Cream Cheese Jalapeno Dip is begging for crackers to be dunked in it! Quick and easy, this oven baked dip is full of flavour and texture. Jalapeno Cream Cheese Dip is vegetarian, simple and ready to knock your socks off.
Recipes like my Green Olive Dip and Avocado Sweet Chilli Dip call for crackers or your favourite chips!
My Air Fryer Stuffed Jalapenos and Jalapeno Pinwheels rejoice in the yum that is experienced with these spicy vegetables.
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🤍 Recipe Highlights
I have summarised the reasons why you will love this recipe in the points below. You might even find some more reasons to love it than the ones I have highlighted!
- Spicy but not too hot: this dip has a lot of flavour and tang. The jalapenos bring a kick of heat but it is moderated through the balance of cheese and yogurt for out of this world yum!
- Party starter: no one likes to go hungry at a party. This dip is a crowd pleaser which will entertain (and feed) all. Serve it warm with corn chips and its popularity will be the talk of the party!
- Vegetarian: this is a vegetarian recipe so you won't have to worry if it will tick everyone's boxes.
- Corn chip dip: the best serving suggestion for this dip is crunchy (toasted) corn chips. Plain is best as there is no need for additional flavours in the dip and chip combo. Salty and crisp, they do justice to the creamy spicy jalapeno combo.
- Creamy and cheesy: this recipe has the right balance between the need for a thick creamy dip to be scooped onto chips as well as being tied together enough so that the texture is thick and not watery. You can literally scoop the dip onto chips! Home run or should I say home yum dip combo.
- Serve hot or cold: rare is it that you can find a dip recipe that works being served hot or cold, but low and behold with this one you can! Serve fresh from the oven where the dip oozes yum or let it chill then people can fully load their cracker with the creamy thickness!
🥗 Ingredients
The photo below is to show you everything you need to make the recipe. Refer to the printable recipe card for exact measurements.
As you can see, the recipe calls for:
- Cream Cheese: this provides the thick creaminess in the recipe. It is a great ingredient to use in both sweet and savory recipe.
- Greek Yogurt: we use this to add another dimension of thick, creamy texture to the dish without having to use mayonnaise or sour cream. I use regular full fat Greek Yogurt.
- Parmesan cheese: this is a strong bodied cheese which has a bit of bite to it. Intentionally added as a balance to the soft cream cheese, it melts and merges to a kind of heaven sent yum.
- Red onion: peel the skin and slice the onion. I recommend measuring the amount prior to adding as this will ensure the onion doesn't overwhelm the soft subtle cream cheese flavour.
- Tomatoes: we need 2 normal sized roma tomatoes, sliced with their seeds intact. These give an additional texture and flavour to the recipe so there is no need to add a dried herb.
- Garlic: use fresh garlic cloves if you can, but otherwise, mince garlic. The taste is barely evident in the consumption of the dip, however, it adds a grounded seasoned savory yum that can't be overlooked.
- Salt and pepper: these 2 ingredients are used to season the dip. We only need a small amount of each.
- Jalapenos: I recommend slicing a jalapeno and topping the dip with it for garnish and or presentation sake. This lets the eaters know what they are in for and prepares them for a little heat! (They are shown twice in the pic above as we add some to the dip and place some on top of the dip).
- Coriander (cilantro): a small amount of this finely chopped is perfect to garnish the top of the dip.
Top Tip: Kitchen scissors are your best friend when it comes to chopping herbs. Simply add the cilantro (coriander) to a glass and use the scissors in a vertical motion to finely chop the herbs.
🍳 Instructions
Here are the step by step instructions to make the dip. We start by combining the ingredients in an oven safe, heat proof bowl or baking dish.
- Add cream cheese, Greek Yogurt to heatproof bowl (Photo 1)
- Next add parmesan cheese and red onion (Photo 2)
- Then top with the chopped tomatoes (Photo 3)
- And add the diced garlic (Photo 4)
How to Make Cream Cheese Jalapeno Dip
To make the cream cheese jalapeno dip, start by placing the ingredients into a medium sized heatproof baking dish.
Once you have added the cream cheese, Greek Yogurt, parmesan cheese and red onion, top them with the sliced tomatoes and garlic.
- Add the sliced jalapenos (Photo 5)
- Then season with salt and pepper (Photo 6)
- Bake the dip for 10 mins (Photo 7)
- Then remove, stir and bake for a further 10 mins (Photo 8)
Once the dip has been in the oven for 10 mins, we remove it (you will need oven mits as the glass will be hot). Place it on a heatproof surface and stir it. You will feel at this point that the cream cheese has started to melt but is not yet at full melting point. So with the ingredients now all combined, we return it to the oven for a final 10 mins.
Once the dip is done, remove it from the oven, top with cilantro (coriander) and sliced jalapeno.
Almost ready to dive in? As you can see from the photo above, the use of the coriander and sliced jalapeno garnish the dip and then it is ready for eating! (Dunking and dipping all the way of course).
🍽 Serving Suggestions
Corn chips!!
I can't say that enough with this dip. They bring the crispy, crunchy, salty and delicious. Crackers are too non Mexican enough, so grab your favourite corn chips and toast them to prepare them for dunking.
I mentioned in the recipe highlights that you can serve this dip hot (warm) or cold. My recommendation is if serving hot, don't worry about toasting the corn chips.
If serving the dip cold, toast the corn chips, as this will help them cut through the dip. The chilled dip is firmer than the warm dip so a little heat from the chips will ensure they don't break off mid dunk.
