Jalapeño Popper Chicken with Mash
If you love bold, creamy, slightly spicy comfort food, this jalapeño popper chicken is about to become one of your most cooked dinners. It takes everything people love about jalapeño poppers and turns it into a rich, indulgent skillet meal with crispy chicken skin, a cheesy sauce and just the right kick of heat. This jalapeño popper chicken is perfect for weeknights but impressive enough for guests, and it has quickly become one of my most requested recipes.
Equipment
- Large ovenproof pan
- Pot
Ingredients
- 1 kg chicken thighs with skin on bone removed or remove bone by slicing out
- 1 shallot diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 fresh jalapeños chop 2 and slice the 3rd. (can sub for mild green chillies for slightly different flavour)
- 2 tablespoon cream cheese
- 50 g grated cheddar
- 5 g chopped chives
- 300 ml chicken stock
- Salt and pepper
- 3 bacon rashers
- 80 g spinach chopped
For mash
- 4 large potatoes
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 50 ml milk
To serve,
- Microwaved or baked green beans
Instructions
- Generously salt the chicken on the skin side. Place the chicken skin side down on paper towel to draw out excess moisture, then salt both sides generously. Place the chicken skin side down into a cold ovenproof pan with no oil (if you don't have an ovenproof pan, you can use a normal pan and transfer to an oven dish at the end).1 kg chicken thighs with skin on
- Set the heat to medium and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until the skin is golden, crisp and releases naturally from the pan. Flip and cook the other side for about 5 minutes until cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. Carefully discard most of the excess fat.
- While the chicken cooks, boil the potatoes until tender, then mash with butter and milk until smooth and fluffy once they are done. Cook the bacon until crisp using your preferred method, then chop for sprinkling over the top. In the same pan used for the chicken, add the shallot and chopped jalapeños. Fry for about 2 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.1 shallot, 2 cloves garlic, 3 fresh jalapeños, 3 bacon rashers, 4 large potatoes, 1 tablespoon butter, 50 ml milk
- Stir in the cream cheese until it melts into the vegetables. Pour in the chicken stock and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add the spinach and cheddar and stir until wilted and fully combined.2 tablespoon cream cheese, 50 g grated cheddar, 300 ml chicken stock, 80 g spinach, Salt and pepper
- Nestle the chicken thighs back into the sauce and scatter sliced jalapeños over the top. Heat the grill to high and grill the jalapeño popper chicken for about 5 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and lightly golden on top.
- Serve the jalapeño popper chicken over buttery mash, scatter with crispy bacon and chives, and add green beans on the side.5 g chopped chives, Microwaved or baked green beans
Notes
Always start the chicken in a cold pan. This allows the fat to slowly render out of the skin, which is the key to achieving deeply golden, crisp skin without burning. Rushing this step often leads to uneven browning and chewy skin.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!