Posted by Air Fryer Jalapeno poppers are the delicious melted cheese balls stuffed with diced Jalapenos and bacon, coated in crispy golden breadcrumbs.
PREPRATION TIME:
- PREP TIME 5 minutes
- COOK TIME 7 minutes
- ADDITIONAL TIME 30 minutes
- TOTAL TIME 42 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 pack Cream cheese (8oz.), softened
- 4 Jalapeños: seeded and finely chopped (2/3 cup). I use my Braun Multiquick food processor to chop the Jalapeños in 30 seconds to the desired consistency.
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup Pepperjack cheese, shredded
- 6 strips bacon: cooked and finely chopped. I also used premade bacon crumbles.
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup breadcrumbs or Panko.
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Seasoning salt to taste. I add 1/2 teaspoon seasoning since bacon is usually pretty salty.
- 1 Tablespoon Sriracha sauce, optional
INSTRUCTIONS:
- In a large bowl, mix together the cream cheese, jalapeños, cheddar cheese, pepper jack cheese, diced jalapenos, bacon bits, garlic, salt, and sriracha sauce. Until all ingredients are well combined.
- Scoop the mixture and form it into 1 inch or larger size balls. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for 30 minutes.
- Place beaten egg in a medium bowl.
- In the second bowl, combine the panko bread crumbs, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and salt.
- Remove cheese balls from the freezer. Dip one ball at a time into the beaten eggs, and then coat with the bread crumbs mixture.
- Arrange the jalapeño balls in the air fryer basket/sheet/tray and give them some space so they do not touch each other.
- Pre-heat air fryer at 400F/200C for 2 minutes and place the basket/tray into the air fryer
- Air fry mode 400F/200C for 7-8 minutes or until the breading is crispy, golden brown and the cheese starts to pop.
- It is important to flip each ball halfway thru the cooking. Cook 3-4 minutes per side.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.
- To reheat, place in the air fryer at 350F/180C for 1-2 minutes per side.
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NOTES:
I used this handy Jalapeno corer tool for fast and easy coring and deseeding jalapeno peppers.
You may want to consider wearing plastic gloves when handling jalapenos
