KETO JALAPENO POPPERS make a great appetizer that even the carb-lovers will devour! I’m including instructions for making these extra quick in your air-fryer, but they’re delicious in the oven too! Either way, you need this low carb snack in your life!
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Don’t tell Chad I said this, but he’s a bit of a wimp when it comes to spicy foods.
The kids and I will be happily munching away on something and he’ll be breathing fire and questioning all of his life choices.
Over the years, though, he’s slowly been building up a tolerance to spicy food and he’s finally starting to even enjoy it a bit. Thank goodness, because I love spice and add a little hot sauce or jalapeno or Tony’s to just about everything. 😉
I’ve even gotten away with serving up my buffalo chicken meatballs lately and he hasn’t cried about it once! Miracles do happen!
These bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers are something that I’ve made for years, but I thought I’d share them here now that he’s a little more into spicy food – and I’m sharing how to make them in the air fryer too!
We love these – they’re the perfect mix of cheesy, spicy, salty, crunchy, creamy…all the good things!
How to make jalapeno poppers:
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This recipe is beyond simple!
First, wash some jalapenos and slice them in half. Scoop out the seeds and membranes with a spoon.
Pro Tip: Wear gloves when working with jalapenos!
The oils from the jalapenos stick to your skin and can burn it. And if you touch your eyes afterwards, well, let me just say that you DON’T want to do that. Ouch.
Here are some food safe gloves you can grab from Amazon.
If I’m just working with a few jalapenos, I go quick and triple wash my hands. If I’m working with a larger batch, I grab the gloves. It’s safer to just wear gloves every time, but I hate the way they feel so I live on the edge. 😉
Once your jalapenos are ready for stuffing, mix up that cheesy filling.
You’ll need cream cheese, cheddar, garlic powder, and onion powder. Just stir it all together until smooth and creamy and then spoon it into the jalapeno halves.
These are bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers, so you’re going to need: BACON!
Slice your bacon slices in half and wrap each half around a pepper.
Air Fryer Jalapeno Poppers:
I love using my air fryer to make this recipe. I have and love the OMORC Air Fryer XL. It’s 5.8 quarts which means that it’s large enough to hold plenty of food. Some of those air fryers are tiny (which is fine for small households!), but I wanted a bigger one for my family of four.
To make these in the air fryer, you’ll want to place them in the basket leaving an inch or so of space around each popper.
Air fry at 390 degrees for 10 minutes, or until the bacon is as crisp as you’d like.
Baked Jalapeno Poppers:
No air fryer? No problem!
Place your keto jalapeno poppers on a rimmed baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until the bacon is crisp.
Easy peasy!
Are jalapeno poppers spicy?
This is a tricky one to answer because some jalapenos are hotter than others and you won’t know how spicy they really are until you bite into them.
That said, most of the ‘heat’ lives in the seeds and membranes of the pepper and you’ll be scraping all of that out before filling with the cheese.
The cream cheese and cheddar filling also helps to cut the spice of the pepper. Cut the heat even more by dipping them in my keto ranch dressing!
These homemade jalapeno poppers do have a bit of a kick to them, but nothing too extreme. For more heat, add some minced jalapeno to the cream cheese filling.
More low carb snacks to try:
We’re always coming up with new low carb snacks to share with our friends and family – most of whom love carbs. 😉 Some of our favorites to serve up at football games or other parties are these crock pot chicken wings, keto deviled eggs, and keto meatballs.
We also love making a cheese or veggie board and filling it with things like cheese, cucumbers, pickles, veggie dip, broccoli, deli meat, and low carb crackers.
Keto Jalapeno Poppers
Ingredients
- 4 jalapenos
- 3 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 4 slices bacon
Instructions
- Slice jalapenos in half length-wise. Carefully scrape out the seeds and membranes with a spoon and discard. See note.
- Add the cream cheese, cheddar, garlic powder, and onion powder to a small bowl and stir well to combine.
- Spoon the cheese evenly between the jalapenos.
- Cut the bacon slices in half and wrap each jalapeno with a half slice of bacon.
Air Fryer Method:
- Turn air fryer to 390 degrees and let heat for 2 minutes.
- Carefully add the jalapenos to the basket of the air fryer in a single layer with space between each. Work in batches if your air fryer will not fit all 8 halves at once.
- Air fry for 10 minutes or until bacon is as crisp as you’d like.
Oven Method:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Place prepared jalapenos on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until bacon is as crisp as you'd like.
Meg says
Oh, my goodness!!! I just discovered this recipe today, and I had just picked up my groceries. So since I didn’t have bacon, I improvised with turkey pepperoni. I also made some without the pepperoni and just added some grated Parmesan cheese to the top for that added crunch. Besides, three cheeses is always better than two in my book. Plus, we love the heat, so I kept a few of the seeds in there and served them with hot sauce and sour cream on the side. They were amazing! Thank you for sharing.
Karly Campbell says
Sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing, Meg!
Sheila S says
Can these be prepared in advance and frozen ?
Karly Campbell says
Yep, they should freeze great!
Carla says
These are the bomb!!
Ralph says
Thanks for your wonderful recipes . You have just convinced me to buy an airfryer.(I think it comes together with a pocket calculator which I could donate to James ?)
Karly Campbell says
Hi Ralph! I hope you love your air fryer. We use ours all the time.
Jerri says
I’ve made this similar recipe before many times; my family can’t get enough of them. The one thing I do different, but with the same results is I CUT the bacon lengthwise first. Your bacon goes twice as far and they turn out fabulous!
Karly Campbell says
Oh, smart!
Kristin says
These came out perfectly! Thanks for the tasty recipe
Karly Campbell says
Thanks, Kristin!
Vivian Lambert says
If you don’t like hot stuff. and I don’t. you can use banana peppers. Works great.
Todd says
I’ve been making these for a while on the Big Green Egg. Just started making them in the air fryer, love them! I like to kick them up a notch and put Franks Red Sauce in the cream cheese mix. If my in laws are coming over I’ll also sprinkle in a few extra hot pepper flakes in the cream cheese mix. They don’t like spicy things, so they try one, nope, too spicy. More for me!!!
Karly Campbell says
Haha! Genius!
Victoria says
Tell James, the same way three whole Jalapeños make six servings. Tada!
James says
Real talk, how does 4 Japalenos make 8 servings?
This makes me question all your recipes tbh.
Karly Campbell says
They’re pretty clearly cut in half. Nutrition is based on 1/2 of a jalapeno. Makes it easy to calculate them individually, so you can eat as many as you like and have the nutrition info.
Not an idiot like James says
Wow… you literally are cutting 4 jalapeños in half… making 8. Are you okay James? Basic math too much for ya?
Jacqueline says
Wow, pretty sad to think one error (which tbh was James’) would be a dealbreaker for Karly’s site. Perhaps the jalapeno heat got to James? lol Serving size is one “popper” not one “pepper” so it is pretty obvious there are 8 servings for 4 halved peppers. Anyway, why not ask a question (“Hey, is this right?”) rather than post an accusation (“I now doubt your entire body of work.”)? *sigh*
For me, looking at Karly’s yummy recipe, I anticipate I will need all 4 jalapenos / 8 servings for myself! This looks like dinner! 😀 Thanks Karly!
Karly Campbell says
Thanks, Jacqueline! Hope you enjoy the poppers! 🙂
Allison Dubrosky says
Hi Karly! Could you skip the bacon on these? If so, would the cooking time still be the same? Thanks!
Karly Campbell says
You can definitely skip the bacon. Should be about the same amount of time, but keep an eye on them as the cheese might brown a bit more quickly. 🙂
Anthony Frankina says
During these trying times nothing like a jalapeno popper to cleanse the sole hahahaha and kill any Corona virus.
Karly Campbell says
Exactly. Clear out the ‘rona.
Vilma Deckena says
When I make in the air fryer the cheese filling oozes out of the pepper. Can you tell me why?
Karly Campbell says
My guess is that they are stuffed too full or they aren’t sitting upright.
dan mathews says
I would also recommend wearing safety glasses with side shields. Those jalapeno seeds can fly out and end up in your eyes. I know because it happened to me. Not fun.
Baltisraul says
If you want to take some heat out of the peppers try this. After cleaning, soak in 7-Up (not diet) for 30 min.
Karly Campbell says
Interesting!
Aimee says
These were delicious!! Thanks for the quick and easy recipe
Karly Campbell says
Thanks, Aimee!
Mimi Mills says
These look great! Can I freeze them after baking?
Karly Campbell says
I’d probably freeze before baking so they don’t get mushy when reheated. They’ll take a bit more time if cooking from frozen, but I can’t say how much since I haven’t tried it.
Lynn says
I have bought frozen ones and cooked them in the air fryer they come out great and the say to air fry 14 minutes from frozen. I think a little longer for crisper bacon. Looking forward to trying your recipe will save me a good deal of money and so easy.
Karly Campbell says
We’ve grabbed the frozen ones in a pinch too. I do think homemade is a bit tastier, so hope you love them! 🙂
Mike Gibson says
I use a melon baller to scrape out the seeds/membranes. It has a sharper edge and does a better job than a spoon.