Jalapeno Popper Dip

Jalapeno Popper Dip is a spicy cream cheese dip recipe featuring diced jalapenos, crispy bacon, and cheddar cheese to resemble jalapeno poppers without the hassle of stuffing.

Back when I used to work in an office, we had lunch potlucks often.

And every single time, there was at least a minimum of 2 dishes of buffalo chicken dip for snacking.

Even though it’s one of my favorite dips, I started thinking about other popular dips I could make so there was at least some variety at the table.

That’s when I started making my Jalapeno Popper Dip – a spicy cream cheese dip recipe featuring diced jalapenos, crispy bacon, and cheddar cheese. Very similar to my jalapeno popper cheese ball but hot and bubbly.

Although I work from home now (with a weekly visit to a local coworking space), I still make my jalapeno dip for football season. Especially with the Super Bowl coming up in a few weeks.

Instead of going through the hassle of stuffing jalapeno peppers, breading them, then frying them, you just chop up your ingredients, mix together with cream cheese, top with a crunchy breadcrumb topping, then bake.

Plus you have plenty more to share with dip than you do with poppers and you don’t have to worry about fried food not being as good the next day.

In fact, you can make your jalapeno popper dip recipe up to 2 days ahead of time then bake when you’re ready to serve.

That’s pretty handy if you’re serving it as Super Bowl food for two during football season.

What is a jalapeno popper?

Jalapeno poppers are a classic American appetizer where you stuff jalapeno peppers with a cream cheese mixture then bread it and fry it.

The first (and last) time I made jalapeno poppers, I couldn’t eat them. Apparently the peppers I picked to stuff were too spicy to eat on their own, even with the cream cheese filling.

Dad and I just could not finish them because we were dying.

Luckily with this jalapeno popper dip recipe, you can control the heat level with the amount of seeds and membrane you add.

Because of this, I also have recipes for jalapeno popper rolls and jalapeno popper soup.

Your mileage will vary, so adjust the heat accordingly.

Ingredients for Jalapeno Popper Dip

Here’s what you need for your jalapeno pepper popper dip:

• Cream cheese: Use a block of full-fat cream cheese as low fat or fat free may be too watery
• Cheese: Use shredded cheddar cheese
• Mayonnaise: Can also use sour cream or Greek yogurt for a slightly healthier option
• Bacon: Can omit if making vegetarian
• Jalapenos: The star of the dish!
• Onion powder, garlic powder, and salt: To flavor the dip
• Panko breadcrumbs: Slightly thicker than regular breadcrumbs, giving your dip a nice golden brown crunch
• Parmesan: A little extra cheese for the topping
• Butter: Binds the breadcrumbs for the topping

How To Make Jalapeno Popper Dip

Making your recipe for jalapeno popper dip with bacon is incredibly easy! All you need is a mixer (or really strong arm muscles):

1. Beat together cream cheese, cheddar cheese, mayo, bacon, jalapenos, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt. Transfer to a small casserole dish.
2. Mix together Panko, Parmesan cheese, and butter then sprinkle on top of cream cheese mixture.
3. Bake at 375F for 20 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.

Cool for 10 minutes then serve warm with nachos. Refrigerate leftover dip for up to 3 days.

More Dip Recipes

If you liked this jalapeno popper dip, you may also like these other dip recipes:

• Buffalo Chicken Dip
• Bacon Cheeseburger Dip
• Homemade Queso
• Ranch Spinach Dip
• Bacon Cheddar Ranch Dip
• Pesto Dip

First published September 16, 2012