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These jalapeño chicken rolls are crispy, cheesy, and FULL of flavor! They are the perfect finger food for your holiday party or any occasion, and I can guarantee everyone will love them.
My inspiration for this dish came from the micro brewery Four Peaks in Tempe, Arizona. They are famous for their award winning amber beer, Kilt Lifter. Aside from the beers, the food is AMAZING. My favorite thing to order is the Arizona Chicken Rolls. It comes with a sweet jalapeno dipping sauce and it is the PERFECT appetizer!
I recreated the recipe and I think I got it pretty damn close. These are a hit when I make them for gatherings, and my husband’s friends always request them.
Ingredients:
- Chicken– you can use a rotisserie chicken if you want to save some time, but I highly recommend making my juicy, flavorful chicken breast for this. You just need seasoned salt, pepper, garlic powder, sour cream, butter, and oil. I use Lawry’s Seasoned Salt. There is a ton of flavor in the pan juices, which is why I recommend this over a rotisserie chicken.
- Spring roll wrappers- egg roll skins and tortillas will also work! But for the best results, I recommend spring roll wrappers.
- Cheese- you need two kinds of cheeses- cream cheese and whatever melting cheese you prefer. Monterey Jack or pepperjack are my usual go-to’s.
- Sweet jalapeño sauce- the chicken roll is very good on its own, but I HIGHLY recommend pairing it with this sauce! It’s not spicy in my opinion, and it has amazing flavor. This would also be a great salad dressing. You’ll need jalapeños, honey, cilantro, sour cream, lime juice, cumin, & salt.
The chicken breast
To make this even faster, you can use a rotisserie chicken instead of making the chicken yourself. However, I can’t guarantee your results if you choose that route.
It will save some time, but my method for cooking chicken breast isn’t difficult and I’m certain you’ll never cook another chicken breast any other way. It is SO flavorful and juicy. And the pan juices are very important in this recipe.
For more details on my method for cooking juicy chicken breast every time, check out my post about it here.
Egg roll wraps, spring roll skins, or flour tortillas?
I used to prefer egg roll wrappers because I have other uses for them, but spring roll skins work very well and make a smoother chicken roll. I have tried making it with flour tortillas as well, and the result was amazing but tasted slightly different- like a flauta.
There are two type of spring roll skins and it is important that you do not confuse them. You want the ones that are used for fried spring rolls and lumpia, not the rice paper kind used for fresh spring rolls.
Instructions for freezing
You can freeze these for later! To freeze, place the uncooked egg rolls on a sheet pan and store in the freezer until frozen solid. Then you can store them in a freezer bag so they won’t stick together.
To reheat, don’t thaw them out. Just fry them like you normally would but for a longer period of time. If you find that the egg roll is browning too much but the center isn’t cooked yet, you can pop them in the air fryer or oven for a few more minutes.
Cheesy Jalapeno Chicken Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast
- 1 tsp Lawry's seasoned salt
- 1/2 tsp Lawry's seasoned pepper, or black pepper + paprika
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp sour cream
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 4 oz monterey jack cheese, or pepperjack
- 8 oz cream cheese, add more if you want it extra creamy
- 2 jalapenos, diced (& deseeded if you don't want it spicy)
- 10 spring roll skins or eggroll wrappers
Sweet Jalapeno Dipping Sauce
- 2 jalapenos, roughly chopped (deseed if you don't want it spicy)
- 1/4 cup cilantro
- 1 lime (juice)
- 1 tbsp honey
- pinch of cumin
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 cup sour cream
Instructions
- Pound the chicken breast to make it even throughout, then season with your favorite seasoned salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. I use Lawry's Seasoned Salt & Lawry's Seasoned Pepper. Then coat the chicken with sour cream. Let rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
- Blend all of the jalapeno dipping sauce ingredients together except for the sour cream. When smooth, fold in the sour cream (mix it in using a spoon or spatula). Do not try to blend it all together- the sour cream will become extremely runny. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- On medium-high heat, sear the chicken breast in 1 tbsp canola oil for a couple minutes.
- Add 1 tbsp butter, flip the chicken over and baste with butter. Cover and reduce heat to low for 7-8 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches near 165 degrees F.
- Remove from pan then let it cool down completely. Don't throw away the pan juices! Side note- this is my favorite way to prepare the juiciest, most flavorful chicken breast!
- Shred the chicken then add a diced jalapeno, monterey jack cheese, and cream cheese into the cooled down pan juices. Add more cream cheese if you want it extra creamy. Make sure you let the chicken cool down enough or the cheese will melt.
- Mix it together thoroughly (in the same pan you cooked the chicken so you keep all the flavorful juices).
- Roll the chicken mix into spring roll wrappers (or egg roll wrappers) and seal with a little water + cornstarch mixture. You can use flour tortillas if you can't find the wrappers. It will taste slightly different (like a flauta) but still delicious.
- Deep fry at 350 degrees F for 1-2 minutes on each side or until golden brown and crispy. *You can also brush with oil and air fry these at 400 degrees F for 4-5 minutes on each side.
- Cool on a wire rack before serving. You can cut them in half or leave them whole. Serve with the sweet jalapeno dip and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made these with wonton wrappers in a muffin tin, other than that I followed the recipe exactly. So much flavor! If you make them as wonton cups just cover the edges with foil if they start to get too dark before the cooking time is up. The sauce is mandatory IMO.
SO excited to make these. How long would you say the dressing stays good for? For example, if I make the dressing 4-6 days before I’m planning on eating them will the dressing still be good?
Yes the dip will be good for at least a week in the fridge 🙂
i cannot wait to make this! ?
i dont have an airfryer though ? what would be the instructions if i used an oven? thanks
I’ve never tried to make them in the oven but I think it would be very similar to an air fryer. Brush the rolls with some vegetable or canola oil, then bake them on a baking sheet with a wire rack on top if you have one. 400 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes, flipping them over once half way through (4-5 minutes in).
This is absolutely amazing. I thought I would have to alter a seasoning or way of cooking the chicken. NOT AT ALL! I used to teach cooking classes at Grover Beach, Ca library. I am self taught. And it’s been years since I have stuck to a recipe that I didn’t have to alter something. Bravo???
these look amazing!!
these sound amazing!!
I made this yesterday, only change was to cut the jalapeño quantity in half, just to be on the safe side. SOOOO good, my family loved it! Next time, I will increase the jalapeño amount. The chicken was amazing, the pan juices were everything you said they would be. I think this would be fantastic on a green salad, maybe combine those pan juices with a little olive oil and vinegar for the dressing. I digress, the jalapeño dipping sauce was easy to make and delicious. I was sad that I couldn’t find spring roll wrappers in my small town, so had to go with wonton wrappers. We had this for dinner, but would be a fantastic appetizer (especially since it can be made ahead, minus the frying), I just need to find smaller, bite sized wrappers. I will make this again!
I’m gluten free- do you think I could modify this with rice paper? Or any other ideas for modifications?
Hi Kaylie, for gluten free chicken rolls try making them with corn tortillas instead. It will taste slightly different- more like a taquito but they will still be delicious especially with the sweet jalapeno dip. Microwave them covered in a damp towel first so they don’t rip when you roll them, then secure with a toothpick or just lay them seam side down. Hope this helps!
so far so good!!! the only thing I change was had garlic power, more salt, and black pepper to the sauce because it was bit to sweet on my end. but everything else is good!!!
I am one of those unlucky people who can’t do cilantro. Is there anything else I could use in the dipping sauce?
Hi Jen! You can totally leave it out- I used to make it without cilantro and it is still very good. Hope this helps!