Jalapeno Popper Chicken is an easy keto meal that whips up in about 35 minutes. Creamy and delicious, and the whole family loves it!
Raise your hand if you need more easy in your life. Oh, I see you. And you, And you. And me. All of us can use more easy in our lives.
And nothing beats this keto jalapeño popper chicken for an easy and family friendly meal.
Right now, so many of us are stuck at home juggling jobs, kids, school, and our health. It’s not an easy time for anyone. So creating easy keto dinner recipes is always top of my priority list.
But those easy dinners have to taste great, too! It’s no good creating healthy meals if no one wants to eat them. I guarantee you that this Jalapeno Popper Chicken will appeal to everyone.
A match made in heaven
We all know how much keto dieters love their jalapeno poppers. I mean, what’s not to love?
Jalapeños? Good. Cheese? Good. Bacon? Gooooood!
They’re a classic appetizer that is easily made low carb, and are always so full of flavor. So it’s no wonder that they’re a beloved keto snack.
It’s also easy to take those same flavors and use them in other delicious ways, to make them into a full keto meal. Soup, meatloaf, meatballs – so many great ideas. One of my most popular recipes is Jalapeno Popper Pizza. It’s delicious!
And those popper flavors really shine when they are combined with chicken. Smother some chicken thighs in a cream cheese sauce, add cheese, jalapeños, and bacon, and it’s a match made in keto heaven.
I created this recipe when I was all out of ideas for an easy family meal and my kids went wild for it. Jalapeno popper chicken for the win!
How to make Keto Jalapeno Popper Chicken
Another easy keto dinner recipe to add to your collection. Be sure to watch the video to see just how easy it it!
Here are my best tips for getting it right:
- Chop the bacon before cooking it, as it gets more evenly crisp this way.
- Drain most of the grease from the pan but keep about 1 tablespoon for cooking the chicken.
- You can use any chicken here but I like boneless skinless thighs the best.
- They don’t have to be fully cooked through, as the whole dish will end up in the oven for the final cooking. But you want them nicely browned on both sides.
- Make sure your cream cheese is really soft before making the sauce. I like to pop mine in the microwave for 15 seconds or so first. It makes the sauce more creamy and smooth.
- Spread the sauce evenly over the chicken, then top with jalapeño, cheddar, and the crisp bacon.
- Pop it in the oven and 20 minutes later, you’re ready to eat!
Ready to make some delicious Keto Jalapeno Popper Chicken?
More easy keto chicken recipes
- Keto Chicken Broccoli Casserole
- Creamy Keto Chicken and Mushrooms
- Keto Chicken Enchilada Skillet
- Keto Chicken Parmesan
- Creamy Keto Chicken and Asparagus
- Keto Buffalo Chicken Casserole
Jalapeno Popper Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon chopped
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Salt and pepper
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 3 to 4 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
- 2 small jalapeno peppers minced
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F.
- In a large skillet over medium, cook the chopped bacon until crisp. Remove to a plate and remove all but 1 tbsp of the grease.
- Pat the chicken thighs dry and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Add the chicken thighs to the skillet and cook until nicely browned, about 3 to 4 minutes per side.
- Remove from heat and transfer the thighs to a glass or ceramic baking dish.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, whipping cream, and garlic. Spread over the chicken in the dish.
- Sprinkle with the jalapeno and cheddar cheese, then sprinkle with the chopped bacon. Bake about 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the chicken is cooked through.
Becky says
I made this tonight and used what I had on hand. So I used chicken breast tenderloins, pickled jalapeños and garlic powder but, even with the substitutions, it was so yummy! I’ll definitely make it again.
Paulette says
Amazing!
Rachel says
OMG this is amazing!! I’m new to using chicken thighs but oh goodness is it worth it! The flavors go together SO well and it’s going on the repeat list for sure. The only changes I made were to roast the jalapeños first and used 2 big ones instead of small as well as an extra clove of garlic. Thank you for sharing!!
Carolyn says
Great idea to roast the jalapeños!
Marianne says
Carolyn, we love all your recipes. This one is over the top and it has been requested weekly by my 3 very hungry men. Last time I seeded the jalapenos, but won’t do that next time as it wasn’t spicy enough for us.
Thanks for all you time and effort to provide us with so many Keto options!
Carolyn says
Glad everyone likes it!
Brionda says
I liked the flavors, but not the thighs. They have a slimy texture that I don’t care for. Next time I will use breasts instead. Also, I’d prefer more jalapenos and I’d probably saute then after browning the chicken to soften them a bit as they were still pretty crunchy.
Carolyn says
Slimy? That doesn’t sound right, I hope your chicken thighs hadn’t gone bad…
Kristyn says
This has me so excited!! Love that it’s keto friendly & I love the kick!! Very yummy!
Lily says
These were amazing, such a simple snack. I added extra bacon, because why not. We could not stop snacking on this, it was creamy and spicy all together.
Katie says
This looks amazing! Can’t wait to try it.
Robyn Wilson says
I made this tonight and loved it! Next week I’m making it again for dinner with my keto friends. This is my new favorite. Love the simplicity, and it’s ao delicious!!
Bev says
Absolutely delicious! Hubby keeps asking me to make it again! Thanks so much for all of your wonderful recipes. We are loving all we’ve tried.
Wendy Paterson says
Carolyn, you have hit it out of the park once again. This was a huge hit and will be made again and again. We both loved all the flavours in this chicken and since we had home grown jalapenos it made it even better. I have passed this recipe on to many friends, all of whom loved it also. Please keep them coming. We appreciate all your hard work you do creating such great recipes.
Jennifer Johnson says
I had this recipe on the menu for my family this past week. It was completely fabulous! I made enough that I thought we would have leftovers, but nothing remained. Thanks so much for this great recipe!
Carolyn says
So glad to hear it!
Jodi says
I just put mine in the oven,so easy and I know its gonna be good,so far I’ve made soooo many of your recipe’s and have loved them all!!🥰
Deborah M Kloss says
Wonderful and easy to make….thank you for the recipe. I love your website!
Renee says
Absolutely delicious. My husband loved it and he doesn’t even like cream cheese or jalapenos. Will definitely make again.
Jo says
I made this for supper tonight. I used chicken breast instead because it’s what I had. It’s so good! It’s going into my keeper file.
Stacyleigh says
How many breasts did you use?
Amanda says
Was in a particularly boring Teams meeting when this recipe landed in my inbox. Had to make it for lunch, and chance would have it I had everything I needed. This is super easy to make and very tasty. Mine came out quite garlicky. Really nice and rich as well as tasty.
Carolyn says
Hooray!!!
Kathy says
I haven’t tried this yet, but this recipe seems like like it should have been a no brainer, but it’s not! It’s genius, as are so many of your recipes I have tried. I’ll make this tonight. Thanks for keeping us ‘tasteful’!