The Best-Ever Baked Jalapeno Popper Chicken Recipe
Servings: 4
Shake up your dinner routine with this jalapeno popper chicken! Creamy, cheesy & with flavors of the classic jalapeno popper appetizer.
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Ingredients
- 4 slices of bacon
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup softened cream cheese
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1-2 tbsp diced fresh jalapeno
- 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- pinch salt and pepper
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 4 tbsp breadcrumbs
- extra fresh slices of jalapeno for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F and give a casserole dish or baking sheet a spray with cooking spray of choice. Set aside.
- Cut the jalapenos: remove the stem and then cut down the middle and remove the seeds. Then, dice the jalapeno into pretty small pieces to mix with the cream cheese. Make sure to wash your hands after handling the jalapeno!
- Make the cream cheese mixture: In a small bowl, mix together cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, pinch of salt and pepper, 1-2 tbsp diced jalapeno (use more or less depending on how much spice you like) and 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Set aside.
- Cook the bacon: In a large skillet on medium heat cook the bacon until crisp. Once cooked, remove the bacon from the pan to a paper-towel lined plate and then chop it up into small pieces once cooled. Leave the bacon grease in the pan. (If using bacon bits or pre-cooked bacon, add 1 tbsp olive oil to the pan to cook the chicken in).
- Sear the chicken: Season the chicken breasts on both sides generously with salt and pepper. Put the pan back on medium-high heat and add the chicken breasts. Sear the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes per side until golden brown. Remove the pan from the heat.
- Add the seared chicken breasts to the greased baking dish or sheet pan.
- Divide the cream cheese mixture between the chicken breasts, spreading on top of each. Then top each chicken breast with 1/4 cup shredded cheese each and about 1 tbsp breadcrumbs and 1 tbsp of chopped bacon.
- Bake the chicken for 20-26 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through to an internal temperature of 165F and the cheese is melted. Top with fresh jalapenos if desired and then serve.
Notes
- If you want to get ahead on prepping this dinner recipe you can shred the cheese and make the cream cheese mixture ahead of time then store in the fridge. Take out the cream cheese mixture while you're searing the chicken so it can warm up a bit. Then, it will be more spreadable when you add it to the chicken before baking.
- Be sure to cook the chicken to an internal temperature of 165F.
- If you don't have cream cheese, you can substitute with equal parts sour cream and greek yogurt. It won't be quite as thick as using cream cheese but it should still do the trick!
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