These smoked jalapeno poppers are stuffed with cheese and tender pressure cooker carnitas. They take right around 90 minutes to smoke and make an excellent low-carb appetizer or side dish. Smoked bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers can also be served as tacos or as a side with smoked burgers!
One of my oldest recipes on this blog is my Keto jalapeno poppers recipe, which are baked in the oven. If you don't own a smoker, you can still make this recipe and bake it according to the directions in my other recipe.
This smoked jalapeno poppers recipe is different than my original recipe because not only are the peppers stuffed with cheese but they're also loaded with carnitas!
This recipe is not only easy but flexible too! You can substitute pulled pork, or Traeger smoked brisket for the carnitas or skip the meat entirely and double the amount of cheese!
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😍 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Smoked jalapeño poppers are easy to make and so delicious!
- The recipe is easily adjustable and some of the ingredients can be swapped out, as needed.
- The jalapeños can be prepped ahead of time and smoked just before you are ready to serve them.
🛒 What You Need to Make This Recipe
🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
- Jalapeño Peppers: You'll need 10 large jalapeños for this recipe. The larger the better!
- Cheese: To make the cream cheese mixture, I use a combination of cream cheese and shredded cheddar cheese. Instead of cheddar, can substitute with jack cheese, Mexican cheese blend, or pepper jack cheese. If you don't have cotija cheese, you can substitute it with queso fresco or crumbled feta.
- Garlic: I add 2 cloves of fresh garlic to the cheese mixture, you can even add more, or substitute with 1 teaspoon of garlic powder.
- Seasoning: I usually use my own pulled pork rub recipe but you can use your favorite seasoning or this Traeger Perfect Pork Rub.
- Carnitas: If you don't have carnitas, you can substitute pulled pork, shredded brisket, or brisket burnt ends. Another option is to make them meatless, just double the amount of cheese!
- Bacon: You'll need 20 slices of bacon, one for each jalapeño popper.
🔪 Tools Required
- A smoker/pellet grill
- A sharp paring knife
- Small spoon
🌶 Smoked Jalapeño Poppers Recipe
Preheat the smoker to 225°F using pellets of choice. I like to use hickory. Select Super Smoke if you have that option on your smoker.
Step 1: Slice jalapeno peppers in half with a paring knife then remove seeds and membranes. Use a teaspoon to scoop out the seeds.
Pro Tip: The seeds and membranes hold most of the heat. If you want to retain the pepper's heat, chop the membranes and mix them into the cream cheese filling.
Step 2: Mix cream cheese, cheddar cheese, crushed garlic cloves, and ½ of the pork rub in a medium bowl until combined. Stuff the jalapeños half full with the cream cheese filling.
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Pro Tip: If you don't have pork rub, just use garlic powder, paprika, and ranch dressing. Since jalapeno peppers are not very hot (in my opinion) you may want to add some cayenne pepper too!
Step 3: Divide carnitas between the peppers and sprinkle with crumbled or grated cotija cheese. Carefully wrap each popper with one slice of bacon. Secure with a toothpick, if needed. Sprinkle with the remaining pulled pork seasoning.
Pro Tip: I don't like to waste food so I sprinkle any cotija cheese that fell from the stuffed jalapeños back onto the bacon-wrapped poppers.
Step 4: Arrange the stuffed jalapeños on a tray with a rack so that the smoke can circulate around the stuffed peppers, and the bacon grease can drain. Place on the grill grate and smoke for 30 minutes using super smoke.
Step 5: After 30 minutes, turn up the heat to 325°F degrees and smoke for an additional hour or until the bacon is smoked to your liking. I like it crispy.
🤷🏻♀️ FAQs
It can take anywhere from 2 to 2 ½ hours to smoke jalapeno poppers at 225 degrees. If you prefer the bacon crispy, you can shorten the smoking time to 1 ½ hours then kick up the temperature to 375 for an additional 15 to 20 minutes.
Smoking jalapeños does not make them hotter, if anything, they seem to lose some of their heat.
Smoked bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers are done when the cheese is melted and the bacon is nice and crispy.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- When working with spicy peppers, it's helpful to wear kitchen gloves to keep the oils off your hands. I like these in particular because they fit snugly and are easy to work with.
- Besides eating the carnitas stuffed smoked jalapeño poppers as an appetizer, they can also be served in corn tortillas as tacos!
- Smoked bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers can be chopped and added to a quesadilla or nachos.
- Store leftover smoked jalapeno poppers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- If you prefer your poppers cheesier, you can easily omit the carnitas and double the amount of cheese!
🍗 Other Traeger Recipes
- Smoked Chicken Drumsticks
- Smoked Traeger Carne Asada
- Perfectly Smoked Traeger Prime Rib
- Smoke A Traeger Brisket Like A Boss
- Smoked Pork Loin
- Traeger Smoked Chicken Thighs
🧄 More Smoked Recipes
📖 Recipe
Carnitas Stuffed Smoked Jalapeno Poppers
Ingredients
- 10 large jalapeños
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoon pulled pork rub recipe (divided)
- 2 cups carnitas
- ⅓ cup queso fresco
- 20 slices bacon
Instructions
- Preheat smoker to 225°F using pellets of choice. I like to use hickory. Select Super Smoke if you have that option on your smoker.
- Slice jalapeno peppers in half with a paring knife then remove seeds and membranes. Use a teaspoon to scoop out the seeds.
- Divide carnitas between the peppers and sprinkle with crumbled or grated cotjia cheese. Carefully wrap each popper with one slice of bacon. Secure with a toothpick, if needed. Sprinkle with the remaining pulled pork seasoning.
- Fill the rest of the way with carnitas and sprinkle with crumbled or grated cotjia cheese. Carefully wrap each popper with one slice of bacon and if you need to, secure with a toothpick. Sprinkle with the remaining pulled pork seasoning.
- Arrange the stuffed jalapeños on a tray with a rack so that the smoke can circulate around the stuffed peppers, and the bacon grease can drain. Place on the grill grate and smoke for 30 minutes using super smoke.
- After 30 minutes, turn up the heat to 325°F degrees and smoke for an additional hour or until the bacon is smoked to your liking. I like it crispy.
Notes
- The seeds and membranes hold most of the heat. If you want to retain the pepper's heat, chop the membranes and mix them into the cream cheese filling.
- If you don't have pork rub, just use garlic powder, paprika, and ranch dressing. Since jalapeno peppers are not very hot (in my opinion) you may want to add some cayenne pepper too!
- I don't like to waste food so I sprinkle any cotija cheese that fell from the stuffed jalapeños back onto the bacon-wrapped poppers.
- When working with spicy peppers, it's helpful to wear kitchen gloves to keep the oils off your hands. I like these in particular because they fit snug and are easy to work with.
- Besides eating the carnitas stuffed smoked jalapeño poppers as an appetizer, they can also be served in corn tortillas as tacos!
- Smoked bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers can be chopped and added to a quesadilla or nachos.
- Store leftover smoked jalapeno poppers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- If you prefer your poppers cheesier, you can easily omit the carnitas and double the amount of cheese!
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