🛎 Tasty Tips
Here are my top tips and tricks so that you can get this recipe right from the get go!
- Ensure you have a heatproof bowl or dish that is at least 1.3 litres (5.4 US cups).
- When adding the dip ingredients to the bowl, use the back of a spoon to push down the cream cheese, yogurt and parmesan cheese, creating a slight well on top for the jalapeno onion tomato mixture.
- Preheat the oven: this is so that the dip starts cooking as soon as you add it to the oven and you have a pin point time frame on the steps involved.
- Stir after 10 mins: 10 minutes is a good initial cook time as it allows the cheese to start melting and the jalapenos and tomatoes to start to soft and bake. After this period they get stirred into the dip for full flavour, texture and variety.
- Serving tip: if you refrigerate the dip and then want to use it, allow it to come to room temperature for serving. Also toast the corn chips and pop a spoon in there as shown in the photo below. This way the dip can be spooned onto the chips and the chips won't break in the dip.
🤓 Frequently Asked Questions
What is spicy jalapeno cream cheese good on?
Corn chips. They are firm enough to dunk in the dip as well as bring a salty component. They also are a good size for dipping and dunking.
What is jalapeno dip made of?
Jalapeno Dip is made with cream cheese, yogurt, onion, jalapenos, tomatoes and parmesan cheese. A little salt, pepper and garlic is used to season the dish.
How does jalapeno cream cheese taste?
Jalapeno cream cheese is smooth, creamy and a little spicy. It tastes like food you would be served at a Mexican restaurant.
What can I do with cream cheese?
Cream cheese is versatile and can be used in a number of ways. Try using it as a sandwich spread, main ingredient in dip, paired with salami and crackers or as a pasta sauce.
What do you serve dips with?
There is a wide variety of serving suggestions for pairing with dips. Use crisp crudités, crackers, pita or tortilla chips, or savory biscuits.
😍 More Easy Dip Recipes
If your goal in life is to dip, dunk and dollop, then I have some more recipes that you might like to try:
- Avocado Sweet Chilli Dip
- Labneh Dip
- Air Fryer Pita Chips
- Black Olive Dip
- Kalamata Olive Dip
- Blue Cheese Yogurt Dip
- Cream Cheese Bacon Dip
My Grazing Platter will feed a crowd if that is what you need. You can also find all of my dip and spreads recipes in the one dunking place!
Adrianne xx
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📖 Recipe
Cream Cheese Jalapeno Dip
Equipment
- 1 Chopping board
- 1 Knife
- 1 Medium sized heatproof bowl Note 1
- 2 Oven Mits
- 1 Soup Spoon Note 2
Ingredients
- 500 grams/ 1 lb cream cheese Note 3
- 1 cup Greek Yoghurt
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- ⅓ cup red onion roughly chopped
- 2 roma tomatoes roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 3 jalapenos thinly sliced, Note 4
- ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Topping and or Garnish for Serving
- 1 jalapeno thinly sliced, to garnish
- 1 tbs coriander (cilantro) finely chopped, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Preheat your oven to 180°C / 350-375°F / Gas Mark 4-5.
- Combine the ingredients: add cream cheese, Greek Yogurt, red onion, tomatoes, garlic, jalapenos, salt and pepper to a medium sized heatproof glass bowl.
- Oven bake: place dip into the oven and bake for 10 mins. Use oven mits, to remove and stir to combine.
- Return to oven: place the combined dip back into the oven and bake for a further 10 mins.
- Remove from the oven: use oven mits to remove dip from oven, place on heatproof surface.
- To serve: sprinkle over chopped cilantro and sliced jalapeno pieces. Serve warm with corn chips or crackers. Note 5
Notes
- Note 1 - Serving Bowl: I like to make this dip in a heatproof glass dish. It also doubles as a serving bowl and comes with a handy lid for sealing and refrigerating leftovers. Ensure your dish is oven safe and use oven mits as it will be hot coming out of the oven.
- Note 2 - Soup Spoon: this is to stir the dip together after the initial 10 minute cook time. The glass will be hot, so rest it on a heatproof surface. Use a tea towel or oven mit to hang on to the side of the bowl so that it doesn't move around as you stir the dip. Do the same (oven mits) to both return the dip to the oven as well as when you pull it out when cooked.
- Note 3 - Cream cheese: I use 2 x 250 gram tubs of cream cheese. It won't matter if you use the block or the tub (ie spreadable version or not), however, measure to the equivalent 500 gram amount.
- Note 4 - Jalapenos: keep the seeds in them! Some recipes like stuffed jalapenos call for them to be removed as to stuff them. Some recipes indicate to remove them to balance the heat. The heat (spiciness) of the chilli's in this recipe, is moderated through the cream cheese, yogurt and parmesan cheese combo. Leaving the chilli seeds in, gives us the flavour and texture that the dip calls for. Removing them would make the dip flavour too bland and not ticking all of our boxes.
- Note 5 - Serving the dip: I mention in the post that you can serve the dip warm or cold. As the dip cools, it firms up. Refrigerating the dip firms it even more. If serving the dip chilled, allow to come to room temperature, pop a spoon in to aid scooping and dolloping and serve with toasted corn chips.
Belinda says
Sensational this dip looks amazing. The corn chips sound good too, cannot wait to try!
Adrianne says
Thanks Belinda, hope you give it a go for sure!