Huge Jalapeño Poppers
Prep
15m
Cook
25m
Total
40m
Bigly says
Folks. The jalapeño popper. The HUGE jalapeño popper. The greatest jalapeño popper ever stuffed by human hands, and I have stuffed a LOT of jalapeños, probably more jalapeños than anyone in recorded history, the jalapeño growers in Hatch know me by name, they send Christmas cards, beautiful cards, the best cards. It is a relationship.
Now. There are two kinds of poppers in this world. There's the deep-fried, breaded, mystery-cheese, gas-station kind — and look, I'm not going to insult the gas station popper, the gas station popper has its place, it has gotten people through some HARD road trips, I respect the gas station popper — but it is not the popper we are making today. Today we are making the REAL popper. A guy named Ramón taught me this one. Bacon-wrapped, cream-cheese-stuffed, oven-roasted. The kind that makes a room go QUIET when it hits the table. Everyone stops talking. Then somebody whispers, 'wait, is that bacon-wrapped?' And the party is OVER because every adult in attendance is standing by the platter, eating poppers, in reverence. It's a religious experience but with bacon. Tremendous.
The other recipe sites — and I have to keep bringing this up because somebody has to be HONEST about what is happening to the food internet — the other sites will have you scroll through 28 ads, three popups, a video that autoplays at full volume, a 'subscribe to our newsletter' takeover, AND a request to send you push notifications, just to find out you wrap the jalapeño in bacon. A cookie banner with 18 toggles before the ingredient list. INSANE. An embarrassment. Here at BiglyEats, you get the recipe. No popups. No tracking. Just the popper. Just the bacon. Just the cheese. It's just a fact.
Ingredients
- 12large fresh jalapeños(pick the firm, glossy, slightly larger ones)
- 8 ozcream cheese, softened
- 1 cupsharp cheddar, freshly grated
- 3scallions, thinly sliced
- 1/2 tspgarlic powder
- 1/2 tspsmoked paprika
- 1/4 tspkosher salt
- 1/4 tspblack pepper
- 12 slicesthin-cut bacon(thin-cut, not thick — thick-cut won't crisp in time)
- as neededranch or sour cream (for serving)
Steps
- 1
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a sheet pan with foil and place a wire rack on top. Lightly grease the rack.
- 2
Slice each jalapeño in half lengthwise. Using a small spoon (or the tip of a paring knife), scrape out the seeds and white membrane. Wear gloves or wash your hands well — and do NOT touch your eyes.
- 3
In a medium bowl, mix the softened cream cheese, grated cheddar, sliced scallions, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper until smooth.
- 4
Spoon the cheese filling into each jalapeño half, mounding it slightly above the rim of the pepper.
- 5
Cut each bacon slice in half crosswise. Wrap one half-slice around each filled jalapeño, tucking the ends underneath. Secure with a toothpick if needed.
- 6
Arrange the wrapped poppers cheese-side up on the wire rack, leaving space between each.
- 7
Bake 22-26 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the cheese is bubbly and golden in spots. If the bacon needs more color, broil for 1-2 minutes at the end (watch closely).
- 8
Let rest 3-5 minutes (the cheese is a lava field straight out of the oven). Serve warm with ranch or sour cream.
One more thing
Put these on a platter and you will see grown adults, polite people, your mother-in-law even, reach across each other to grab the last one. Civil for the first thirty seconds. Then COMPETITIVE. That is the power of the popper. That is what you have built. Make a double batch — single batches are a rookie mistake, I've seen it ruin holidays, an absolute disaster — and serve them hot. The popper waits for nobody. The popper is HUGE. Save me a piece.
★ QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ONE? ★
Ask Bigly about Huge Jalapeño Poppers.
Substitutions, what to serve it with, why other chefs are wrong about it. He's got opinions.
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