Jalapeño Popper Chicken Salad
Jalapeño Popper Chicken Salad with bacon & cheese is creamy, spicy & game day ready! Perfect for tailgates, football parties & summer BBQs.
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken about 3 chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2/3 cup mayonnaise
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 6 slices bacon cooked crispy and crumbled
- 3 fresh jalapeños diced (remove seeds to tame heat)
- 3 cloves fresh garlic minced
- 3 green onions chopped
- 1/4 cup red onions chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley diced
- Additional salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prep Chicken: Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Rub chicken breasts with olive oil and salt/pepper liberally. Bake for 30 minutes then shred using your hand mixer hack.
- Mix Base: Beat cream cheese, sour cream and mayo until smooth.
- Chopping: Slice the top off of the jalapeno and then slice in half and using the tip of your knife, remove the ribs and seeds from inside the pepper. Dice small the pepper, along with the fresh garlic. I find adding them together to a small food processor works best for me. Chop the green and red onions by hand.
- Bacon: You can either cook your bacon in a skillet or bake it at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes on a parchment paper lined baking pan .. either is fine just as long as your bacon is crispy. Drain on paper towels before giving it a rough chop.
- Everything Else In: Stir in chicken, cheddar, bacon, jalapeños, garlic, green onions, onion powder and garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste. Save out a bit of the chunky ingredients to 'top off' your chicken salad so its pretty when you serve it :)
- Chill: Refrigerate at least 30 minutes for flavors to meld but overnight is best.
- Serve: Sprinkle reserved chunky ingredients like onions, bacon and cheese on top to dress the salad. Serve with crackers, slider buns, tortilla chips, or lettuce wraps for a football game day chicken salad snack.
Notes
Tips for the Best Chicken Salad Recipe
- Bacon Rules Everything Around Me: Bake bacon for extra crunch & less mess.
- Heat Control: Scrape seeds for mild, keep them for spicy.
- Baking vs. Boiling: If you prefer to boil your chicken instead of baking, simply add your chicken to a big pot of salted boiling water and cook for 15-20 minutes to ensure the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F (74°C) for safe consumption.
- Bacon : Short on time? Perfectly fine to grab pre-cooked bacon pieces from your grocery store and use that instead.
- Jalapeno: Making this the day before gives those jalapenos time to develop their flavor. As written, this recipe has a bit of a kick but perfect for mixed company like tailgate parties and summer bbqs. I always grab an extra jalapeno or two so I can adjust and turn up the heat if needed.
- Make-Ahead Win: This make-ahead chicken salad for parties tastes even better the next day.
- Big Batch Win: Double the recipe for a crowd.. disappears faster than chips in overtime.
- Keep it Cool: Nestle bowl in ice for tailgates.
- Serving Smackdown: Slider buns, crackers, Triscuits (personal favorite), lettuce cups.. everyone wins.
- Shortcut Chicken? Totally Allowed: If you don’t feel like baking chicken, grab a rotisserie chicken from the store. Shred it up and boom.. you just saved yourself 30 minutes and still look like a rockstar.
- Lazy-Girl Shredded Chicken Hack: Use that hand mixer to shred your chicken in seconds. Zero sweat, zero fork blisters.