Stuffed Jalapeños

Name: Stuffed Jalapeños
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 35 min
Ingredients: 14 jalapeños (seeded); 3/4 cup ricotta; 1 egg (can leave out ); salt to taste; 1/2 cup grated parmigiano; 1 cup marinara (or as much as you like); 1/2 cup grated mozzarella (or as much as you like)

By Snejana Andreeva

on Jun 28, 2021, Updated May 14, 2024

5 stars from 1 review

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These Stuffed Jalapeños are my mom’s very accidental creation. She had some extra mixture left over from making eggplant rolls and the idea struck! The combination of mozzarella, ricotta and parmigiana are absolutely 😋 drool-worthy. These were absolutely the most delicious 🌶️ jalapeños I have ever had and I knew I couldn’t keep them a secret for much longer. If you are a lover of jalapeños, you will go to heaven and back with this recipe.

Why You’ll Love Stuffed Jalapeños
How to Prepare
Nonna’s Tip 🫑
Variations and Substitutions for Stuffed Jalapeños
Similar Recipes
Best Served With
Common Questions
Stuffed Jalapeños Recipe

A fork lifts a stuffed jalapeno filled with ricotta cheese and topped with marinara sauce and melted cheese from a white plate. More jalapeno pieces are visible on the plate, with additional servings in a dish in the background.

Why You’ll Love Stuffed Jalapeños

These are just like jalapeno poppers, Mediterranean-style! The Stuffed Jalapeños are the perfect little bite with the best combination of flavors: creamy and tangy ricotta, salty parm and melty mozzarella. The 🔥 kick from the jalapeños is cooled down by all the creamy cheese. The 🍅 tomato sauce brightens it all up with just the right amount of sweetness. Perfect for game day, as a side dish or fun party appetizer!

How to Prepare

🔥 Start by preheating your oven to 400F (200C).

🔪 Meanwhile, wash and cut the ends of the jalapeños and discard the seeds with a knife or a spoon.

A wooden board with fresh green peppers, surrounded by bowls of ingredients: ricotta cheese, tomato sauce, sugar, shredded cheese, and breadcrumbs.

Top view of six green peppers lined up on a wooden cutting board. Accompanied by a knife, and ingredients like ricotta cheese, tomato sauce, and an egg in small bowls nearby, on a marble surface.

🧑‍🍳 Use a rotary cheese grater to grate your parmesan and a box grater to grate the mozzarella.

🥣 Now, to a separate bowl add the ricotta, parm, egg, salt and then mix together.

🍅 Take a baking dish and add marinara sauce to cover the bottom (we used our own homemade sauce but you can use any store bought like Rao’s)

A bowl containing ricotta cheese, grated Parmesan, and an egg yolk on a marble countertop. Surrounding it are broken eggshells, a gold spoon, a white empty bowl, and a plate with green vegetables.

A bowl of creamy mixture with a spoon on a marble surface, surrounded by halved green jalapeños, empty eggshells, a bowl of red sauce, a bowl of grated cheese, and an empty white bowl.

🥄 Take each jalapeño and with a tiny spoon or a piping bag add ricotta mixture to each one making sure you push it down gently.

🌶️ Add them all to your baking dish, then top with more marinara and some mozzarella.

🌡️ Lastly, bake at 400F (200C) for 35-40 minutes or until nice and melted and the peppers are soft but still have a bite to them. Enjoy.

A plate of green jalapenos filled with cheese, ready for baking. A bowl of tomato sauce and grated cheese are nearby on a marble countertop. The peppers are neatly arranged in two rows.

White oval dish with green peppers stuffed and topped with tomato sauce. A small bowl of shredded cheese is in the top left corner. The dish rests on a light marble surface.

Nonna’s Tip 🫑

If you can’t handle any heat, then stuff mini bell peppers instead of jalapeños.

Four green jalapenos are arranged neatly on a white plate, topped with melted cheese and placed on a bed of red sauce. A fork and knife are set nearby, with fresh cherry tomatoes and a glass of water in the background.

Variations and Substitutions for Stuffed Jalapeños

You can leave out the 🥚 egg if you are intolerant.
Feel free to use any 🍅 marinara like Rao’s which is clean in ingredients. I use my homemade Italian Tomato Sauce.
Sometimes I like to add fresh herbs, such as 🌿 basil or parsley, to the filling mixture.
If you can’t handle any heat then stuff mini 🫑 bell peppers instead of jalapeños.

Similar Recipes

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Feta Cheese Olives

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Bacon Wrapped Dates

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Bulgarian Stuffed Peppers

1 hr 20 mins

Italian Stuffed Artichokes

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Stuffed Zucchini Boats

55 mins

Best Served With

Serve these Stuffed Jalapeños game-day style with Garlic Parmesan Wings, nachos and 🍕 pizza.
Serve these as a fun side dish along with your main protein such as baked Baked Parmesan Chicken.
As an appetizer along with my 🍤 Creamy Coconut Shrimp, a cheeseboard, and Calamari.

Common Questions

can I make this recipe even if I don’t like spice?

For some people, simply removing the seeds and inner membranes in the Stuffed Jalapeños is enough. If you can’t handle any spice at all (or serving to children), simply use mini bell peppers instead of jalapeños.

What type of marinara do you use in these Stuffed Jalapeños?

I always use my family’s homemade Italian Tomato Sauce. If you don’t have homemade sauce, select a jarred variety that uses minimal, clean ingredients, such as Rao’s.

What type of parmesan cheese do you use?

I buy the highest quality Parmigiano Reggiano I can. It will always taste better than the canned or pre-grated options. I like to grate it myself using this cheese grater.

How do you stuff the peppers without making a mess?

Once you get the hang of it, you can fill these Stuffed Jalapeños with a little espresso spoon. Otherwise, for the most precision, I like to put the mixture into a piping bag and squeeze the filling into each pepper that way.

can I make this recipe dairy-free?

I think you would absolutely be able to swap in your favorite non-dairy cheeses into this recipe, however, try to choose creamier cheeses that will melt in the oven nicely.