Bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers are one of the best appetizers of all time! Creamy, cheesy, smoky and not too spicy, they check all the boxes for the perfect appetizer. They are quick and easy to make, loaded with cheese and best of all, wrapped in bacon! Make these jalapeño poppers for your next party and watch them disappear in seconds!
Jump to:
- Did you know?
- Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Ingredients For Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
- Optional Flavor Variations
- The Ultimate Party Platter With Jalapeño Poppers
- How to Make Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
- Expert Tips
- How To Store Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Savory Cheesy Appetizers
- 📖 Recipe
- ⭐️ Leave a Review
Whether you're hosting or just need a little something on the side, these yummy appetizer recipes will do the trick! These easy cheese ball bites are easy and impressive, while this recipe for Mexican antojitos is a total crowd pleaser and an exact dupe for the famous Montana's antojitos!
Did you know?
The spicy part of the jalapeño is actually the ribs and the seeds inside the jalapeño. The flesh is not very spicy at all.
So by removing the ribs and seeds, plus cooking the jalapeños, it will mellow out the spice even further, making these jalapeño poppers not spicy at all!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers are outstanding and will always be the first appetizer gone!
- This is the best appetizer to bring to a gathering or dinner party, and it can be easily doubled or tripled!
- They are incredibly easy to make and only take about 40 minutes from start to finish!
- These bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers are based off of my coveted antojito recipe. Serve these two recipes side by side for the ultimate appetizer!
Summarize and Save This Recipe Using:
Ingredients For Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
- Cream Cheese - Be sure to use brick-style cream cheese and not the spreadable kind. Spreadable cream cheese is too thin and will leak out of the poppers.
- Sour Cream - Sour cream can be substituted for greek yogurt.
- Shredded Cheese - Any kind of shredded cheese will work for this recipe. Some other cheeses we have tried and loved are Gouda, smoked white cheddar or sharp cheddar cheese.
- Bacon - Bacon can be substituted for turkey bacon for a lower calorie option. You will have to use a full piece of turkey bacon per popper because turkey bacon can't be stretched like regular bacon. If you use turkey bacon, use toothpicks to keep the turkey bacon in place while baking.
A full list of ingredients with exact quantities can be found on the recipe card below.
Optional Flavor Variations
- Spicy - Surprisingly, these jalapeño poppers are not spicy at all. To add some spice, add some jalapeno seeds or a ¼ to a ½ of a teaspoon of cayenne pepper to the cream cheese mixture. Another option is to not remove any ribs or seeds from the jalapeno (this will make the spiciest poppers).
- Honey Garlic or Teriyaki Glaze - To up the ante and make these poppers punch you in the face with flavor, brush some honey garlic sauce or teriyaki sauce onto the poppers before and/or after baking them! Just remember not to cross-contaminate, and don't use any sauce that was previously used on raw bacon on cooked poppers.
The Ultimate Party Platter With Jalapeño Poppers
Pair these baked jalapeño poppers with some antojitos, baked chicken wings, queso cheese dip and mac and cheese bites for the ultimate appetizer party platter!
How to Make Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
Step 1
Make the cream cheese filling. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, Havarti, mozzarella, sour cream, red bell pepper, diced jalapeno, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. Mix with a hand mixer until well combined.
Save This Recipe! 💌
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Step 2
Cut the jalapeños in half, leaving the stem intact. Scoop out the ribs and seeds with a small spoon and lay hollowed jalapeño halves on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Place the cream cheese mixture into a piping bag or a ziplock bag with the corner cut off.
Step 3
Pipe the cream cheese filling into the hollowed jalapeño boats.
Step 4
Use half a piece of bacon, slightly stretch it out length wise and wrap it around the filled jalapeño popper. Repeat until all jalapeños are wrapped with bacon.
Some larger jalapeños might need a full piece of bacon.
Step 4
Bake bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers at 400°F for about 25 minutes until the bacon is fully cooked and slightly crispy.
Expert Tips
- Always, always, always wear disposable gloves when handling jalapeños. Jalapeños excrete a natural oil called capsaicin when they are cut and handled, which can get stuck to your hands and potentially get into your eyes. If you are not wearing gloves, make sure to wash your hands thoroughly, several times, before touching your face or eyes.
- When you are cutting the jalapeño peppers in half, do not remove the stem. This helps create a "boat" for the filling and prevents filling from oozing out while baking.
How To Store Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
To store leftover jalapeño poppers (if there are any leftovers!), keep in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
To reheat: Heat in oven, microwave, air fryer or grill. Heat just until warm.
Frequently Asked Questions
Surprisingly, no! After all the ribs and seeds have been removed from the jalapeño and it has been cooked, it is not spicy at all.
There are a few options to make jalapeño poppers spicy.
