Jalapeno Popper Chicken Chili
3 Comments Jan 09, 2023
Updated Nov 17, 2025
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Slow Cooker Jalapeno Popper Chicken Chili has great flavor thanks to the combination of ground chicken, bacon, fire roasted tomatoes, and a few other pantry staple ingredients. This chili recipe is absolutely delicious and the perfect meal for a nice chilly day (no pun intended).
Featured Comment
We love this! We do it without the onions and only 4 ounces of cream cheese.
– Karen
I have perfected this jalapeno popper chicken chili recipe! The amount of jalapenos, mixed with the creaminess, is a decadent dream! It almost tastes like a game day dip (which we often serve with chips.
You may also want to try my Jalapeno Popper Chicken, or my Jalapeno Popper Dip!
Key Ingredients
Ground Chicken: I brown this with ranch seasoning, and it gives the chili the BEST flavor. Ground turkey works great too.
Bacon: A little smoky bacon goes a long way and makes every bite better.
Fire-Roasted Tomatoes & Tomato Sauce: These build a rich, bold base without any extra work.
Cream Cheese: My secret for a creamy, dreamy chili that feels extra cozy.
Jalapeños & Onion: Fresh jalapeños bring the heat, and the onions cook down until perfectly soft.
White Beans: They add heartiness and help the chili feel nice and full.
Chili Powder & Cumin: Simple spices that tie everything together.
How to Make Jalapeno Popper Chili
- Crisp the bacon and brown the ranch-seasoned chicken.
- Dump everything into the crockpot — half the bacon, all the jalapeños, beans, tomatoes, and cream cheese.
- Let it slow cook until thick, creamy, and bubbly.
- Stir it all together so the cream cheese melts right in.
How to Serve this Chili
- As-is: Jalapeno popper chicken chili can be served as is in a bowl. The flavors are enough to enjoy by themselves.
- Toppings: Of course, chili toppings can always help enhance the flavor. For this chili, consider adding shredded cheese, sour cream, fresh diced tomato, chopped cilantro, drained kernel corn, and extra chopped jalapenos.
- Dippers: Although this is chili, it’s not very runny at all, meaning you can serve it with tortilla chips, corn chips, or even oyster crackers.
Recipe FAQs
Sure! You can substitute the chicken for ground beef, shredded chicken breasts, rotisserie chicken, or ground turkey.
Any kind of bean will go well in this recipe. Red beans, cannelloni beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, and black beans are all great substitutes or additions.
Add extra ingredients such as green peppers, diced acorn squash, or corn.
Of course! You could always add more sliced jalapenos in addition to crushed red pepper, spicy green chiles, or spicy chili seasoning.
Add any remaining chili to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat on the stovetop over medium low heat until warmed throughout.
Jalapeno Popper Chicken Chili Recipe
How to Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb. bacon, (divided after being cooked)
- 1 lb. ground chicken
- 1 oz. ranch seasoning packet
- 3 jalapenos, diced, seeds and all
- 1 cup sweet yellow onion, (a small onion)
- 15 oz. fire-roasted tomatoes
- 15 oz. tomato sauce
- 15 oz. cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 Tbsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 8 oz. cream cheese, cubed (use Philidelphia brand for best results)
For serving (optional)
- cooked bacon (from above)
- sliced jalapenos
- tortilla chips or cornbread
- cilantro
- shredded cheese
Instructions
- Slice the bacon into inch sized pieces. Cook on the stove top. Drain the bacon on paper towels. Set aside.
- Wipe out your pan if needed and add the ground chicken. Cook until browned then add the ranch seasoning mix and stir.
- Add the ranch flavored chicken, HALF of the bacon (saving the other half in the fridge for serving later), the jalapenos, onion, diced tomatoes, beans, tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin powder, and cubed cream cheese to the slow cooker.
- Stir.
- Cook for 4 hours on high or 6-7 on low. This may seem like a lot of cooking time, but it really takes this long to get the onions tender and all the flavors to meld.
- Stir, serve and enjoy. Top each bowl with the reserved bacon, jalapenos and cilantro if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More Slow Cooker Chili Recipes
Slow Cooker Turkey Chili, Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili, V8 Chili are all great choices when you want something easy and flavorful.
Cowboy Chili and Crockpot Venison Chili bring a hearty, meaty twist for chili night.
If you prefer something lighter, Sweet Chili Chicken, White Chicken Chili, or a classic Slow Cooker Chili always hit the spot.
We love this! We do it without the onions and only 4 ounces of cream cheese.
That is wonderful to hear! SO glad you tried this recipe.
Our new weekly favorite!! We do it without the bacon and it’s amazing!