This quick and easy air fryer stuffed chicken breast wrapped with bacon and a cream cheese center are amazing for dinner! Make this spicy or mild Ninja Foodi chicken or any other brand tonight and enjoy!
The thought of air fryer stuffed chicken breast just makes my mouth water thinking about them. Well, anything with bacon and cream cheese is just amazing, and the idea of frying it without any oil is a game changer too. If you too love easy air fryer recipes you’re going to drool over these chicken breasts. (originally published 7/19, affiliate links present)
Air Fryer Stuffed Chicken
Ok so I am obsessed with my Ninja Foodi at the moment, though I do have 2 other electric air fryers and any brand will do. 😉 Honestly I rotate according to whichever is clean or happens to be on my countertop at the time.
This one has a lot of variations to it. If you want to make it as directed with a stuffed jalapeno and cream cheese it is out of this world delicious. I wouldn’t say it is way too hot if you remove all the seeds but there are also milder varieties you could choose.
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- My Favorite Air Fryer is a Cosori or for a dual machine, the Foodi.
- You can find more easy air fryer recipes here, we have Ninja Foodi recipes as well; bookmark them both!
- This is the best air fryer cookbook. It’s important to know and remember how to preheat air fryer for best results.
- Here’s a printable free air fryer cooking time chart here for your fridge.
- It has temp. and times for making the best frozen foods for air fryer too.
- Then join our Facebook page below where you can share and find more ideas you’ll love.

Air Fry Stuffed Chicken Breast
You can make regular air fryer fried chicken breasts but stuffing them with cream cheese and wrapping the bacon around it just makes them go from great to out of this world.
If you don’t like heat at all just leave the jalapenos out entirely. Remember that the seeds are what will really get your mouth on fire. So if you want something more medium then just ensure those are all out. Dice finely instead of leaving whole and give that a whirl too.

Air Fryer Stuffed Chicken Breast Wrapped in Bacon
You really could use thighs if they were rather large boneless if you wanted to. The thinner your pieces whether white or dark meat the faster it will cook thru.
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Cream cheese
- Bacon – I prefer that they’re NOT thick slices
- Cheese
- Jalapenos
- Seasoning
- Meat tenderizer
- Plastic wrap
- Toothpicks may be needed to secure bacon
Cooked in the air fryer basket of your machine the cooking time is short at just 20 minutes! Of course always use a meat thermometer and remove toothpicks before putting dinner on the table. I’m telling you, golden brown air fried chicken is the bomb!

If you’ve never tenderized chicken it is quite easy.
- You just use a sharp knife to butterfly the chicken breasts in half lengthwise
- Put it flat in between plastic wrap
- Use mallet to hit it so it’s flatter
- This helps make the meat more tender, you’ll get juicy chicken every time
How do you tenderize chicken breast without a mallet?
Slice and put in between plastic wrap or inside a freezer bag sealed, then:
- Roll over with a rolling pin
- Hit it with the back of a saucepan or cast iron skillet
- Roll on top with a can of tomatoes
- Smash inside a cookbook or tortilla press

Then you’re going to season your meat with salt and pepper. Now mix your room temperature cream cheese, cheese and cumin in a bowl until smooth. Jalapenos need to be prepared at this time. It is the same process as preparing stuffed jalapenos, but this time you’re going to use the whole thing and put it inside your chicken.
Should you seed jalapenos?
- Generally smaller and brighter peppers are hotter
- You need to decide if you want the seeds or not, meaning how much heat are you prepared for?
The seeds and inner membranes hold the most heat so the more of those you remove will adjust the heat level down.

Stuffed Chicken Air Fryer
Once you’ve removed all the inners you want you’re going to spoon your cream cheese mixture inside of both halves, then put them back together. Now slide them into the middle of your flattened chicken breast and roll it up so it is like a little package.
The bacon wrapped outside comes next. I prefer Hickory smoked regular slices as opposed to thick slices. Thicker ones are tough to wrap around well, and sometimes don’t get as crispy. Use toothpicks to secure if necessary. Now it’s time to put your stuffed chicken breasts in the air fryer basket! Do not overlap them for optimal results.
- Cook at 340 degrees for 20-25 minutes depending on the thickness of the breasts.
- When done ensure the inside of the chicken is at 165 degrees for safety.
- an instant read thermometer is convenient to have for this
If you want an EXTRA crispy outside spray some olive oil on the top and raise temp. to 400 degrees for the last few minutes. Allow them to rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing to maintain juiciness.

Ninja Foodi Stuffed Chicken
Next try our air fryer chicken parmesan or air fryer frozen chicken wings recipe. Here are more air fryer chicken breast recipes. Printable instructions to make bacon wrapped stuffed chicken breasts is below.

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Air Fryer Stuffed Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts boneless, skinless, pounded flat
- 6 jalapenos if you want heat
- 3/4 c cream cheese softened
- 1/2 c cheese monterey jack
- 1 tsp cumin
- 9 strips bacon
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Slice chicken breasts in half so they are thinner, then put half under plastic wrap and pound to 1/8" thickness. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.
- In a bowl mix together softened cream cheese, jack cheese and cumin.
- Remove stems from jalapenos, cut each one in half and remove all seeds and membranes.
- Stuff inside of each jalapeno half with cream cheese mixture, then put halves back together.
- Put one jalapeno inside each chicken breast and fold chicken around it.
- Wrap 2-3 slices of bacon around the chicken, securing with toothpicks. Put inside your air fryer basket.
- Cook at 340 degrees for 20-25 minutes flipping halfway through, timing depends on thickness of chicken.
- When golden brown check internal temp. once chicken is removed to ensure it is at 165 degrees.
- Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before slicing and/or serving. Remove toothpicks before serving.
Video

Susie
Thursday 28th of January 2021
Can you use chicken thighs instead of chicken breast?
Marcia Evans
Tuesday 8th of December 2020
This is the worst organized blog site I've ever seen! Circular links take you round and round and you can never just find a recipe.
Don't be concerned that you didn't sell me anything, I clicked enough links that your sponsors will pay you for the clickbait. I'll never return.
Joe
Thursday 3rd of November 2022
@Marcia Evans, wow I know how you feel but dang. I don’t think they care if you ever come back. I love this app have made so many recipes from it and all gave came out delicious. Good luck in your future endeavors.
Chelsie
Thursday 3rd of September 2020
I've been making a similar dish for years and have never made it keeping the jalapeno kind of whole like this. My boyfriend loved it! I'm so glad i looked up a recipe using the foodi. Thank you!
The Typical Mom
Friday 4th of September 2020
So glad it was a hit!
Danna
Wednesday 20th of May 2020
This was will look good. Even my picky husband loved it. Temp was spot on. Only thing I would add is use butcher string. Toothpicks make it hard to turn these over in the basket. I adapted the recipe. Used chive cream cheese and pepper jack. Weirdly it tasted lemony which we loved. No idea why. Delicious, thank you!
The Typical Mom
Thursday 21st of May 2020
So glad!!
Irina
Saturday 29th of February 2020
Made it tonight. OMG! This chicken breast wrapped in bacon is becoming our new favorite. Yummy and delicious! It was worth spending some time to make this meal.