This Jalapeno Popper Chicken can be done a couple different ways. The first way, and the original way that I made this, is to stuff the chicken breasts with the jalapeno popper fillings and then bake. The second way to cook this is to shred the chicken and just mix the whole thing together. I recently did it this way at a work potluck/cookoff, and it won 1st place.
I typically feed a lot of people so this is a large recipe that can used to meal prep for the week too.
While the chicken is cooking its juices merge with the cream cheese mixture to form a delicious cheesy and creamy gravy.
Ingredients:
4 lbs Chicken Breast
16 ounces Cream Cheese
8 oz shredded pepperjack cheese
6-10 jalapenos
1 lb bacon
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions (Stuffed Version):
- Set out cream cheese so that it gets to room temperature
- Cut Bacon into small pieces and cook until done
- While bacon is cooking, dice jalapenos, removing seeds
- Pour out some of the bacon grease, and then saute the jalapenos in remaining grease
- While jalapenos are cooking, put cream cheese in a bowl
- Once jalapenos are cooked enough that they are pretty soft, add them to the cream cheese in a bowl
- Mix well
- Put chicken breast in baking dish, add salt and pepper to both sides
- Cut breast almost in half so that you can open the chicken breast to put the cream cheese inside
- Put about a spoonful of cream cheese mixture into each chicken breast
- Close the chicken breasts and then add remaining cream cheese on top of each breast, spread evenly
- Cook for 30 minutes at 350 degrees
- Sprinkle cheese on top of the chicken breasts and then cook for another 15 minutes until cheese and melted and starting to brown – chicken should be 165 degrees in largest part of the breast. You do not want to cook it any longer or the chicken will start to get tough
- Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes before serving
Instructions (Shredded Version):
- Pre-Heat oven to 350 degrees
- Season chicken with salt and pepper in baking dish, and cook chicken until it reaches and internal temperature of 165 degrees
- While chicken is cooking, chop bacon into small pieces and cook
- While bacon is cooking, dice jalapenos, removing seeds
- Once bacon is done cooking, set bacon to the side and drain most of the grease and saute the jalapenos in remaining bacon grease
- Once chicken is done, shred it in its juices
- In a bowl, mix together the cream cheese, jalapenos, chicken, and most of the cheese
- Once all is mixed well, put in a baking dish, and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove dish from oven, sprinkle bacon, and the rest of the cheese on top, and bake for 10 more minutes
- Remove from oven, and let it sit for about 10 minutes before serving
Nutritional Information:
Servings: 12
Calories (per serving): 413
Fat: 25.5 g
Protein: 44.5 g
Total Carbs: 2.5 g
Fiber: .33 g
Net Carbs: 2.17 g