JALAPENO POPPERS

I LOVE LOVE LOVE THESE...

Fresh jalapeños halved and stuffed with cream cheese, coated in light crispy panko breadcrumbs and deliciously deep fried crispy and golden, then that first bite that delivers a hot crispy breaded green clean fresh jalapeño and hot creamy oozing cheese, it’s worth the almost burnt lip and tongue just to devour these immediately after cooking!  These poppers go down too well always a huge guaranteed hit with my family and friends, I clearly never make enough, even when I know I do ! there are never any left for that middle of the night fridge calling just knowing they’re in there needing to be devoured.

Prep time 20 minutes / Cooking time 5 minutes per batch / 4 batches

Ingredients 

(makes 20)

10 green or red whole fresh jalapeños

2 tubs Philadelphia cream cheese

1 box panko breadcrumbs

3 eggs beaten

300g plain flour

1 tsp Himalayan sea salt 

1/2 tsp black pepper

2 ltr vegetable or nut oil for frying

First set up your dipping station, three bowls one for the eggs, one for the panko and one for the flour, salt and pepper.  Halve the jalapenos, scoop out the seeds and pith and place in a large bowl, add the cream cheese to the seeds and mix well, for less of a chilli hit don’t add the seeds.  Using a teaspoon over fill each half jalapeño with the cream cheese mix. 

Now your ready to coat the poppers, keeping one hand for wet and one hand for dry, dip the poppers in the egg mix first then in to the seasoned flour, now sometimes the next second stage of coating wants to fall off the jalapenos if this happens place the first coated jalapenos in the fridge for 30 minutes, then when you dip the poppers in to the next stage of egg mix and then into the panko breadcrumbs this layer of covering will stick, I speak from experience here!

Heat your oil to 180 degrees C, fry the jalapeños in batches of five so as not to over load the fryer, this zap’s the heat from the oil and the poppers will absorb more of the oil giving them a greasy not crunch crispy finish.

Drain on paper roll for a couple of minutes then serve hot/warm, these are just perfect all on their own.