1. Leave some seeds from the jalapeno in the filling.
2. Add a ¼ to a ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper to the filling mixture.
3. Do not remove any ribs or seeds from the jalapeño after cutting it in half (this will make very spicy poppers).
These jalapeño poppers can be prepared up to 2 days in advance. Prepare the poppers up to step 3 and wrap the baking dish tightly with plastic wrap. Add the bacon just before you are ready to bake them.
Yes! To cook jalapeno poppers in an air fryer, cook at 400°F for 10-15 minutes until the bacon is fully cooked and the cheese is melty.
Yes! To make grilled jalapeño poppers, it is best to cook them over indirect heat to avoid the bacon burning. To do this, heat your grill on high until it is thoroughly warmed. Turn off the burners on one half of the grill, leaving the other half still on. Decrease the heat to medium-high and on the side that is off, add the poppers. Grill them for 10-20 minutes until the bacon is fully cooked and the filling is warm. Finish up by quickly moving them over to the side of the grill that is on to give them a quick little crisp!
Grilling jalapeño poppers will give them a delicious smoky flavor, too!
This jalapeño popper recipe is already gluten-free, as written! Ensure you are using spices that are either certified gluten-free or prepared in a gluten-free facility.
Bake jalapeño poppers wrapped with bacon in the oven at 400°F for 25 minutes, or until the bacon is fully cooked and slightly crispy.
We like to serve our jalapeño poppers with ranch dressing, sour cream or bang bang sauce!
Fully cooked jalapeño poppers can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, heat in the oven, microwave, air fryer, or on the grill.
More Savory Cheesy Appetizers
Looking for more recipes similar to these baked jalapeño poppers? Try these!
If you made these bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating, a 💬 comment and share it on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook!
📖 Recipe
Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
↑ click the stars to rate this recipe ↑
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
- 10-12 Jalapeño Peppers ribs and seeds removed, cut in half (leave stem intact)
- 10-12 pieces Bacon cut in half
Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 oz Cream Cheese softened
- ½ cup Mozzarella Cheese shredded
- ¼ cup Harvarti shredded
- 1 small Red Bell Pepper finely diced
- 1 Jalapeño Pepper ribs and seeds removed, finely diced
- 2 tablespoons Sour Cream
- ½ teaspoon Paprika
- ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ½ teaspoon Onion Powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the jalapeños in half lengthwise (leaving the stem intact) and remove all of the ribs and seeds. Place the jalapeños cut side up and arrange in a single layer on the lined baking sheet.
Cream Cheese Filling
- In a medium sized mixing bowl combine the cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, , harvarti, diced jalapeño, diced red pepper, sour cream, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder. Using a hand mixer, mix on high for 2-3 minutes until everything is fully combined.
- Transfer the filling into a piping bag (optional), and disperse the filling equally between all of the jalapeños. With one ½ slice of bacon, wrap the jalapeno so it is entirely covered in bacon. Lay back on the baking sheet, cut side up. Bake for 25 minutes until the bacon is slightly crispy and the cream cheese filling is warm and melty. Let cool slightly before serving.
Save This Recipe! 💌
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Notes
- Always wear disposable gloves while handling raw jalapeño peppers. When cut the peppers produce an oil called capsaicin, which can get stuck to your skin and cause burning.
- Leave the stem of the jalapeño pepper intact when you are cutting them in half. This will create a "boat" for the cream cheese filling and prevent the cheese from spilling over the edges.
- These bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers are based off of my coveted antojito recipe. Serve these two recipes side by side for the ultimate appetizer!
- Use brick-style cream cheese, not spreadable.
- Sour Cream can be substituted for greek yogurt.
- Any kind of hard cheese can be used in this recipe. Other options include gouda, smoked white cheddar, sharp cheddar cheese, or colby jack.
- To make these jalapeño poppers spicy, either leave some seeds & ribs in the jalapeño intact, or add a ¼ to a ½ teaspoon of cayenne into the cream cheese filling.
- When wrapping the poppers in bacon, you can use toothpicks to keep the bacon in place, if required.
- Larger jalapeño poppers may require a full piece of bacon to wrap the full length.
- Jalapeño poppers can be served warm or cool. Serve with a side of dipping sauce like ranch, sour cream or bang bang sauce (optional).
- Store leftover jalapeño poppers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat poppers, bake at 300°F oven for 15-20 minutes.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator and it will vary based on the ingredients that you use.
Jessica says
These bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers have quickly taken number one spot in our appetizer repertoire. This recipe was adapted from my popular Montana's Antojito recipe, the cream cheese filling is very similar. We hope you love it as much as we do!
Chrissy says
I made these over the weekend and I just can't get over how amazing they are! I highly recommend 🙂
Jessica says
Thank you for the amazing review! We are happy you liked the jalapeño poppers!
Edward says
Absolutely love these as an appetizer. Bite size beauties!
Phu Do says
I love it!
Trissy says
Made it for my family and they love it!
Bamboo says
Made it for the company party and they love it!
Jessica says
Wonderful! Thank you for leaving a review!