Jalapeño Cheese Bites Deep Fried Appetizer

These jalapeno cheese bites make a delicious appetizer recipe perfect for game day gatherings, family get-togethers or for a midday snack. Loaded with flavor, these cheese bites are crunchy on the outside and ooey, gooey, cheesy on the inside.

One of my favorite things to make at home is party food. I am so excited about all of the holidays coming up because festive eats are so much fun to make and to eat. The best party foods are the ones you can go to year-round for any occasion from game night to girls’ night.

No matter how many friends and family you invite, you’ll want to have plenty of bite-size morsels like these phenomenal Jalapeno Cheese Bites. These are not a jalapeno popper bites recipe. All you need to do is add bacon to the mix for those. These are a totally unique appetizer that gives some added kick to an already amazing fried cheese ball. This version of the cheese and jalapeno classic is easy to make and irresistible to all who come to the party.

An Easy Go-To Party Recipe

I love these jalapeno cheese bites because they work for every occasion. It doesn’t matter if it’s a book club, a viewing party, or a holiday family gathering. Whatever social event you have planned. This spicy and cheesy appetizer is bound to make it a success.

Unlike jalapeno poppers, this recipe incorporated the pepper into the cheese for a whole different end product. That means it’s much easier to make since you don’t have to apply the cheese to each slice of jalapeno. Instead, all you have to do is quickly dice all of your jalapenos and incorporate them into a cheesy mixture that you can then roll in balls.

The streamlined process means that you can get more done at a faster rate which is amazing whenever you are up against it trying to prepare for a big event in your own home. Since jalapeno cheese bites are not made with seasonal ingredients, you can use them any time of year, but you can also add tweaks whenever you want the appetizer to be more festive. Cranberry sauce makes a great addition to the recipe without altering the jalapeno cheese bites at all.

Fried to Perfection

As with any truly incredible appetizer, these sensational jalapeno cheese bites are fried in oil. You can use an air fryer, but depending on the one you have at home, it could yield lackluster results and make the task of cooking more difficult. Since this is such an easy go-to recipe, it would be a shame to add extra work in dealing with the capacity of your air fryer.

Air fryers do a good job of cooking and crisping, but they also don’t do the same job that oil will. So keep in mind that even if you are able to make an air fryer work. It probably won’t taste the same. The same goes for ovens. Although capacity won’t be an issue. It takes a lot to heat up an oven. Frying takes only a short time to get every ball evenly cooked to a beautiful golden brown. Plus, you won’t get any flat ones!

Frying Jalapeno Cheese Bites in a Skillet

When you fry your jalapeno cheese bites, it’s very important that you heat the oil to the right temperature and always exercise caution when submerging your food in hot oil. The temperature should be 375 degrees Fahrenheit to achieve the best results. Watch out for splashing hot oil. It really helps to use the right tools and to protect your hands if possible by using gloves as you work near the oil. Use tongs to flip the balls over to finish cooking, then use a slotted spoon to lift and drain the jalapeno cheese bites before transferring them to a plate lined with paper towels.

If you have a deep fryer, You don’t have to worry about any of that. I love dropping it down and letting it do its business. However, you may simply use a deep skillet. When frying in a skillet, this is all stuff you should do for safety’s sake and to achieve the best results.

The Breading

You may or may not know how meticulous I can be about my batter. I fry a lot of food and I know how to do good breading. The thing is. This job can get messy if you don’t go in with a plan. So do your prep work and make sure you stay focused on what hand does what. you are going to be an assembly line of one so give each hand a dry or a wet task and stick to it. Otherwise, you wind up with buttermilk in your flour and that is not a good situation to find yourself in when you still have cheese balls to coat.

The flour will be your first container followed by the buttermilk and egg mixture in the second container. The third container will be the breadcrumbs and seasoning mix. After you roll up your jalapeno and cheese mixture into balls, carefully coat them in flour, then into the buttermilk mixture before covering in the dry breadcrumb mixture. The thing that I love best about the recipe for the breadcrumb mixture is the Slap Ya Mama. It’s a special seasoning that brings even more kick to the jalapeno flavor. If you do this part too fast, I promise you will get into a pickle. Don’t hesitate to stop and wash your hands if flour starts sticking to them from the milk and egg.

Freezer Food

This recipe works best as a freezer food. That means you use the freezer to help the jalapeno cheese bites retain their shape. Rather than throwing them immediately into the deep fryer, you are supposed to freeze them on a baking sheet. Then you take them out whenever you are ready to cook them. I love this method because it allows you to do all the heavy lifting in advance. You have all the convenience of frozen food when it is time to finally do the cooking.

Freezing your prepped food in advance is a great way to have simple, easy to cook meals later on. This is an especially good strategy when you are hosting a big event because other stresses often pop up at the last minute and you don’t need more things to do like make fresh party platters. This way, you make them and freeze them with plenty of time to spare and then fry them up minutes before your guests arrive.

Flash freezing is definitely recommended before frying so the cheese bites keep their round shape.

Jalapeno Cheese Bites Ingredients

• Sharp cheddar cheese
• Pepper Jack cheese or Monterey Jack cheese
• Whipped cream cheese
• Jalapeno peppers
• All purpose flour
• Buttermilk
• Eggs
• Panko breadcrumbs
• Garlic salt
• Slap Ya Mama® seasoning
• Pepper
• Paprika
• Vegetable oil

How to Make Jalapeno Cheese Bites

Step-by-step Instructions

1. Heat oil to 375°.
2. Set up your dredging station suing three shallow bowls or containers, add flour to the first container.
3. Whisk buttermilk and eggs together in the second container.
4. In the second container, whisk breadcrumbs, garlic salt, slap ya mama, pepper and paprika until combined.
5. In a medium bowl, add cream cheese, both types of cheese and diced jalapeños. Mix together.
6. Form cream cheese mixture into 1 inch balls and place on a foil lined baking sheet.
7. Roll cheese bites in flour, a few at a time.
8. Dip each cheese bite into buttermilk mixture then coat completely in bread crumbs mixture.
9. Place coated cheese balls back on baking sheet.
10. Flash freeze the for 30-45 minutes.
11. Remove from freezer and deep fry until golden brown.

Try These delicious Cheese Bites Today

Looking for more delicious appetizer recipes?

• Spinach Artichoke Dip
• 7 Layer Bean Dip
• Soft Pretzel Bites

And how about these delicious Smoked Stuffed Mushrooms you might enjoy from our friend Karin over at Kitchen Divas.

Here are a few pics that are perfect to save to your favorite Pinterest boards.