Disclosure: I didn’t do a dang thing in this recipe. All I did was take pictures while my husband cut, prepped, strategically bacon-wrapped, seasoned and grilled this delish chicken.
Some people call these "chicken bombs". Others call it Jalapeno Popper Chicken. No matter what you want to name it, Bacon Jalapeno Stuffed Chicken is crave-worthy. For this grilling recipe, we used tender + juicy chicken thighs, stuffed them with cream cheese, fresh jalapenos...then wrapped it all in salty-savory hickory-smoked bacon. Follow all that yummy with a trip around the grill, and ladies + gents, you've got an amazing recipe.
Stuffed Chicken Done Right
There are so many great recipes for stuffed chicken, and most of them involve chicken breasts. There's nothing wrong with that, but sometimes, you need to take a trip on the dark side for the best grilled chicken.
Chicken thighs are hard to beat when it comes to great flavor and juicy, tender results. Plus, chicken thighs are relatively affordable and hard to overcook. That makes them perfect for this 5 ingredient recipe.
Ingredients Needed to Make Bacon Jalapeno Stuffed Chicken:
- Chicken thighs - If you can find them deboned, grab them. If not, you can debone them yourself.
- Jalapenos - You'll want nice sized large jalapenos to hold all that yumminess.
- Cream cheese
- Bacon - Medium to thick sliced bacon will work best for maximum bacon coverage (lol) and wrapping the chicken tightly.
- Black Pepper + all purpose seasoning
- Toothpicks
If you aren't a fan of jalapenos (even though they are seeded for this recipe), you can also use small poblano peppers cut to size.
TIP: This recipe is SO versatile. You can add more ingredients as you see fit. See our Tips + Ideas section at the bottom of this post. For this recipe, we wanted to stick with the basics.
How to Make Bacon Jalapeno Stuffed Chicken
- First, prepare the chicken thighs by removing the bone and skin. Sprinkle lightly with your favorite all purpose seasoning. Lay each chicken thigh flat.
- Then cut the jalapenos in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, scrape out the seeds and membrane.
- Next, fill each jalapeno half with cream cheese.
- Place the cream cheese stuffed jalapeno pepper in the center of the chicken thigh.
- Roll the chicken thigh closed over the pepper.
- Wrap each chicken thigh in 1 - 2 slices of bacon, as tightly as possible, and secure with toothpicks.
- Sprinkle lightly on all sides with black pepper.
- Preheat grill to 400 - 450 degrees. Place the chicken onto the grill. Cook for 35 - 40 minutes, rotating every few minutes to ensure even cooking on all sides and to crisp up the bacon.
- Remove from the grill, cover with aluminum foil, and let rest 10 minutes before serving.
Cooking time will vary based on the thickness of the chicken, your grill temperature, etc. I always recommend using a digital meat thermometer to check for proper doneless of 165 degrees in the thickest part of the chicken. (Keep in mind you don't want to take the center reading, because that is hot and gooey cream cheese in this case.)
TIP: This recipe is PERFECT for making ahead of time the day before. Just assemble, cover, and keep in the fridge until ready to grill.
More Grilling Recipes To Try:
Summer Grilling Tips
Honey Sriracha Chicken
Grilled Beer Brats with Hot Mustard Glaze
Tips + Ideas:
- If you don't want to use chicken thighs, you can use boneless, skinless chicken breast. Select thin cutlets, or cut a full size chicken breast into cutlet size and pound them out to an even thickness for even cooking.
- Want a spicier recipe? Leave in more jalapeno seeds. Want it milder? Use poblano peppers instead of jalapenos.
- Let the cream cheese soften at room temperature for 30 minutes before assembly. This makes it easier to scoop into the jalapenos.
- Jazz up this recipe by adding spices, sausage, or shredded cheese to the cream cheese. Great additions would be crumbled cooked sausage, hot sauce, sharp cheddar.
- Like it saucy? Baste the stuffed chicken with your favorite BBQ sauce while grilling.
- This recipe is easily doubled for a crowd or meal prepping.
- BONUS: This stuffed chicken recipe is perfect for low-carb and Keto meal plans.
- Make this ahead! That's right. If you've got a big cookout planned, or want to prep in advance, prepare this recipe, wrap it up, and keep in the fridge until time to grill.
This easy recipe uses 5 ingredients, and is truly a keeper. Keep it as is, or feel free to add your own twist. The recipe makes 6 servings. 🙂 Enjoy.
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Bacon Jalapeno Stuffed Chicken
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs boneless, skinless
- ½ teaspoon all purpose seasoning
- 3 jalapenos sliced in half lengthwise, seeded
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 12 slices bacon
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- toothpicks
Instructions
- First, prepare the chicken thighs by removing the bone and skin. Sprinkle lightly with your favorite all purpose seasoning. Lay each chicken thigh flat.
- Then cut the jalapenos in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, scrape out the seeds and membrane.
- Next, fill each jalapeno half with cream cheese.
- Place the cream cheese stuffed jalapeno pepper in the center of the chicken thigh.
- Roll the chicken thigh closed over the pepper.
- Wrap each chicken thigh in 1 - 2 slices of bacon, as tightly as possible, and secure with toothpicks.
- Sprinkle lightly on all sides with black pepper.
- Preheat grill to 400 - 450 degrees. Place the chicken onto the grill. Cook for 35 - 40 minutes, rotating every few minutes to ensure even cooking on all sides and to crisp up the bacon.
- Remove from grill, cover with foil, and let rest 10 minutes before serving.
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