We love to grill around our house, and we love spicy foods from our native Texican cuisine and that of nearby New Mexico.
That said, I have to admit we’ve eaten a lot of jalapeño (and other pepper) poppers over the years, even some back in our pre-Primal/Paleo days that were breaded and deep-fried in the franken oil of the day (dammit).
Like many of you we’ve cleaned up our popper act considerably, and still enjoy them with friends for appetizers and the occasional main course, the most outrageous being a bacon-wrapped, smoked pulled pork and cheddar popper bomb that we served at a party a few years back.
As we lean these days toward more simple preparations (most of the time) that highlight great ingredients, a few days ago I made these Grilled Jalapeño Poppers with Smoked Gouda to accompany an artisanal chicken sausage I’d run across at our favorite market here in the city. Don’t skip adding the fresh ground pepper to the cheese mixture by the way – it adds a great flavor point and interesting texture too.
Hot off the grill, sprinkled with a coarse sea salt, drizzled with fresh lime juice and just a little of a very nice California extra virgin olive oil, and finally sprinkled with fresh cilantro, these were probably the best popper we’ve ever crafted in our kitchen. Gouda is such a wonderful cheese, the smoked version adds a nifty touch, and it’s a great melter.
Many thanks to Chef Libby in Austin; it pays to have a genius friend in the professional kitchen.
18-20 large jalapeño and Fresno chiles
6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 and 1/2 cups smoked Gouda, finely grated
1-2 tsp fresh coarsely ground pepper
Salt to taste
Optional
Fresh cilantro, chopped
Lime quarters
A light drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil
Cut the washed peppers in half lengthwise but leave connected at the stem end; using a grapefruit spoon, scrape out the seeds and membranes from the peppers.
Combine the room-temperature cream cheese and grated Gouda in a bowl; add a little salt and grind in the fresh pepper. Mash it up well, then carefully spoon the filling into the peppers, taking care not to overstuff and closing the peppers back together when they’re full. They’ll hold together better cooking if you throw them in the fridge for an hour or two.
Fire the grill (live fire is best!).
Now place the peppers on the grill over direct heat and cook for at least three minutes per side; you’re looking to soften the peppers and have them begin to brown (charring a little is fine) and have the cheese melt inside.
Pull the peppers, sprinkle with the cilantro, spritz with the fresh lime quarters, and go to it (I like to add a little more coarse salt too!).
Enjoy.
