. lime zest
2 cups Spanish rice

Directions:

1. Prepare you grill with a two-zone fire, setting a hot side and a cooler side.

2. Wash, stem, and core two dozen fresh jalapenos. Whip together the yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, and zest in a large bowl.

3. Prepare Spanish rice.

4. Brown elk chorizo in skillet, and drain on paper towels. Let cool slightly.

5. Add the chorizo and Spanish rice to the cilantro-lime yogurt and mix thoroughly. Transfer chorizo mix into a zip-top baggie, remove excess air, and seal. Snip off one corner of the baggie, and use this to squeeze chorizo mix into the jalapenos.

6. Grill over a hot fire for 10 to 15 minutes until lightly charred.