• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Little Sunny Kitchen

  • All Recipes
    • Cuisine
      • American
      • Asian
      • Greek
      • Indian
      • Italian
      • Mexican
      • Middle Eastern
      • Russian
    • Meal Type
      • Appetizers
      • Main Dishes
      • Sides
      • Pasta
      • Soups
      • Salads
      • Grilling
      • Beverages
      • Desserts
      • Sauces, Dressings and Seasonings
      • Vegan
  • Dinner
  • Instant Pot
  • Air Fryer Recipes
  • Shop
  • About/Contact
    • About
    • Contact
    • Privacy
go to homepage
Homepage link
  • Recipe Index
  • Dinner
  • Appetizers
  • Instant Pot
  • Air Fryer Recipes
  • Recipe Videos
  • Join our Facebook group
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home » Air Fryer Recipes » Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers

    Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers

    Published on November 29, 2020 | updated on February 1, 2021 by Diana

    Jump to Recipe
    Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers pinnable image

    These Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers are perfect for a game day snack, or to be served as an appetizer any day! They’re much healthier than your favorite restaurant jalapeño poppers, and you will love the combination of creamy, cheesy, hot, and crunchy when you eat them!

    Jalapeno poppers served on a white plate, served with a small bowl of ranch dip.
    Table of Contents hide
    1 What Are Jalapeño Poppers?
    2 How to Prep the Jalapeños
    3 The Ingredients
    4 How to Make Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers
    5 How Long to Air Fry Jalapeno Poppers For
    6 Recipe Video
    7 Top Tips
    8 Make Them in the Oven
    9 Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers Recipe

    What Are Jalapeño Poppers?

    These are a restaurant copycat creamy stuffed jalapeños that are not deep-fried. They tick all of the boxes in terms of flavor and texture, but they’re not breaded or deep-fried in lots of oil like the restaurant ones. But let me tell you, the crunchy buttery panko topping is everything! You will love the combination of creamy and crunchy with every single bite!

    How to Prep the Jalapeños

    The best advice that I can give you is, do not forget to wear gloves! Jalapeños can be quite hot, and if you don’t wear gloves and accidentally rub your eyes, you will regret it. I learned this the hard way!

    So wear gloves, and slice each jalapeño in half lengthwise leaving the stem intact on both halves (for aesthetics). Using a small paring knife or a spoon, remove the seeds and the membrane of the pepper. If you like a little bit of heat, leave s little of the membrane and discard the rest.

    Prepping the jalapenos

    Repeat with the rest of the jalapeños, and they’re ready to be stuffed and air fried.

    The Ingredients

    Here’s what you’ll need to make Jalapeño Poppers:

    • Jalapeños – fresh large jalapeños (more on prepping them below).
    • Cream cheese and sharp cheddar cheese – cream cheese. is a must but cheddar can be substituted. You can use other types of cheese such as Monterey Jack, or parmesan.
    • Garlic powder – to flavor the cream cheese mixture. You can also add onion powder if you like.
    • Panko and butter – for the best ever buttery crunchy topping!
    Ingredients needed to make Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers

    How to Make Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers

    • Preheat the Air Fryer to 390°F (200°C).
    • In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese with garlic powder and cheddar.
    • In a separate small bowl, combine panko crumbs with melted butter.
    • Take each jalapeño half, and fill with cream cheese mixture then top with panko breadcrumbs.
    • Place in the Air Fryer basket, and air fry for 5-6 minutes.
    A collage with 6 images showing how to make pepper poppers in the air fryer

    How Long to Air Fry Jalapeno Poppers For

    So this depends on the size of your jalapeños, and the brand/size of your air fryer. I have this Air Fryer, and my jalapeños weren’t large. I found 5 minutes to be perfect.

    It also depends on how much heat you want, I found that air frying the jalapeños for longer makes them milder, but keep in mind that they will also lose their shape if cooked for long.

    So start checking the jalapeños at 4 or 5 minutes, and see if they need a bit longer or not.

    Jalapeno poppers in the Air Fryer basket

    Recipe Video

    While this is a very easy recipe, but it always helps to watch a short video, so I created a quick video for you to see how I made these Air Fryer jalapeño poppers.

