Hot, creamy, crispy bacon-wrapped cheesy stuffed jalapeños are one of those irresistible appetizers that disappear fast at every party—from Super Bowl spreads to backyard BBQs and everything in between. These bold, cheesy bites are simple to make, totally crave-worthy, and can even be prepped ahead of time.
I originally shared this recipe in 2014, and I’ve since updated it with new photos and extra success tips for consistently great results.
These jalapeños are a must-add to your game-day rotation. Between the crispy, salty bacon, ultra-creamy cheese filling, and just-enough jalapeño kick, they check every snack-table box. Don’t be surprised when everyone crowds around the platter asking for the recipe.
Why You’ll Love These Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeños
- Extra-creamy, cheesy filling flavored with garlic and smoked paprika
- Wrapped in crispy, salty bacon
- Made with just 6 ingredients
- Always a crowd-pleaser
- Make-ahead friendly—assemble the day before, bake when ready
- A favorite hand-held appetizer, this scores high on my list of 20+ Super Bowl recipes!
Grab These 6 Ingredients
- Jalapeños: Halved jalapeño peppers are the base of this recipe. The bigger the pepper, the more cheesy filling you can fit inside. I like to remove all of the seeds and membranes when I’m making stuffed jalapeños since they’re the main source of fiery heat. Don’t fret—these are still plenty flavorful without the seeds. More on this below.
- Cream Cheese: You need 1 block/brick of cream cheese. (If you love cream cheese-based appetizers, try my crab dip or cranberry pecan cheese ball next.)
- Shredded Cheese: I typically use shredded cheddar cheese, but pepper jack is also fabulous here.
- Garlic: You need 1 clove of garlic to flavor the cheese filling, but feel free to use more if you want extra garlicky bites!
- Paprika: Smoked paprika adds a bold, smoky flavor, but if sweet paprika is all you have, that’s fine to use instead.
- Bacon: Cut 12 slices of bacon in half widthwise.
How Spicy Are These Stuffed Jalapeños?
Jalapeños can vary in spice level, but typically provide a medium heat… think more zing than burn. Enough to wake up your taste buds without overpowering everything else!
Once roasted or baked, their spicy bite mellows into a subtly sweet, almost smoky flavor.
In recipes like cheesy stuffed jalapeños, their flavor shines as a savory contrast—cutting through rich cheese and bacon with warmth rather than full-on fire.
The spice level is really up to you: Remove the seeds and membranes and you’ll keep the flavor while dialing back the heat; leave them in and the spiciness becomes more pronounced.
Overview: How to Make Them
Bacon wrapped cheesy stuffed jalapeños are incredibly easy to make—just as all football party food should be (looking at you beer cheese dip and sweet & spicy honey Chex mix).
These jalapeños are a great make-ahead option, too. If you’re tailgating in the morning or hosting guests and don’t have time to prep that day, you can assemble the stuffed jalapeños the day before and bake right before serving.
- Prepare the peppers. Cut the jalapeño peppers in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds and center membrane.
- Make the filling. Combine both cheeses, garlic, and paprika.
- Fill the peppers. Spoon the cheesy filling into the jalapeño halves.
- Wrap with bacon. Wrap a piece of bacon around each cheese-filled jalapeño. Stick a toothpick through the center to ensure the bacon stays in place.
- Bake. Bake the peppers until the bacon is crisp. You can even use the broiler for the last minute or two to really crisp them up!
That’s all there is to it! Serve these while they’re warm, alongside other favorite party snacks, like honey BBQ popcorn chicken, slow cooker turkey meatballs, and seasoned pretzels.
#1 Success Tip for Stuffing Jalapeños
Don’t touch your eyes. As you slice the jalapeños in half and remove the seeds, be careful. I warn you and speak from experience. Wear disposable gloves if you have them and don’t touch your face or eyes during this process—it can really burn!
…or wear your children’s swim goggles, which is what I did the last time I made these. LOL.
P.S. If you love jalapeño, try my jalapeño pepper jack turkey burgers sometime. And don’t miss my jalapeño cheddar soft pretzels!
