It’s crazy the summer is almost coming to an end, but at least in Colorado, we have many months of grilling still in front of us! One of my favorite things is to have small, impromptu backyard parties with a few neighbors or friends and feed them some great food. These Grilled Jalapeno Poppers recipes are a quick and easy way to kick off a backyard hang-out.
Easy to prepare, easy to grill, and even easier to eat, these poppers are always a hit. Frankly, I can make a meal out of them with a salad or something, but traditionally they are a solid appetizer course.
Gas vs. Charcoal Grill for Poppers
When you are grilling jalapeno poppers, it’s important to think about how hot your heat source is, what your poppers are wrapped/filled with, and how long they will need to cook. Ideally, whether you are using a gas grill or a charcoal grill, you can set up a two-zone grilling area.
On the indirect zone, you can let the poppers cook slowly if they need less direct heat. This will be important to tenderize the peppers and also finish cooking the bacon wrapped around the jalapenos.
It’s also nice to have some direct heat occasionally though for poppers. The direct heat can give them some nice char or add some crunchy, crispiness to the bacon. Important for sure, but the downsize to direct heat is that it can lead to flair-ups!
How to deal with grilling flare-ups
Any time you start getting flare-ups on your grill, it’s because fat is melting off the foot and dripping directly onto your heat source and fueling the fire. This can happen on a gas or charcoal grill. A small flare-up here or there is fine and will normally go out in a few seconds on its own, unless it is being constantly fed.
If it continues or gets bigger though, then you need to move the food back to an indirect area where it can’t continue to drip and fuel the flare-up. Eventually, it should die out since it has lost its fuel source.
You can squirt a little water into the flare-up, but be very careful doing this. It most likely won’t solve the problem and especially on a charcoal grill, can make the flare-up worse and spray ash on your food!
So, if you get really bad flare-ups while cooking these poppers, just move them back to the indirect heat area of the grill.
Okay. Let’s talk jalapeno popper recipes.
Popper #1: Bacon Cheddar Jalapeno Poppers
These are my standard grilled jalapeño popper and you just can’t go wrong with them. Leave the stems on so the filling doesn’t pour out and stuff them with grated sharp cheddar. Wrap them tightly with bacon.
Bacon Cheddar Jalapeno Poppers
Ingredients
- 6 large jalapeños, halved and seeded
- 6 strips bacon
- 4 ounces cheddar cheese, grated
Instructions
- Half jalapeños but leave the stems on. Clean out seeds as well as possible. Stuff each jalapeños with grated cheese (amount might vary based on size).
- Sandwich jalapeños back together and wrap very tightly with a piece of bacon. Repeat with all jalapeños. Then grill jalapeño poppers for 12-15 minutes over medium heat, flipping occasionally.
- When the bacon is crispy and browned, they are done! Let cool for a minute before biting in as the cheese filling will be very hot.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
These will need to cook the longest on a medium-hot grill so the bacon cooks and gets crispy. I’d recommend about 12-15 minutes, flipping occasionally. Be careful not to use thick-cut bacon as it’ll take too long to get crispy on the grill.
When these poppers come off the grill, don’t just bite into them immediately. Let them rest for a minute or two so the cheese isn’t molten hot, then chow down.
Popper #2: Crispy Prosciutto Jalapeno Poppers
These are shockingly delicious. Prep the jalapeños the same way but stuff them with cream cheese instead of cheddar. Wrap them tightly with some prosciutto. The prosciutto is thinner than the bacon and it gets really crispy and cooks faster on the grill. Cheese blew away my expectations and while they are a bit more expensive then the bacon-wrapped version, they are a really nice upgrade.
Crispy Prosciutto Jalapeno Poppers
Ingredients
- 6 large jalapeños, halved and seeded
- 6 strips prosciutto
- 4 ounces cream cheese
Instructions
- Half jalapeños but leave the stems on. Clean out seeds as well as possible. Stuff each jalapeños with cream cheese (amount might vary based on size).
- Sandwich jalapeños back together and wrap very tightly with a piece of prosciutto. Repeat with all jalapeños.
- Grill jalapeño poppers for 10-12 minutes over medium heat, flipping occasionally. When the prosciutto is crispy and browned, they are done! Let cool for a minute before biting in as the cream cheese filling will be very hot.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
I thought these were a really nice test for the grill because even heat was very important to make sure the jalapeños cooked through and the prosciutto didn’t burn.
Popper #3: Date and Blue Jalapeno Poppers
Date and Blue Jalapeño Poppers
Ingredients
- 6 large jalapeños, halved and seeded
- 6 dates, pitted and chopped
- 4 ounces blue cheese
Instructions
- Half your jalapeños but leave the stems on. Scrape out seeds.
- In a small bowl stir together minced dates with blue cheese.
- Stuff cheese and date mixture into the jalapeños.
- Grill jalapeños for 6-8 minutes over medium heat until they have grill marks, the peppers are tender with a little snap to them, and the cheese is melted.
- Remove peppers and let them cool for 5 minutes before eating.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
These guys were a different thing entirely. For starters, they are vegetarian which is a nice twist. They are also a perfect mix of sweet and savory.
The filling in these is very flavorful and I wouldn’t recommend stuffing a full pepper with it. I like to grill them open-faced. They cook fast and be sure to let them cool a bit before biting into them! If you set the peppers on the grill running the same direction as the grates, they won’t roll around and will stay upright.
My popper lineup looked pretty tasty on the grill!
Making Jalapeno Poppers in advance
The very nice thing about adding jalapeno poppers to your menu is you can make them entirely in advance. Prepping and stuffing the peppers is a little bit of work so it’s nice to do it well in advance of any dinner you are planning. Then you can clean up and store them in the fridge until it’s time to cook.
You can also actually COOK the jalapeno poppers in advance as well. They reheat really nicely and won’t need as long on the grill if you are just reheating them.
Cooked poppers will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days without too much issue. After that, the peppers start to get pretty sad, but I’ve never had poppers last that long in my fridge.
Welcome to grilling season, team.
Stock up on popper gear and make these happen!
Kiara
Not gonna lie, when you described the features, I was like, oh great, another blogger shilling a $4000 grill no one can afford… and was pleasantly surprised to see the $500 price tag. That’s a totally attainable investment for someone like me. Glad you shared this because the BBQ my parents gave me is on the brink of death and I was thinking I was going to be stuck with a terrible cheapo.
Nick
Hey Kiara! Yea… it’s always tough to know what a good price point is but I honestly thought this grill was a fantastic value. I actually didn’t know the price on it until after I had used it for a week or two and thought it would be closer to $1,000 so was also pleasantly surprised! Trade up from that death grill! Ha!
Ruben
I like cheddar jalapeños! Excellent post, thanks for sharing :)
AlanJohn
Three Easy Jalapeño Poppers are my and my family’s absolute favorite. With detailed recipes like this, I am confident that I will treat my whole family to a delicious and hearty meal. Sincere thanks to the author for sharing this recipe. Let’s join hands to make life better. If you get tired, join bob the robber and connect more! We always support you. love and respect.
bob the robber
Three Easy Jalapeño Poppers are my and my family’s absolute favorite. With detailed recipes like this, I am confident that I will treat my whole family to a delicious and hearty meal. Sincere thanks to the author for sharing this recipe. Let’s join hands to make life better. If you get tired, join bob the robber and connect more! We always support you. love and respect.