Carnitas Stuffed Smoked Jalapeno Poppers
These carnitas stuffed smoked jalapeno poppers are easy to prepare and so flavorful! Serve them as appetizers or stuff them in corn tortillas and serve them as tacos!
Servings: 20 poppers
Calories: 188kcal
Ingredients
- 10 large jalapeños
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoon pork rub seasoning, divided (recipe)
- 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.
Video
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!
Nutrition
Serving: 1popper | Calories: 188kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.05g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 482mg | Potassium: 77mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 333IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 1mg