    Top Tips

    • You can make bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers by wrapping each with a slice of bacon and secure it with a clean toothpick. If you don’t use a toothpick, the bacon will shrink and won’t stay wrapped around the popper.
    • You can also dice a few slices of bacon, cook them on a skillet and mix them in the cream cheese mixture if you like.
    • Adding fresh herbs such as chopped chives or parsley adds flavor to the filling.
    • Add grated parmesan cheese to the filling for extra flavor.
    • If following a gluten-free diet, use gluten-free panko breadcrumbs.
    • There are other alternatives to panko, you can substitute it with crushed chips, or crushed Doritos.
    • Make it low-carb and skip the breading.
    • Jalapeño poppers can be made in advance and frozen. Cook from frozen but increase the cooking time by 2-3 minutes.
    Filling jalapenos with cream cheese filling, and topping the panko

    Make Them in the Oven

    If you don’t have an Air Fryer, you can make jalapeño poppers in the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C), and bake for 8 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the panko is crispy.

    Close up of Jalapeno poppers stacked

    Serve these jalapeño poppers with ranch, and blue cheese dip!

    Subscribe to my Newsletter, and follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest for more tasty recipes!

    I don’t feel like I say this often enough, or that I could ever thank you enough. But THANK YOU for all of your support, for visiting my blog, commenting, and sharing my recipes with your friends and family. I am SO thankful for you!

    If you make this recipe or any of my recipes, then don’t forget to rate it and leave a comment below. I would LOVE to hear about your experience and your comments just make my day!

    I hope that you love every recipe that you make! – Diana x

    Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers Recipe

    These Air Fryer Jalapeño Poppers are perfect for a game day snack, or to be served as an appetizer any day! They're much healthier than your favorite restaurant jalapeño poppers, and you will love the combination of creamy, cheesy, hot, and crunchy when you eat them!
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Appetizer
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 5 minutes
    Total Time: 15 minutes
    Servings: 12
    Calories: 110kcal
    Author: Diana

    Ingredients

    • 12 jalapeño peppers sliced in halves, deseeded
    • 6 ounces cream cheese softened
    • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 4 ounces sharp cheddar shredded
    • 3 tablespoons Panko bread crumbs
    • 1 tablespoon butter melted

    Instructions

    • Preheat the Air Fryer to 390°F (200°C).
    • In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese with garlic powder and cheddar.
    • In a separate small bowl, combine panko crumbs with melted butter.
    • Take each jalapeño half, and fill with cream cheese mixture then top with panko breadcrumbs.
    • Place in the Air Fryer basket, and air fry for 5-6 minutes.

    Video

    Notes

    • You can make bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers by wrapping each with a slice of bacon and secure it with a clean toothpick. If you don’t use a toothpick, the bacon will shrink and won’t stay wrapped around the popper.
    • You can also dice a few slices of bacon, cook them on a skillet and mix them in the cream cheese mixture if you like.
    • Adding fresh herbs such as chopped chives or parsley adds flavor to the filling.
    • Add grated parmesan cheese to the filling for extra flavor.
    • If following a gluten-free diet, use gluten-free panko breadcrumbs.
    • There are other alternatives to panko, you can substitute it with crushed chips, or crushed Doritos.
    • Make it low-carb and skip the breading.
    • Jalapeno poppers can be made in advance and frozen. Cook from frozen but increase the cooking time by 2-3 minutes.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 110kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 131mg | Potassium: 71mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 465IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 1mg
    Did you make a recipe?Tag @littlesunnykitchen or hashtag it #littlesunnykitchen!

    As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Previous Post: « Chocolate Macarons
    Next Post: Christmas Pinwheel Cookies »

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Review or Question

    Type your question or comment below, and click Post Comment. You'll see it on this page after we review it.

    Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Cooked this? Rate this recipe!




    Primary Sidebar

    Connect with me!

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Join our Facebook Group »

    Hello and welcome to Little Sunny Kitchen! I'm Diana and I love cooking with fresh, and seasonal ingredients. I'm a trained chef, food blogger, and photographer. More about me!

    Dinner Tonight

    Homemade Hamburger Helper (Stovetop, Instant Pot)

    Air Fryer Shrimp Fajitas Recipe

    Egg Roll in a Bowl

    Cheesy Chicken Fajita Casserole

    Most Popular

    Chocolate Macarons

    Penne Arrabbiata

    French Fry Seasoning

    Alfredo Sauce Recipe

    Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Tenders

    Chicken Caesar Wrap

    Best Coleslaw Recipe

    Air Fryer Chicken Breast

    Footer

    Copyright © 2021 Little Sunny Kitchen

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
    Cookie settingsACCEPT
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled

    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

    Functional

    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

    Performance

    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

    Analytics

    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

    Advertisement

    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

    Others

    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.

    SAVE & ACCEPT