Bacon Wrapped Cheesy Stuffed Jalapeños
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 24 stuffed jalapeño halves
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Halved jalapeños stuffed with cream cheese, shredded cheese, paprika, and garlic and wrapped up with crispy bacon.
Ingredients
- 12 fresh jalapeño peppers*
- 8 ounces (226g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (113g) shredded cheddar cheese*
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 12 slices bacon, cut in half widthwise
- 24 toothpicks
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, then place a cooling rack on top. Set aside.
- Prepare the peppers: Slice the jalapeños in half lengthwise and remove the seeds and center membranes. Arrange them cut-side up and set aside.
- Make the filling: Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, shredded cheddar, garlic, and smoked paprika until smooth and combined. (You can also mix everything together by hand with a silicone spatula.) Taste and add a pinch of salt if desired.
- Assemble: Spoon the cheese mixture evenly into the 24 jalapeño halves. Wrap each stuffed jalapeño with a half slice of bacon and secure with a toothpick through the center. Arrange on the prepared rack.
- Bake for 25–28 minutes, or until the bacon is browned and crisp to your liking. For extra crispiness, switch the oven to broil for the final minute and keep a very close eye on them.
- Serve warm. Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Notes
- Make-Ahead Instructions: Assemble the jalapeños up to 1 day in advance and refrigerate until ready to bake.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Baking Rack | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) or Silicone Spatula
- Peppers: Instead of jalapeño peppers, use mini sweet peppers for a milder option.
- Cheese: Shredded Mexican-style or pepper jack cheese are great swaps. For best results, buy a block of cheese and freshly shred it on a box grater.
- Air Fryer: These bacon-wrapped stuffed jalapeños can also be made in the air fryer, but you’ll need to work in batches unless you’re using a very large-capacity model. Preheat the air fryer to 375°F (191°C) for 3–5 minutes. Arrange the assembled jalapeños in a single layer in the basket, leaving space between each one so the bacon crisps properly. Air fry for 10–12 minutes, or until the bacon is crisp. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining peppers. Tip: If you’d rather not cook in batches, you can halve the recipe.
- Adapted from Kraft.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi,
Delicious! What is the calorie count for this recipe?
Hi Kathleen, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Not about the recipe, but after a bit of a wait I received your new cookbook yesterday, and skimmed it after supper. Looks like a lot of delicious baking in there, and I can’t wait to get started. I know how much work goes into testing a new recipes. And I also know how much effort goes into writing those recipes in a way that anyone can follow and produce good results. I commend and thank you and your staff for putting that all together. Best!
Hi Paul, thank you so much for the kind words and for the support! We hope you find some new favorite recipes in Sally’s Baking 101!
Excellent recipe, first time making poppers. Do yourself a favor and throw a handful of cherry tomatoes in the drip pan to roast in bacon fat. Then put one of the tomatoes on top of each popper for serving.
I pre bake the unfilled Jalapenos halves as well as the bacon. Let cool then stuff, wrap and bake. I used BBQ dry rub, a touch of brown sugar and some old bay to season the filling
I just used this recipe as an idea of what I wanted to make, as I didn’t have the ingredients for this specific recipe and I’ve never cooked jalapeños in the oven before. I made my mix with feta, yogurt, paprika, garlic, and cumin. And wrapped each in a 1/2 slice of bacon. (I also tried 1/3 slice but those bursted open!) I whizzed all the ingredients in a small blender and stuffed them with a spoon. It worked pretty well. The final consistency, before putting them in the oven, was on the thick and creamy side (not runny). They were fantastic. (I didn’t leave a star rating as I didn’t follow this recipe exactly, but it was a great recipe for the likes of me!)
I’ve made this recipe for a few years now, never have any leftovers.
They are absolutely delicious!!!
You can always put them on some scrunched up aluminum foil and use that in a pinch. They won’t lay in the bacon grease.
I don’t have a baking rack. Can I just cook them on the cookie sheet?
