Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers
Recipe Snapshot
PREP + COOK TIME: 20 minutes
METHOD: Air Fryer
OTHER TOOLS: knife and cutting board
TOTAL INGREDIENTS: 4
Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers are the appetizer you need for grilling, game day, or any occasion worth celebrating! They’re so easy to whip up and bring just the right balance of sweet, savory, and spice in every bite. Plus, they’re wrapped in bacon and ready in 20 minutes or less!
What’s To Love About This Recipe
- Jalapeño poppers are crispy, creamy, and savory with a little kick of spice! It’s the perfect party appetizer with so much goodness in one bite.
- Poppers can be labor-intensive, which is why you might only see them for special occasions. With this recipe, you can easily make them in the air fryer without heating up the oven.
- Apricot preserves are the signature flavor in this recipe, but you have the option to sweeten the poppers with different preserves for a sweet and spicy combo.
- Have a party on the calendar? These can be prepped ahead and air-fried just before serving, which makes it easy for the host!
- Whether you’re hosting or joining a gathering, it’s always nice to have recipes that can work for different dietary needs. Air fryer jalapeño poppers are a lower-carb, gluten-free appetizer that’s always a hit!
Ingredients Needed
- Jalapeño peppers – Use 5-6 fresh jalapeños, making sure they are firm to the touch and not drying out. Tiny jalapeños are more difficult to fill with the cream cheese mixture, so use medium to large jalapeños for this recipe.
- Cream cheese – Soften the cream cheese to room temperature in advance for easy mixing and filling. This creamy element is the tastiest contrast to the spicy peppers!
- Apricot preserves – Apricot preserves are a delicious addition and give just the right amount of sweetness in every bite.
- Center-cut bacon – Center-cut bacon creates a meatier bite, and it cooks wonderfully in the air fryer, turning out nice and crispy! Center-cut bacon will also be easier to wrap around the jalapeño and enclose the filling.
How To Make Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers
- Cut off the stem end of the jalapeño and cut it in half lengthwise.
- Remove the ribs and seeds using a sharp knife.
- Mix the cream cheese and apricot preserves together until smooth.
- Place the cream cheese mixture in a disposable zipper bag and cut off the corner tip.
- Use the bag to pipe the mixture into the jalapeño halves.
- Cut the bacon strips in half and wrap each cut piece around a jalapeño half.
- Place poppers in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
- Cook at 360 ℉ for 10 minutes or until the jalapeños are tender and the bacon is cooked.
Pro Tips
- Wear gloves when prepping the jalapeños to avoid skin or eye irritation.
- I like to remove the jalapeño stems to make them easier to eat, but feel free to leave them on if you prefer the presentation.
- Remove all ribs and seeds if you don’t want the poppers to be very spicy. Leave some of the ribs and seeds intact for spicier poppers.
- Use a small spoon or pepper corer to clean out the jalapeños quickly and evenly.
- To prevent bubbling over and leaking out, don’t overfill the peppers with the cream cheese mixture.
- For extra crispy bacon, use pre-cooked bacon strips.
- Adjust the cooking time as needed based on the size of the jalapeños.
Recipe Substitutions and Variations
Make your party poppers irresistible with your own combination of flavors and filling!
- Regular or whipped cream cheese will both work. Flavored cream cheese (e.g., chive and onion or garden veggie) can add depth or change up the presentation!
- Instead of bacon strips, you could also try turkey bacon, prosciutto, or even add bacon bits pressed on top of the poppers. (And if you prefer no bacon, feel free to leave it off entirely!)
- Preserves are the best ingredient to add a little sweetness or tang to the creamy filling, and you can experiment with one you love best! Try apricot, pineapple, or pepper jelly as a sweet contrast to moderate-to-spicy peppers.
- You can also adjust the spice to make these appealing to everyone!
- For milder poppers, choose larger jalapeños, fully deseed and remove ribs.
- For spicier poppers, leave some ribs and seeds or use a hotter pepper like a serrano.
Oven Instructions
How To Serve Jalapeño Poppers
Serve jalapeño poppers as an appetizer when you’re grilling out, serving BBQ, or making a big pot of healthy chili on those colder days.
To expand your appetizer spread, add some tortilla chips and dips like Queso Blanco Dip, Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce, Chipotle Lime Mayo, or garlic aioli. Add some Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings, Brisket Sliders, or nachos for a true snack-worthy buffet!
Definitely plan to make extra poppers! These will disappear quickly from your potlucks or snack boards.
Make Ahead, Storage, and Reheating
Make-Ahead Instructions
When you’re serving a crowd, it always helps to complete a few steps ahead. This is the best appetizer for busy hosts because you can easily assemble the jalapeño poppers up to 24 hours in advance. Just store them covered in the fridge, then air fry just before serving.
How to Best Store Leftovers
Don’t expect too many leftovers – these are usually completely devoured! But just in case, here are your tips to store every tasty bite.
Fridge
Store the poppers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Freezer
I don’t recommend freezing the leftovers since the texture of jalapeños and cheese may suffer.
How to Best Reheat Leftovers
Reheat the poppers in the air fryer at 375 ℉ for 3-4 minutes until warmed through, or add them to the oven and heat at 375 ℉ for 8-10 minutes.
Avoid the microwave! It will make the bacon rubbery and the jalapeños soggy.
Air Fryer Jalapeno Poppers
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound jalapeño peppers 5-6 peppers
- 4 oz cream cheese softened to room temperature
- 1/4 cup apricot preserves
- 6 slices center-cut bacon
Instructions
- Cut off stem end of jalapeño and cut it in half lengthwise
- Remove ribs and seeds using a sharp knife
- Mix cream cheese and apricot preserves together until smooth
- Place cream cheese mixture in a disposable zipper bag and cut off corner tip
- Use the bag to pipe mixture into jalapeño halves
- Cut bacon strips in half and wrap each piece around a jalapeño half
- Place poppers in a single layer in air fryer basket
- Cook at 360 ℉ for 10 minutes or until jalapeños are tender and bacon is cooked
Notes
- Optional: Assemble the poppers up to 24 hours in advance and store them in the fridge, covered. Air fry just before serving.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the air fryer at 375 ℉ for 3-4 minutes or in the oven for 8-10 minutes. Skip the microwave!
- Poppers are cooked when the peppers are crisp-tender, the bacon is cooked, and the filling is bubbly.
- Adjust cooking time as needed depending on the size of the jalapeños.
I tried these and they were an absolute mess! I’m not sure if it was the apricot preserves or the time was too long, but the filling ran all inside of the air fryer with nothing left inside. Yes, I wrapped them good (I used proscuitto instead of bacon). I was so disappointed.
oh no! I’m so sorry to hear this! I’m wondering if they could have been filled a little too full? I’ll double check this and add notes to the recipe as needed. Thank you for taking time to provide your feedback.