Baked Crispy Stuffed Jalapeno Poppers (Crab Rangoon Style)
These baked stuffed jalapeno poppers are filled with cheesy crab filling and topped with a crispy sesame, onion topping. East meets West kinda snack with flavors that will tickle your taste buds!
Servings: 24 Poppers
Calories: 75kcal
Ingredients
- 12 large jalapeno
Crab Rangoon Cheese Filling
- ½ small onion (or 3-4 shallots)
- 1 Chinese sausage (Lap Cheong) (Lap Cheong - can be substituted with 2-3 strips of bacon)
- ½ tablespoon honey
- 1 cup cheddar (or any type of cheese, mozzarella will give you a bit more gooey-ness)
- 250 g cream cheese (1 box)
- 6-8 imitiation crab sticks (approximately 1 cup shredded)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon granulated garlic powder (not garlic salt)
Crispy Topping
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- ½ cup Japanese panko bread crumbs
- ¼ cup deep fried onions
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
Instructions
Making the Crispy Topping
- Set the stove to medium heat and add in sesame oil to the frying pan
- Once the oil is hot, add in the sesame seeds and toast it for about 10-15 seconds
- Add in the panko bread crumbs and fried onions and toast it for a few minutes until they are golden brown (keep the bits moving so the sesame seeds don't burn)
- Once it is brown, remove it from the heat and set it aside for topping the jalapeno poppers at the very end.
Preparing and Stuffing the Jalapenos
- Wash the jalapenos and cut them in half length-wise
- Using a spoon, jab into the whites of the jalapeno near the top around the stem and scrape downwards. (I find that is one of the easiest ways to remove all the membranes and seeds without using a knife). Set aside the scraped out jalapenos
- Finely chop the small onion and Chinese sausage and toast it in a frying pan to release the oils and flavours from the sausage and brown the onions. (Approximately 10 minutes)
- Pre-heat the oven to 400F (204C)
- In a small bowl, combine the cheeses, soy sauce, maple syrup, toasted onions and Chinese sausage, shredded crab and garlic powder. Mix well
- Stuff the jalapenos with the cheese and crab stuffing and place it on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
- Roast the jalapeno poppers in the oven for approximately 15 minutes. If you are using smaller jalapenos, roast them for about 12 minutes. (Our goal is to not overcook the poppers. Overcooked jalapenos will release a lot of water and make it soggy. Slightly underdone jalapeno poppers keep their bite and crunch)
- Once it is done roasting, top the jalapenos with the crispy toppings immediately while the cheese is still soft
- Enjoy immediately :)
Notes
- When de-seeding the jalapeno, be careful not to breathe in the spicy fumes around the work area.
- For a slightly spicier jalapeno, don't fully scrape out the white membranes from the jalapenos, only remove the seeds. For a less spicy jalapeno, scrape off the seeds and the white membrane completely.
Nutrition
Serving: 1Popper | Calories: 75kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 104mg | Potassium: 49mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 263IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 1mg