Hi Jolene! The baking rack helps the bacon crisp up (since it’s not sitting in the fat it releases while it bakes), but you can bake these stuffed jalapeños without one in a pinch.
I baked mine right on a silicon mat and they were fine.
I do these on the grill
Yes you can use a cookie sheet
I just made this recipe for the first time, and it is amazing!! I didn’t have smoked paprika, but I did have smoked cheddar. I love sweet/spicy combo, so I added honey to the cheese mixture along with a few seeds. I baked at 400 for 25 minutes, then turned on the broiler and watched the bacon get crisp (about 3 to 4 minutes), and they turned out perfect. I made extra and look forward to pulling them from the fridge and cooking them tomorrow!!
P.S. I used a raspberry dressing for dipping sauce.
Should I adjust the baking time and/or temperature for a version without bacon? (Thinking about making it meatless and adding coconut “bacon” on top.) Thanks, Sally!
Hi Jennie, We haven’t tested it but the bake time should be about the same. Keep your eye on them toward the end of the bake time, and remove when the peppers and the top of the cheese begins to brown.
I fill the 2 halves then put them back together, wrap with bacon, stick with toothpick. Next they go on gas grill with pans of water underneath to keep flare ups from happening with bacon grease dripping down.
Can these be frozen to make at a later date?
You bet! See recipe notes.
I’ve been making this recipe for so many years. It’s scrumptious! Thank you for sharing!
Great recipe! I use thin smoked bacon and cook it 1/2 way. That makes a huge difference! Love them
Yep, you’re right! These disappeared in no time even though the table was filled with food. I was a little nervous when my 81 yr old mother grabbed one and ate it and she had no drink But she promptly grabbed another! Seems the small jalapeños are hotter…? That seemed to be true for us. My 25 yr old kept praising them and talking about them for days. Hence, I’m making them again today! I am so happy to have found another side item for my Mexican fiestas! Thanks Sally!! PS I had no issues with the bacon!
These sound delicious!
Has anyone tried these in an air fryer? If so, what temp & time did you use?
Hi Annie! We haven’t tested these in an air fryer, but perhaps other readers can chime in. If you decide to give it a try with an air fryer, feel free to report back!
I learned many years ago to make poppers this way: Halve your jalapenos and de-seed. Stuff with Hot (or Mild) Italian sausage and wrap with bacon. Bake for 45 minutes or so depending on how large your batch is.
These were a hit at home and at work! I made them just as directed including turning to broiler for the last 4 minutes and they came out perfect. The paprika gave it a really nice smoky flavor. Thank you for your recipe!
Our family likes spicy so I chopped some of the ribs & seeds into the cheese mixture. My family said these were the best poppers ever! The flavor the SMOKED paprika gave was worth buying another spice. I’m so glad I didn’t use the regular paprika I had in the pantry. We are definitely making these again.
Do you use thick or thin bacon?
I love this recipe, but I really struggled to get my bacon to crisp. I ended up cooking it so long that the peppers and cheese were just mush. I think next time I would cook the bacon slightly first then wrap the poppers.
I would try the broil method for the last 4-5 mins of cooking time. Not sure how easy it will wrap if you cook the bacon some first. If you have already tried please tell us how it turned out.
I do cook the bacon on a parchment lined cookie.sheet until it is about half cooked but still pliable before wrapping the peppers. Depending on the bacon you may have to use a whole strip. Works well for us. Stuffing doesn’t melt out before bacon is done.
If you have an air fryer I absolutely suggest doing these in there. My husband likes to do keto/Atkins diet, and he will make these to take on the road with him. We used to do them in the oven and found that the peppers would get way too soft, but we tried them in the air fryer once and they come out absolutely perfect!
Los prepararé hoy!!!!!
These were the best and so simple!
These are delicious! One of my favorite appetizers!
Made these last night, they were fantastic! Our garden gave us a second HUGE harvest of jalapenos which were huge and the perfect size to use for this recipe. Next time I’ll leave some of the seeds in since cleaning them out completely made them too mild. Thank you!