These bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers are creamy, spicy and loaded with cheese. The perfect party appetizer!
I have to admit, I have a weakness for jalapeno poppers. As much as I love them, I’ve never made them at home, because I’m not a fan of deep frying in my own kitchen. These bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers are baked instead of fried, and let me say, they’re even better than the original! Who can resist fresh jalapenos stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon and baked to crispy perfection? Not me, that’s for sure. This is the ultimate party or game day snack!
How to make jalapeno poppers
It probably won’t surprise you that the first ingredient in this recipe is jalapenos. I like to buy jalapenos that are about 3-4 inches long, you don’t want them to be too small or they’ll be hard to stuff. The jalapenos are sliced in half and the seeds and ribs get removed. Removing the seeds and ribs removes most of the heat from the peppers; if you like it spicier, leave some of the seeds and ribs in. The peppers are stuffed with a combination of cream cheese, cheddar cheese and spices.
The final step in the process is the bacon. You definitely want to avoid thick cut bacon here as it’ll take a lot longer to crisp up in the oven. The jalapenos get wrapped in half a slice of bacon and then secured with a toothpick. You can remove the toothpicks before serving like I did here, or leave them in for people to grab off the party platter. Whatever you prefer!
I like to serve my bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers with a side of ranch for dipping, but honestly they’re awesome as-is too. This is one of those party snacks where everyone will be asking you for the recipe! You can even fill and wrap the jalapenos up to 8 hours before you plan to bake them, simply store them in the fridge until you’re ready to go. You might even want to consider making a double batch, these little guys disappear quickly!
More appetizers for your next party
Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers Video
Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers
Ingredients
- 12 jalapeno peppers approximately 3-4 inches long
- 1 8 ounce block cream cheese softened
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 12 slices bacon do not use thick cut
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with foil and coat it with cooking spray.
- Cut the jalapenos in half lengthwise and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and ribs.
- In a medium bowl mix together the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, onion powder, salt and pepper.
- Fill each jalapeno half with the cheese mixture.
- Cut the slices of bacon in half crosswise and wrap each pepper half in a slice of bacon, using a toothpick to secure the bacon.
- Arrange the peppers on the baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes until bacon is crispy and browned. Serve immediately.
Maeve Brewer says
Can you make these and freeze them?
Sara says
I think that would work fine, although I’ve never tried it!
Holly says
Delicious! WEAR GLOVES!
Tina Farley says
This is a great recipe, I knocked it up a notch by adding a beef little Smokey sausage on top of the cream cheese and have also used shrimp, add a 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
Agata says
I mixed up the cream cheese mixture with exact measurements, naturally I tasted it and it tastes extremely salty. Will that cook into the jalapeños? I’m debating whether to get another package of cream cheese to thin it out, and double the recipe.
Sara says
The jalapenos don’t have any seasoning on them, so they’ll balance out the salt. I’ve never had anyone say that the recipe came out overly salty so you should be ok!
Kayla says
Excellent recipe!
I wanted to add that if anyone had a Traeger or other brand smoker… that is the way to cook these! You can use thick cut bacon, as the smoker really crisps up the bacon and evenly cooks the poppers. The cheese also doesn’t tend to ooze out, so you don’t lose any of the filling.
We cook ours at 250 for about 2-3 hours. I can’t imagine making a jalapeño popper any other way!
Sally Hughes says
My guests ate every crumb … also made same recipe with no bacon and it was equally delicious
Merlin says
I get requests to make these things at family gatherings all the time. I kick mine up a notch with liquid smoke,chill powder,cumin,garlic and onion powder. The family loves them!
Kym says
So very yummy. It’s about the only thing my aging mom will eat and she’s eating allot of them!
Anonymous says
Made these a couple times. The first time I made as directed and it was good but the bacon on the bottom of the pepper wasn’t crisped. So, the second time I cooked the bacon on a pan in the oven and then chopped it into pieces and added it to the top of the peppers once they were almost done and broiled for a few minutes. Also, I added a similar portion of garlic powder to the cream cheese. Excellent recipe. Great for parties
Sharon says
***** Thesse are amazing…..I assembled as directed but I cooked them in my Air Fryer at 370 for between 10 to 14 minutes depending on the thickness of the bacon…..totally awesome…..thanks for sharilng the recipe
judy huston says
These are fabulous! I made a half recipe with the first harvest of peppers this season.The peppers were kind of thin so a lot of cheese mixture spread out in the pan and made a lovely, tasty mess. Will make these many times this summer! Thank you for the recipe.
Jack says
Super simple and tasty!
Kate says
I roasted pepper halves first without filling. Precooked bacon a bit and then followed recipe. All textures turned out just right
SHAMEKA L. M says
I’ve become addicted to them. I eat about 20 per week if not more. My husband absolutely loves them. I’m trying the cheddar cheese added as we speak. He’s going to really love his dinner tonight.