Summary:

These jalapeño poppers are halved peppers stuffed with cream cheese and cheddar, wrapped in bacon, and baked in the oven until crisp and charred — each bite is an explosion of flavor and contrasting textures. Easier and lower carb than the traditional method of breading and frying, this 5-ingredient recipe is a tasty appetizer for keto diets.

Jalapeño Poppers

5 from 28 votes

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Prep: 20

Cook: 25

Yield: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

▢ 6 jalapeño peppers (Note 1)
▢ 6 slices bacon, cut widthwise in half
▢ 4 ounces cream cheese
▢ 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (Note 2)
▢ 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare Jalapeños (Note 3): Slice each pepper lengthwise in half. Use spoon to scrape out and discard seeds and membranes from each pepper.
Make Cheesy Filling: Microwave cream cheese in heatproof mixing bowl until very soft to touch and easily stirred, 15 to 30 seconds. Stir in cheddar cheese and garlic powder until well-mixed.
Stuff Jalapeños (Note 4): Stuff each pepper half with cheesy filling, then wrap halved bacon slice around each. Secure with toothpick, as needed. Place stuffed and wrapped pepper halves in single layer on baking tray, optionally lined with foil for easier cleanup.
Bake & Serve: Bake at 400 F until cheese is starting to brown on top, 20 to 25 minutes. Optionally, broil for a few minutes to crisp up bacon. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Serve (Notes 5-6).

NUTRITION

Makes 4 Servings

Amount Per Serving (3 stuffed jalapeño halves):

Calories 210 (73% from fat)
Total Fat 17g	26%
Saturated Fat 10g	48%
Cholesterol 53mg	18%
Sodium 370mg	15%
Net Carb 2g
Total Carb 2.5g	1%
Dietary Fiber 0.5g	3%
Sugars 1g
Protein 9g

Vitamin A 14% · Vitamin C 41% · Calcium 12% · Iron 2%

PHOTOS

slicing each jalapeno in half lengthwise

stuffing jalapenos with cream cheese and cheddar

Bacon wrapped jalapeño peppers on white baking dish

NOTES & TIPS

(1) Jalapeño Peppers. About 8 ounces weight total. If you or your guests can’t tolerate chili peppers but you still want to try these out, I recommend using mini sweet bell peppers instead of jalapeños. You might have seen them in the produce section of your grocery store — each is about the same size as a jalapeño and they’re packaged in multiple colors.

(2) Cheddar Cheese. About 2 ounces weight. You can substitute with your favorite shredded cheese; Mexican blend cheese or pepper jack cheese would work well.

(3) Preparing Jalapeños. I always remove the seeds and membranes, which contain the majority of the capsaicin (that makes chili peppers hot). For a hotter version, keep some or all of the seeds and membranes. If you’re sensitive to capsaicin, wear gloves while handling jalapeños.

(4) Stuffing Jalapeños. Don’t over-stuff, or the cheese stuffing will slide out when baking. I usually stuff just enough to fill the pepper. If you’re using toothpicks to secure the bacon, there’s no need to wrap the bacon very tightly around each pepper. If the bacon is too tight, your baked jalapeños will look like they’ve had the cheese choked out of them.

(5) Serving. Don’t wait too long before serving because these jalapeño poppers are fantastic when hot and they can cool rapidly. You can serve them alongside other low carb appetizers like crab stuffed mushrooms or spinach artichoke dip.

(6) Make Ahead / Leftovers. You can stuff the jalapeño poppers the night before and keep them covered in the refrigerator. Before serving, pop them into the oven and bake as directed in the recipe. If the jalapeño poppers are already cooked, store them in the refrigerator and reheat in the oven until hot.

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newest oldest most voted

Jeannie

Made these a year ago for a football watching party. They were a hit! A year later, someone who attended the party requested that I make them for their party. You know they are good when a year later you are still getting requests for them! Thanks for sharing your recipe.

Kellie

Made these today and they were amazing! Only change is that I used 1/2 herb & garlic cream cheese mixed with regular cream cheese. So good!

Kristine S

Made this for Christmas Eve. Used pepper jack cheese as suggested. These are awesome!!! Since there were only two of us this year, I ate them for breakfast, lunch and dinner as well!

