Cream Cheese Jalapeno Poppers are a tasty choice! With bacon and crunchy breadcrumbs stuffed jalapenos are a crowd pleasing appetizer!
My Coconut Prawns, Spinach Cob Loaf and Cranberry Brie are delightful appetizers!
My Air Fryer Stuffed Jalapenos, Cream Cheese Jalapeno Dip and Jalapeno Pinwheels give you a similar combination of ingredients with different methods.
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Recipe Highlights
- Freezer friendly: you can make this recipe and freeze prior to cooking to make entertaining a breeze! Cook either from frozen or defrost then cook.
- Party favourite: these jalapeno poppers are great to serve to guests as not everyone will have tried them, but their flavour combination works!
- Vegetable appetiser: it is easy to open a bag of chips and serve with a dip, however, with a little more effort this appetizer will be the highlight of the night
- Game day snack: just like chicken wings, no party is complete without an appetizer that is the perfect match for sport and socialising
Ingredients
The photo below shows you exactly what we need for this recipe. It is a great visual guide when shopping for ingredients. The recipe card below has the quantities required.
As you can see, the recipe calls for:
- Jalapenos: these are beautiful green peppers that have a spicy taste! The heat comes from the seeds, so if we remove them, they are not so hot.
- Coriander: fresh herbs are best for this recipe! The coriander is optional, but well worth it for the depth of flavour.
- Cream cheese: we want room temperature cream cheese. So grab it out of the fridge as a 1st step and set on the bench to soften.
- Diced bacon: using store bought diced bacon is quick and easy as we don't need to chop it, only cook.
- Panko breadcrumbs: these are the larger more coarse breadcrumb you will find, look for them in the Asian foods part of the supermarket.
- Tasty cheese: we use 2 types of cheese for this recipe. You can grate your own or use store bought grated cheese.
- Garlic powder: this spice will be with the dried herbs at the supermarket. It adds garlic flavour in an easy, fuss free manner.
- Dried onion: this ingredient will also be with the herbs and spices in the shops. It saves time and tears but still delivers that typical onion flavour.
- Salt and pepper: we use these 2 ingredients to season the recipe. We only need a small amount of each.
Instructions
Here are the step by step instructions to make the recipe. Some of the steps are a little bit fiddly, but the results are worth it!
- Cut the jalapenos lengthways in half (Photo 1) (Using Wusthof Classic Ikon Carving Knife 20cm)
- Remove the seeds a stem from the insides (Photo 2) (Wusthof Classic Ikon Paring Knife 8cm)
- If needed rinse the jalapenos so they are ready to stuff! (Photo 3)
- Fry bacon until cooked and use paper towel to drain (Photo 4)
- Start the stuffing with the cream cheese in a medium bowl (Photo 5)
- Add the cooked bacon (Photo 6)
- Season with salt and pepper (Photo 7)
- Add dried onion (Photo 8)
We maximise flavour in our stuffing by adding the cooked bacon, dried onion, garlic powder, tasty cheese, salt, pepper and coriander!
- Add the garlic powder (Photo 9)
- Use kitchen scissors to chop the coriander (Photo 10) Wusthof Classic Ikon Pull Apart Scissors
- Add chopped herbs and cheese mixture (Photo 11)
- Use a spoon to stir (Photo 12)
- Stir, stir, stir till stuffing is consistent (Photo 13)
- Stuff the jalapenos with the cream cheese mix (Photo 14)
- Sprinkle panko breadcrumbs over cream cheese filling (Photo 15)
- Bake for 15 - 20 mins in the oven (Photo 12)
The before and after photos below are to show you what your poppers will look like along the way.
Frequently asked questions
What are jalapenos?
Jalapenos are a green chilli vegetable that are a little bit spicy.
Commonly used with nachoes and other Mexican recipes, they add a kick of flavour, as well as variety in taste and texture.
Usually about thumb length they are a carrot type shape and have a little stem at the top.
Once cut in half, they can be stuffed with your favourite fillings to make jalapeno poppers which are insanely popular!
How do you make stuffed jalapenos less spicy?
To make jalapenos less spicy we need to remove the seeds and filling.
I have worked with my friends over at Everten Love to Cook as they have a handy knife set which provides all the tools for a recipe like this!
This Wusthof Classic Ikon 8pc Knife Block Set is the very thing you need in your kitchen and I am going to show you how to use 3 pieces from this set to make our jalapeno poppers!
Can you cooked Stuffed Jalapenos in the Air Fryer?
Yes, you can cook jalapenos in the oven or Air Fryer.
