Dad’s Pull Apart Jalapeño Cheese Bread (Video)

This pull apart jalapeño cheese bread has been in our family for decades! Soft, cheesy, and a kick of heat. Go ahead and make 2 loaves, you won’t be sorry.

Looking for more savory bread recipes? Try our sausage bread or garlic parmesan breadsticks!

Watch our step by step video!

My dad was a truck driver when I was growing up. He delivered paper products to grocery stores all over Northern California. Sometimes his customers would give him baked goods from the bakeries and this bread was inspired by one of the gifts he received. He has always loved spicy food and really loved the jalapeño cheese bread that he tried.

I remember him coming home one time with a bottle of sliced jalapeños and asked me to make up a batch of bread dough so that he could try re-creating the bread from the store. It was delicious! A moist pull-apart bread that had a nice kick, but wasn’t too spicy. My dad passed away earlier in the year, so every time I make this bread I think about him and the years of selfless sacrifice that he gave up to provide for our family. It’s been 5 years since I first shared this recipe on the blog so I decided it was time to give it a much needed refresh. This one’s for you, Dad.

Pull Apart Jalapeño Cheese Bread

You can bake it in a loaf pan, bundt pan or even a pie pan. That’s our pan of choice. I think it’s the best for the pull apart aspect. Just place it in the center of the table and start snacking! My favorite part about this bread is that crunchy cheese that you get all along the outer layer. SO good.

Start with a basic batch of dough. My favorite go-to bread dough is Amish white bread. I use it for so many recipes including cinnamon swirl bread and apple cinnamon pull apart bread. You can also use a loaf of frozen bread dough (Rhodes).

You’ll also need cheese, a jar of jalapeño peppers (1 12-oz. jar is enough to make 2 loaves of jalapeño bread), and butter. Of course.

Can I make pull apart jalapeño cheese bread with fresh jalapeños?

You’ll definitely want the sliced jalapeños that come in a jar. They are juicy, already cooked, and much better for this recipe. Save those fresh ones for our baked jalapeño poppers or jalapeño egg roll recipe. Give the jalapeños a good chopping so that they are nice and tiny and will be evenly dispersed throughout the bread.

How can you turn any bread recipe into a pull apart bread recipe?

The secret is butter and balls of bread dough. Once these are tossed in melted butter, you can pull them off into sections after baking instead of ending up with a solid loaf that needs to be sliced!

Go ahead an cut the ball of dough into bite sized pieces.

Then melt the butter in the microwave in a large bowl. Once the butter has been melted, add some cheese and chopped jalapeños.

What kind of cheese works best for jalapeño cheese bread?

Shredded Mexican blends, cheddar, or Monterey Jack. I usually stick with a Mexican blend.

Remember those pieces of bread dough? Add them to the bowl and use your hands to toss them around with the jalapeños, butter and cheese. Pour them into a greased (sprayed with non-stick spray) pie pan (or bread loaf pan) and let them rise on the counter for about 30 minutes. They’ll look nice and puffy.

About 15 minutes before they are done with their rise, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Bake the bread for 30 minutes.

How many loaves does this recipe make?

This recipe makes 1 loaf, but a 12-oz. jar of jalapeños is enough for 2 loaves. So go ahead and double the recipe. You’ll thank me later.

Dad's Pull Apart Jalapeño Cheese Bread

This pull apart jalapeño cheese bread has been in our family for decades! Soft, cheesy, and a kick of heat.

4.88 from 8 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 2 hours hours

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 8

Calories: 333kcal

Equipment

• pie pan

Ingredients

• 1 cup warm water
• 2 1/4 teaspoon yeast 1 packet
• 2 Tbsp. white sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 3/4 cup flour
• 1 1/4 cup shredded cheese
• 6 oz. sliced jalapeños chopped (from a jar)
• 1/4 cup butter melted

Instructions

• Let warm water, yeast and sugar proof in a bowl for 5-10 minutes, or until foamy.
• Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time.
• Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth.
• Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth.
• Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
• Cut dough into bite sized pieces.
• Melt butter in microwave. Pour into a large bowl.
• Add cheese and jalapeños.
• Add bread dough pieces and toss with hands until dough is completely coated.
• Place dough into a glass pie pan that has been lightly sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
• Lightly cover with a cloth or piece of plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake bread for 30 minutes.

Notes

I use my Kitchenaid stand mixer to make my dough.

You can make this recipe in muffin tins, loaf pans, a bundt pan or pie pans.

Nutrition

Calories: 333kcal