I love a good game day snack and these Air Fryer Bacon-Wrapped Stuffed Jalapenos are the best around.
They’re so easy to make, pop in the air fryer, and eat as finger food during football or any sports game.
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We even enjoy them time and time again as a side dish with our family dinners. The recipe is completely keto-friendly and kid-friendly for those who do and don’t like spicy foods with a pro tip included.
This recipe works in any type of air fryer from the GoWise, Cosori, Power Air Fryer Oven, and more. If you are cooking in a smaller air fryer, you may need to cook in batches.
If you love these, you will love cooking frozen jalapeno poppers in the air fryer too!
How to Cut the Jalapeno Peppers
First, cut the stem off each jalapeno pepper. Try to stay as close to the stem as possible since the edge will help create a boat to keep the filling inside.
Then cut the jalapeno pepper open lengthwise. I like to wear gloves whenever cutting jalapenos. The oils from inside the pepper
Take out all the membrane and seeds from the jalapeno peppers. I use a small pairing knife to cut slightly around the membrane then pull it from the pepper with either a small spoon or my hand.
If you like your air fryer jalapeno poppers a little more on the spicy side, leave some of the membranes inside the pepper.
The membrane is the part of the pepper that contains the spicy heat. Completely removing the membrane will not remove all the heat but will tone down the spiciness quite a bit.
Set peppers aside.
PRO TIP: If you want to make this recipe for those who don’t enjoy spicy foods, mini sweet peppers work great. They’re about the same size as a jalapeno but have absolutely no spice level to them.
How to Make Air Fryer Bacon-Wrapped Stuffed Jalapenos
A full printable version of this recipe with ingredient measurements is available at the bottom of this post.
STEP ONE: Mix the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper and mix to combine.
I suggest using room temperature cream cheese. If you’re using cold cream cheese, place it in a microwaveable bowl for about 15-20 seconds to warm it up slightly. This will allow you to mix it easier.
STEP TWO: Spoon the cream cheese filling into the jalapenos with a small spoon. Use just enough to fill the jalapeno pepper without overfilling. Overfilling the pepper with cream cheese will cause it to spill out when wrapping it with bacon.
STEP THREE: Preheat the air fryer by turning it to 350 for 3 minutes. Although preheating is not mandatory for cooking air fryer food, I find the food takes less time to cook and tastes better after preheating it.
You can read more about preheating your air fryer here.
STEP FOUR: Take the thinly sliced bacon and cut each slice into 2. You can keep it in 1 slice if you would like, but ½ a slice will be enough to wrap around the stuffed jalapenos.
STEP FIVE: Place the air fryer bacon-wrapped stuffed jalapenos into the air fryer in a single layer. Do not let any of them touch each other or it can interfere with the bacon cooking evenly.
STEP SIX: Cook at 350 for 14-16 minutes until bacon is fully cooked then enjoy immediately.
Love appetizers? Check out this great list of air fryer appetizers!
How Long Do You Cook Air Fryer Jalapeno Poppers?
This Air Fryer
Cooking at a higher temperature will cause the cream cheese filling to cook too fast and it may burn while the bacon still isn’t cooked thoroughly.
It’s important to keep an eye on the air fryer jalapeno poppers as they cook. Since each air fryer cooks at a different speed (just as ovens do), it’s important to make sure your food is cooking at a good rate.
Air Fryers are specifically designed to be opened in the middle of cooking for a minute to either shake and/or check the food when needed.
If you notice the cream cheese filling or roasted jalapenos becoming brown too fast, turn your air fryer down 20 degrees and cook from there.
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Air Fryer Bacon-Wrapped Stuffed Jalapenos
Ingredients
- 12 Jalapenos
- 8 ounces of cream cheese room temperature or slightly soft
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
- 12 slices of bacon thinly cut
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cut the jalapenos in half, remove the stems, and remove the seeds and membranes. The more membrane you leave, the spicier the jalapenos will be.
- Add cream cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Mix to combine.
- Using a small spoon, scoop the cream mixture into each jalapeno filling it just to the top.
- Preheat air fryer to 350 degrees for about 3 minutes.
- Cut each slice of bacon in half.
- Wrap each jalapeno half in one piece of bacon.
- Place the bacon-wrapped stuffed jalapenos in the air fryer in an even layer making sure they do not touch.
- Air fry at 350 degrees for 14-16 minutes, until bacon is thoroughly cooked.
- Enjoy immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days, reheating before eating.
I’m going to try this out on my new air fryer tonight. I do have one question, I’ve never used an air fryer before. How do you know how much oil to add?
Thanks!,
Emily
Hi Emily! Congrats on your new air fryer. You’re going to love it! So, an air fryer is completely different than a deep fryer because it doesn’t take any oil. For any recipe on my site, it will tell you if you need to coat the food in oil or to mist it on and how much. For this recipe, you won’t need any oil!
Here is a great read on to help understand exactly how to use oil in there: https://www.everydayfamilycooking.com/air-fryer-oil/
I humbly suggest a full strip of bacon on these. Everyone one I had was wrapped nicely when they went in but the bacon shrunk and came undone. Still delicious.
Hi Stan! Yes, if your jalapenos are a bit on the larger side, 1 full strip of bacon will work great!
In the jalapeno poppers do I use the basket or do I just put them in without the basket
Hi Tina, if you have a basket air fryer, the basket has to be in the air fryer to cook. If you have an air fryer oven, the racks are sufficient and you don’t need to use a basket.
Love these so much! I usually make them in the oven but used this recipe in my new air fryer! YUM😋
THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS SUPER EASY RECIPE YOU DONT KNOW HOW LONG IVE BEEN SEARCHING FOR A SUPER EASY RECIPE I HOPE THAT THEY COME OUT GOOD THANX?!?!…
can I make them in the morning and serve them at lunch? SUE
Yes! Just keep them refrigerated and eat cold or reheat them prior to eating!
Entire Family Loved this, and hubby and daughter always complain about “spicy” foods! I used the oven method…but..Just got an air fryer, it is the first recipe I am trying in it!
How long is cooking time if poppers are frozen?
You would use these directions instead: https://www.everydayfamilycooking.com/frozen-jalapeno-poppers-in-air-fryer/
Just got a Ninja Air Fryer and this is the first recipe that I’ll be making. So excited. 😋
I have a question that might seem stupid, but here goes. The recipe calls for 12 peppers. Is that really 12 or 6 sliced in half? I wouldn’t think the fryer could accommodate 24 halves.
I’m really excited to try the recipe.
Thank you!
Hi Barbara,
This recipe does call for 12 full peppers. As long as the peppers are laying flat on the basket they will cook properly. The amount of halves that can fit in the basket depends on the size of the air fryer you have as well.
I hope this helps!
Thanks 🙂
Hi! Can I assemble these, keep them in the fridge, and cook them the next day? Hoping to premake them for a potluck 😊
Hi Maggie,
These could easily be prepped before hand and made the next day. I would recommend making sure they are covered tightly in the fridge and to watch the cook time on them when they are cooked because they could change by a couple minutes.
Thanks 🙂