Name: Jalapeño Popper Rice
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Ingredients: 3 C prepared rice; 1 tsp kosher salt; 1/2 tsp black pepper; 2 C cheddar cheese (shredded); 1 1/2 C monterey jack cheese (shredded); 1 1/2 C Hood Sour Cream; 1 C jarred jalapeños (drained and roughly chopped); 1/4 C bread crumbs (seasoned); 1 T olive oil; Cooking spray

This post was sponsored by Hood as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.

If you love the spicy yet creamy flavors of jalapeño poppers, you're going to love this Jalapeño Popper Rice side dish recipe.

This rice dish is wonderful. You can expect some heat but not too much heat. It pairs well with grilled chicken but I'd imagine it would go well next to pork chops or even a steak. You could make it a full meal if you toss some pre-cooked chicken into the mixture as well.

Did I mention this dish can be ready in about a half hour? Yeah, there's that too!

Obviously, this dish is a play on jalapeño poppers. Although I have used most of the same ingredients as a jalapeño popper, I have changed it up a little.

The Ingredients

*not pictured - breadcrumbs

Rice - You can use either instant rice or traditional white rice. I prefer to use instant when I want to keep the cook time at about a half hour. If I have longer to prepare I opt for the traditional rice.

Jarred jalapeños - The sliced jarred ones are easier to work with. No precooking them to soften etc. They're ready to go. It's fun to use freshly sliced jalapeños for a garnish but it's not necessary.

Cheese - I used both cheddar and Monterey Jack. I love the way Monterey Jack melts. More on the cheese below.

Hood Sour Cream is where we are getting that smooth creamy texture. I stick with Hood because their sour cream is made with Hood Milk and cream. The farmers who make these products do not use artificial growth hormones and that is important to me. What can I say, I like to feed my family only the best!

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Breadcrumbs - To give this dish the real jalapeño popper feel, I top the dish off with breadcrumbs since traditionally poppers are breaded. In order to get the crumbs nice and crispy in the oven I just toss them with a little bit of olive oil. You could also use butter if you really want to go the extra mile.

Let's Talk Cheese

I mentioned above that I use both cheddar & Monterey Jack. Here's the deal, cheese melts better when you grate it yourself from the block. The bagged cheeses contain anti-caking agents that can sometimes hinder the melting process. I'm not against bagged cheese in all recipes. As a matter of fact, I use it, just not when I want a good melt factor.

You can also play around with the cheese variety. You can use all cheddar or a cheddar-jack, maybe even toss a little mozzarella in the mix. Make it your own by switching around the cheeses.

Preparing Jalapeno Popper Rice

Prepare the rice (instant or traditional).

Stir together Hood Sour Cream, cheeses (reserving 1 C for topping), jalapeños, salt and pepper.

Stir the rice into mixture.

Spread mixture into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Stir together breadcrumbs and oil. Top with breadcrumb mixture.

Bake in oven for 20 minutes. Garnish with sliced jalapeños or green onions if desired and serve.

Look at that CHEESE!

Visit Hood.com/recipes to find more delicious recipes ideas