Melody Gardner

I made a ton of these poppers using both jalapenos and those small sweet peppers for those who did not like heat. I also added a little of my homemade taco spice to the filling. They were an absolute hit at our father’s day, birthday party, and got rave reviews from the hot and non-hot crowd. This recipe is a winner!!

Nicole Bell

I usually make these for summer barbecues either whole or halved- my daughter loves them! Added 1/4 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp chili powder and 1/4 Himalayan salt. This added a great southwest taste!

Mary

Wow! Really good! I used Wright Brand Hickory smoked thick-cut bacon and sharp cheddar cheese. Quick, easy, and delicious! I’m adding this recipe to my go-to appetizer list.

Melanie

Has anyone tried make these in an air fryer?

Lisa T

Yes…I made them in the air fryer yesterday! I did them at 375 for about 12-14 minutes. Each batch seemed to need a slightly different cooking time, and I wanted the bacon crispy and the jalapeños a tiny bit charred.

Patti

I just did this for supper used my airfryer 400 for 15 min. Turned out good.

Suzy

I made these on Memorial day Monday and since I had some left over brisket and pulled pork from BBQ’ing Saturday, I chopped it up and mixed it in with my cream cheese for 2 different batches of peno poppers. I used whole penos and wrapped the entire thing head to toe in bacon and then in a sheet of sharp cheddar. OMG delish! My new go to popper!

MELINDA C ESCARCEGA

Love this easy recipe. I make it all the time. Great snack!

Karen

Is this a recipe that you recommend can be frozen before baking?

Julia

I think these would freeze well. After assembling, put the entire baking tray in the freezer for 30 minutes. Then transfer them to a resealable freezer bag if you’re not planning on using them soon.

Brenda D.

I don’t like spicy foods at all so my husband planted me some “Fooled You” jalapeño peppers. They taste just like the hot ones but are as mild as a green pepper. These were fabulous made with your recipe. Thanks for sharing!

Ashley

These are amazing!!! I’ve taken them to multiple parties and never given a recipe out so many times. Delicious!!!! I prep them the night before and keep them in the fridge…that way all I have to do is pop them in the oven the day of. This will be a forever recipe for me 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

C Richard

Best poppers I have ever had! This recipe is definitely a keeper!

Tracey Beaver

Easy and yummy!

Gary

Fantastic! The cheese absorbs some of the heat and the bacon adds that delicious combination of sweet, salty and hot!

Kelly A

Made these tonight for a small gathering & they were great! I doubled the recipe bc I had 12 peppers, so I froze 1/2 of thrm, hoping they will be just as good out of the freezer at the next function.

Jackie

How would I freeze these? Would I assemble up to point of baking? Or bake and reheat?

Melissa

I actually make ahead freeze them on a cookie sheet or a few actually then vacuum seal them when I need them I pull them out put them on the stove to thaw while the oven preheats and pop them in. Works great for me and my kids who are adults now loves them. They have since high school.

Kathleen Geraghty

My first ‘date’ with my husband was a New Years Eve celebration at his home for friends and family. I brought a bunch of these peppers and a crockpot full of Wassail and I won his heart. Great recipe

Lisa

I found this recipe years ago and it never disappoints. Always a hit with people raving over how yummy they are. I started cooking the bacon a little before wrapping the peppers and it makes the bacon a little more crisp. I have found so many good recipes on savorytooth.com. Thank you!

Cheyenne

I really love making these. I do them about once or twice a month just as a side for supper. And even 20 isnt enough for 2 people LOL.

Dave S.

I have a question on this.

Wrapping bacon ar0und the jalapenos…doesn’t all that grease from the bacon just saturate into the peppers? It almost seems like the better idea would be to cook the bacon first, chop it up and incorporate it into the rest of the ingredients.

Comments/thoughts?

Adlai

I made these and added a pinch of cayenne to the cheese. I like more heat than jalapenos provide. Also I have a countertop convection oven and found that 15 minutes is about right. In any case they were liked by all. Also these are much easier to make than my old recipe which included a breaded coating. This is my new goto recipe for jalapeno poppers.

Natalie

These are so simple and delicious! We used large jalapeños so we ended up using a full slice of bacon per popper… it was well worth it! We got so many compliments.

Laurie

Can these be made ahead of time and then reheated? Trying to meal prep for long weekend.

Arleen

I make the poppers ahead of time & reheat them just before serving the appetizers. They are always a hit. We love them!

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers