My all time favorite game-day snack is jalapeño poppers. I LOVE jalapeño poppers! And bacon. And especially bacon jam. You can of course serve these with ranch or eat them plain, but there is just something about how the sweet, smoky bacon jam pairs with the slightly spicy and cheesy jalapenos. It's SO GOOD.

I won't pretend that these are healthy, but they are definitely worth using up a cheat meal. I made about 20 poppers this weekend and Kyle and I ate all of them in one sitting.

For this recipe, I halved the bacon jam, but I often make it will a whole package of bacon and just store the extra in the fridge to put on everything. I made a grilled cheese sandwich with Gruyere and bacon jam last night and it was to die for.

Best of all? The poppers are super quick and easy to make! The bacon jam takes a little bit longer to cook but is also super simple.
We're going to start with the bacon jam since it takes longer and we can assemble the poppers while it's cooking.

*If you hate bacon and/or joy, just go ahead and skip down to the poppers part.*

Making the Bacon Jam

Cut the bacon into small chunks and add to a medium sized cast iron or enameled skillet (you don't want to use a nonstick pan because then you won't get those super flavorful browned bits). Cook over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes or until enough of the bacon fat has melted to thoroughly grease the pan. Add in the onion and garlic and continue to cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until the bacon is crispy and the onions are caramelized (30-45 minutes). Try to avoid speeding up the process by turning up the heat; we want to cook this low and slow to give the onions time to properly caramelize.

Once you have that crispy bacon and brown onions add in the brown sugar (or maple syrup) and cook until fully dissolved (2-3 minutes). Bump the heat up to medium-high and add the bourbon to deglaze the pan, making sure to scrape up all the brown bits on the bottom. Continue stirring until most of the liquid has evaporated (2-3 minutes). Scoop into a small bowl and try not to eat all of it at once 🙂

Making the Jalapeño Poppers

While the bacon jam is cooking, you can throw together the jalapeño poppers.

Cut the jalapeños in half length wise (I left the stems on for aesthetic purposes but it's not necessary). Use 2-3 halves to dice up and throw into the filling for an extra kick. I'm a wimp who doesn't like things to be super spicy, so I make sure to scrape all the seeds and membrane out of the inside of the peppers, but you can leave some behind if you're braver than me.

Tip: if I'm only cutting up 1-2 jalapeños for a recipe, I don't bother with gloves. However, when you're cutting 10-15 there's a lot more capcaisin oil that can irritate your skin so wearing gloves is recommended.

For the filling, simply mix everything together and then portion generously into the halved peppers. Top with the remaining shredded cheese and panko mixture!

jalapeno poppers topped with shredded cheddar cheese

Bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.

Jalapeño Poppers with Bacon Jam

Author: Kyleigh Sage
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 4 servings 1x

Print Recipe

Description

My favorite game day snack is jalapeño poppers with bacon jam. The sweet smoky bacon is the perfect compliment to spicy pepper covered in cheese!

Scale

Ingredients

Bacon Jam

½ package bacon, chopped
½ yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons brown sugar (or 1-2 tablespoons of maple syrup)
¼ cup bourbon (any whiskey or even a dark beer will do)

Jalapeño Poppers

12 large jalapeños
8 ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
4 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
2-3 pieces cooked bacon, crumbled (optional)
2 green onions, diced
¼ cup cilantro, chopped (optional)
2 teaspoons lime juice
dash salt and pepper
⅓ cup panko bread crumbs
1 tablespoon salted butter, melted

Instructions

Bacon Jam

Cut the bacon into small chunks and add to a medium sized cast iron or enameled skillet (you don't want to use a nonstick pan because then you won't get those super flavorful browned bits). Cook over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes or until enough of the bacon fat has melted to thoroughly grease the pan.
Add in the onion and garlic and continue to cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until the bacon is crispy and the onions are caramelized (30-45 minutes). Try to avoid speeding up the process by turning up the heat; we want to cook this low and slow to give the onions time to properly caramelize.
Once you have that crispy bacon and brown onions, add in the brown sugar and cook until fully dissolved (2-3 minutes). Bump the heat up to medium-high and add the bourbon to deglaze the pan, making sure to scrape up all the brown bits on the bottom. Continue stirring until most of the liquid has evaporated (2-3 minutes).
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
The bacon fat will harden in the fridge, so microwave for intervals of 20 seconds to soften again.

Jalapeño Poppers

While the bacon jam is cooking, you can start the jalapeño poppers.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Cut the jalapeños in half length wise. Use 2-3 halves to dice up and throw into the filling for an extra kick. I'm a wimp who doesn't like things to be super spicy, so I make sure to scrape all the seeds and membrane out of the inside of the peppers. But you can leave some behind if you're braver than me.
For the filling, simply mix together the cream cheese, cheddar cheese (leave behind a little bit for sprinkling on top), crumbled bacon, green onions, cilantro, lime juice, and salt and pepper. Then portion generously into the halved peppers.
For the panko mixture, just mix the melted butter into the panko breadcrumbs.
Top the stuffed peppers with the remaining shredded cheese and panko mixture!
Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.

Category: Snack
Method: Baking
Cuisine: American