Our delicious Grilled Jalapeño Poppers make the perfect appetizer for Super Bowl Sunday, family gathering, or backyard cookout! Made with fresh jalapenos, a cream cheese filling, and crisp bacon around the outside. Just toss them on the grill to cook for a few minutes and enjoy this great appetizer at your next party!
The Best Grilled Jalapeño Poppers
We love using our gas grill to cook just about anything! You can’t beat that quick clean-up and that delicious flavor. During the cooler months of the Fall and Winter we also love to make a game day appetizer or two on Saturdays and Sundays for watching all of the football games! These grilled jalapeño peppers are one of our favorite appetizers, the perfect snack that brings a little bit of heat. Definitely a tried-and-true favorite that might just be better than your local restaurant menu!
Looking for More Appetizer Recipes?
If you love a good appetizer as much as we do, you definitely need to try our Bacon Wrapped Scallops and Baked Brie in Puff Pastry!
What You Will Need
- whole jalapeno peppers – just pick some up at your local grocery store or farmer’s market.
- cream cheese & cheddar cheese – a combination of cheeses that can’t be beat! Feel free to swap with dairy-free options if that’s your thing.
- onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper – these simple seasonings really give these bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers so much flavor!
- chopped green onions – another way to bring the best flavor, plus a little bit more color.
- bacon slices – everything is always better with some bacon in the mix!
How To Make Grilled Jalapeño Poppers
The first steps to making this easy recipe are to gather all of 9 simple ingredients. Put the softened cream cheese (leave out at room temperature), cheddar cheese, seasonings, and green onions in a medium bowl.
Now grab a sharp knife and cutting board. Cut each jalapeño pepper in half, lengthwise. Use a small spoon to carefully scoop out the seeds and membrane from each half.
Pro Tip
Some of the spiciness of the jalapeño can easily transfer to your hands. Option to wear gloves or put a plastic baggy over the hand that is handling the peppers to keep it off your hands. If you don’t cover your hands, be sure to wash them really well with soap and water when you are done.
Once you have the peppers and cream cheese mixture prepped, it is time to partially cook the bacon. Bring a large skillet to a medium high heat and cook the bacon strips in batches. They only need to be partially cooked because they will finish the cooking process when they are on the grill.
Now use a spoon to scoop the filling into each of the jalapeno halves and wrap each of the stuffed jalapenos with a piece of bacon.
Bring your gas grills to a medium heat and place the wrapped jalapeños directly on the hot grill grate for about 5-6 minutes of cook time.
Carefully remove them from the hot grill, let them rest, and serve on a large serving platter.
Recipe FAQs
- How to cut jalapeños for poppers? Simply place a whole jalapeño on the cutting board and cut it down the middle, lengthwise. So you will go right through the stem, all the way down to the tip.
- How to clean jalapeños for poppers? Once the pepper is cut in half, you can use a cookie scoop or spoon to remove all the seeds and white membrane that is on the inside of each pepper.
- Do you flip jalapeño poppers on the grill? Nope! You do not need to flip the peppers at all. Simply place the back of the pepper on the grill grates and let them be.
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Grilled Jalapeno Poppers
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 8 minutes
- Total Time: 33 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: American
Description
A delicious and easy Grilled Jalapeno Popper recipe that is perfect for your next summer cookout! Bacon-wrapped and so good!
Ingredients
- 6 large jalapeños, halved with seeds and membrane removed
- 4oz cream cheese, room temp (reg. or dairy-free)
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (reg. or dairy-free)
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons green onions, minced
- 12 slices bacon (do not use thick-cut bacon)
Instructions
- Prep Filling: In a small bowl combine the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, onion powder, garlic powder, kosher salt and minced green onions. Stir to combine.
- Prep Jalapeños: Cut the jalapeños in half, lengthwise, and use a spoon to scoop/scrape out the membrane and seeds. Place on a plate or platter.
- Fill Jalapeños: Use a spoon to fill the halved jalapeños. Alternatively, you can put the filling in a large plastic sandwich bag, cut off a corner and squeeze into each jalapeño half.
- Pre-Cook Bacon: Bring a large cast iron skillet to medium-high heat. In two batches, add 6 pieces of bacon, cook until halfway done (approx. 4-6 minutes). You definitely don’t want them crispy! Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate and let cool slightly.
- Wrap Jalapeños: Take one stuffed jalapeño half at a time and firmly wrap a piece of bacon around each. To the extent possible, try to overlap the bacon so it stays in place and so the filling doesn’t fall out and then carefully tuck the very end in under the rest of the bacon so it doesn’t unravel.
- Grill: Preheat grill to 400-450 degrees F. Ensure grill grates are clean. Place jalapeño poppers directly on the grill grates. Close the lid and let cook 5-7 minutes. Start checking after the 5-6 minute mark and keep an eye on them. Remove from grill when jalapeño starts to soften and bacon gets a little crispy. Transfer to plate and let cool.
- Serve: Serve as-is or with a ranch dip, if you want!
Notes
- Dairy-Free: you can easily make this dairy-free by using a dairy-free cream cheese and a dairy-free shredded cheddar.
- Pre-Cook Bacon: this was key! So even though it adds to the prep time, it makes the cook time go way faster and you don’t have to worry about over-cooked jalapeños and undercooked bacon (which happened to us when we first tested this recipe).
- Cook Time: we tested these and the jalapeños were cooked, but firm at around 6-7 minutes, but it is up to your personal preference on how soft you want the jalapeño or how crispy you want the bacon. Just keep a close eye on them after the 5-6 minute mark!
- Serving: feel free to serve with a dip like a ranch dressing or something similar – personally I feel like they are rich enough that they are perfect on their own!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 popper
- Calories: 175
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 264.4 mg
- Fat: 16.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 1.8 g
- Protein: 5.5 g
- Cholesterol: 33.5 mg
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