Please refer to my Air Fryer Stuffed Jalapenos recipe for the best way to air fry the recipe.
How to guide
How to store the recipe
Once the poppers are cooked, store in a sealed air tight container for up to 2 days.
Can I freeze the peppers
Yes! This is a freezer friendly recipe you can make in advance.
Simply follow the steps to make and stuff the jalapeno poppers.
Then place in layers in an air tight sealed container into the freezer for up to 2 months
How to reheat the recipe
The best ways to reheat the recipe is to place them in a flat layer in the air fryer and cook until heated through.
I recommend reheating straight from frozen, so that the peppers don't get soggy as they defrost.
Top tips
These tips will help you to get the best out of the cooking process:
- You can use gloves if you are concerned about the hot chilli seeds
- Use the knife to cut the inner stem crossways and a teaspoon to scoop the seeds out
- Ensure you are using room temperature cream cheese so it is ready for stirring!
- You won't need to use oil when cooking the bacon as it will render in its own fat
- The jalapenos will likely be cheaper to purchase in bulk from the fruit store, than from the regular supermarket.
- make and freeze this recipe for easy entertaining!
Related recipes
If entertaining is your favourite thing to do, you might like to try one of the following:
- Chicken Liver Pate
- Coconut Prawns (with 2 different dipping sauces)
- Grazing Platter (to feed a crowd)
- Air Fryer Frozen Mozzarella Sticks
- Mini Quiches (12 different ways)
- Baked Brie with garlic
- Baked Camembert with Cranberry Sauce
Or check out my entire appetiser recipes collection!
I almost feel the need to warn you these cream cheese stuffed jalapenos are SERIOUSLY amazing!
Don't say I didn't give you the heads up when you gobble down one, then another, then another.
Luckily the recipe makes a good few so you will stop the jalapeno obliteration at some point, but give your friends a shout and they can take care of the rest.
Serve your poppers with Greek Yogurt or my Garlic Yogurt Sauce.
Let me know if you have any questions, I would love to hear your feedback in the comments below.
Adrianne xx
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📖 Recipe
Cream Cheese Jalapeno Poppers
Equipment
- Knifes
- Baking tray
- Teaspoon
- Chopping board
- Mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 12 jalapenos
- 250 grams cream cheese room temperature
- 1 cup diced bacon Note 1
- ½ tablespoon dried onion
- 11 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ cup tasty cheese
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180°C / 350-375°F / Gas Mark 4-5
- Use a sharp knife to cut lengthways along the jalapenos (in half)
- Use a smaller sharp knife to remove the seeds from the jalapenos
- If you want you can rinse the jalapenos at this stage (Note 1)
- Use a flat fry pan and cook the bacon for approximately 5 mins, stirring as it cooks
- In a medium sized mixing bowl add cream cheese, cook bacon, dried onion, garlic powder, chopped coriander, salt, pepper and tasty cheese. Use a spoon to thoroughly combine
- Use a bread knife and spoon the cream cheese mix into each jalapeno half, repeat till all are filled (Note 3)
- Sprinkle panko breadcrumbs on top of all of the poppers
- Place baking rack on middle shelf of oven for 15 - 20 mins (Note 4)
- Serve with Greek Yoghurt
Notes
- Note 1 For this type of recipe it is SO much easier to use diced bacon. It is not that much more expensive than bacon rashers and it will save time in chopping/dicing the bacon.
- Note 2 Whilst it is not necessary to rinse your jalapeno halves, you can if you wish as it will help to remove any additional seeds.
- Note 3 I find a knife the easiet way to stuff my jalapeno poppers. Simply spread as you would butter, and the cream cheese mix will fill the jalapeno half easily.
- Note 4 The poppers will be ready when the breadcrumbs are toasted to a light golden brown colour.
Dannii says
This is one of my favourite starters to order in a restaurant. I really need to try making them myself.
Adrianne says
Thanks Dannii! I hope you give them a go, they are SO tasty. I appreciate your feedback, thanks.
Jessica Formicola says
Jalapeno poppers are my favorite, and this recipe looks amazing! Thanks so much for sharing!
Adrianne says
No worries Jess! That is great to hear. Thanks for your positive comments.
Christian Guzman says
Wow, I just love stuffed jalapeños! I'm heating up the grill now to char some poblano chiles for salsa and I'm going to throw some of these on the grill too. I can't wait!
Adrianne says
That sounds great, thanks Christian! The salsa sounds delicious too, maybe a Mexican party is in order! Cheers