- Jalapeno beef poppers
have been made the same way for years.
We're gonna show you how to elevate your popper game
so you have the best party food on the block.
(upbeat music)
So no surprise we're getting things started here
with some jalapenos,
but here's where our poppers differ.
Instead of half jalapenos served as a boat
with average ingredients,
we're going to dice jalapenos up.
It will all make sense here in a minute.
Remove the inner pith and seeds
or keep some seeds for extra heat.
Then cut long slices
before turning and cutting the jalapenos into a fine dice.
Be careful when cutting peppers with bare hands.
If the peppers have any heat to them,
you'll want to wash your hands right afterwards.
Definitely don't touch near your eyes.
Put the jalapeno in with the star of the show.
I'm using Certified Angus Beef brand ground chuck
for the best beefy flavor.
We'll put in 12 ounces of shredded cheddar,
a little salt,
make sure it's coarse, kosher, or sea salt,
and a little black pepper.
I like to use fresh cracked pepper here.
And finally, we're also putting in a surprise ingredient,
mustard seeds.
These will add some great texture and flavor pop
to our poppers.
Now get everything mixed evenly.
Try to avoid overworking it and warming up the ground beef.
The texture in the popper will be much better
if you gently lift and mix the ingredients
to get things incorporated nicely.
And on to forming our poppers,
use a teaspoon to form little football shapes.
So lift a generous portion with your teaspoon
and use your other hand to form poppers
to a uniform shape.
I'll set them on a sheet tray
and pop them in the refrigerator to firm them up
while I get on to an easy dipping sauce.
We're gonna make a honey-lime cream sauce,
a perfect cool and refreshing dip
to balance the heat of the poppers.
Starting with some sour cream in a bowl,
we're going to add lime in two forms.
Roll the lime with a little force on the cutting board
to get the most juice out of it.
But first, we're gonna zest the lime.
I like to use a microplane to get the zest super fine.
Do that right over the sour cream.
Then cut the lime in half
and juice right into the bowl.
We'll add a couple tablespoons of honey for sweetness,
agave nectar would also work great here.
And finally, we'll chop some fresh cilantro.
Hey, if you're not a fan of cilantro, grab some chives.
Either fresh herb is perfect in this simple dip.
With everything in the bowl,
we can stir things up and set it aside.
Okay, back to our beef poppers,
we're gonna get them ready to fry.
Here's a great insider tip for you,
start by dusting with a little flour.
This will give a little foundation for our crust,
our egg wash will have a little something to hold onto
is the idea.
By sprinkling the flour with a fine screen,
you know like the one you would
with confectioner's sugar on pastries,
you will get an ideal thin layer of flour
rather than clumps.
Roll them around to get all the poppers lightly coated.
Okay, let's get the crust on them.
It's the crunch you crave,
so here's how to make the best crust.
In one bowl, I've got a cup of whisked eggs,
In the second dish,
equal amounts of both panko-style bread crumbs
and regular bread crumbs.
And now we get to breading the flowered poppers.
Working a couple at a time,
go into the egg wash and into the bread crumbs.
Do your best at keeping one hand dry
and only working in the bread crumbs.
Work your way through each popper,
setting the complete ones back on the sheet tray.
Now if you're thinking about frying these in your air fryer,
you can absolutely do that,
all of the prep has been the same up to this point.
If you do, click this video link right here.
So we've got our poppers ready for the traditional method
which is in the deep fryer.
So I've got my oil nice and hot,
for me that's 360 to 375 degrees F.
Be careful as you place them in the pan
to avoid splashing hot oil.
Working in batches of six or eight really works well for me.
Now, I'm using vegetable oil,
but you can also use canola, sunflower, or peanut oil.
Just make sure it's an oil that can handle the high heat,
so one that's got what we call a high smoke point.
So on my first batch of six, my oil was a little hot,
and that's why this darker color.
I had to leave it in longer than I would have liked.
The temperature was perfect on these.
It's a dark golden brown.
That's what I'm looking for.
Poppers.
As soon as I bit into it,
the crunch was there.
I crave that.
Flavor, cheesy jalapeno, beef forward,
I'm a fan.
Ooh, I forgot to dip it in the cool,
the cool lime-cilantro.
I would dive into a basket of these.
They're seriously that good.
As soon as these get plated,
hands are going in and they're gonna be gone fast,
perfect balance, love it.
I have to say, the frying technique, traditionally,
gives me that crisp that I'm looking for.
This is a beef popper
that you're gonna love making yourself.
Be sure to like and subscribe
and we'll see you next time
here in the Test Kitchen at Certified Angus Beef.
(upbeat music)