Firecracker Chicken Wraps with Dip
Crispy Firecracker Chicken Wraps deliver everything you love in a restaurant appetizer, including the dip, in a homemade copycat recipe. Make them for lunch, dinner, or party food and you can’t go wrong! One bite and you’ll swear you ordered it off a restaurant appetizer menu.
These chicken wraps take a creamy, cheesy chicken filling loaded with peppers and spices, wraps it burrito-style in a flour tortilla, and fries it until the outside is crisp and golden while the inside stays melty. Served with a bright avocado-lime dip for scooping, it’s the kind of appetizer that disappears fast at a party.
This is a great way to use up leftover cooked chicken! When my kids head back to college I always seem to have leftover chicken and I’m always looking for ways to use it up.
The filling can be made a day or two ahead, so most of the work can be done well in advance of frying the wraps. And don’t tell anyone but the filling makes a tasty dip too. Shhhhh
What You Need To Make Firecracker Chicken Wraps
The ingredient looks long but most of it is pantry staples. The rest of the ingredients are endlessly flexible, you can swap them with other ingredients, as long as you have cream cheese to bind it together and it tastes good to you. These wraps are a nice way to use up leftovers from taco night!
- Cooked Chicken
- Cream cheese, softened
- Monterey Jack cheese
- Red bell pepper
- Jalapeño
- Green onions
- Chili powder
- Garlic powder
- Smoked paprika
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Flour tortillas
- Vegetable oil
- Romaine lettuce
- Tomatoes
- Avocado
- Sour cream
- Lime juice
- Cilantro
Notes On The Recipe
Swap in pepper jack cheese instead of Monterey Jack for a little extra heat. Alternatively you can leave the jalapeño out entirely for a milder version. In our house half would be flaming hot and the other half would be mild.
You can sub in cooked ground beef or shredded pork work in place of chicken if that’s what you have on hand. Just taste the filling before wrapping and rolling to make sure you like the taste. You should do that anyway since taste is subjective.
For a lighter version, these can be baked at 400°F instead of fried, brushed lightly with oil and turned halfway through, though the texture won’t be quite as crisp.
Air frying will work as well, spray or brush with oil, and air fry at 400°F until the outside is crispy and in the inside is hot. You may need to reduce the heat if your wraps are browning too quickly. This will really depend on your air fryer as cooking times vary wildly depending on the style of air fryer you own.
Party Food!
These make excellent party snacks all on their own but you could serve them with cheeseburger dip or crab cakes for a bigger party spread. Add a homemade salsa or a cheesy rotel dip to the table and you’ve got a party almost ready to roll. You just need drinks so grab a rhubarb lemonade or whatever tickles your fancy and let’s go!
Got Leftovers?
Store cooled wraps in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven or air fryer to bring back the crisp exterior, the microwave will leave them soft.
The avocado-lime dip is best made fresh, but if needed it can be stored airtight with plastic wrap pressed directly onto the surface for up to a day.
Firecracker Chicken Wraps
Ingredients
Wraps
- 2 cups cooked chicken finely chopped or shredded
- 4 oz cream cheese softened
- 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese shredded
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper diced
- 1 jalapeño seeded and finely diced
- 2 green onions thinly sliced
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 4 burrito size flour tortillas
- Vegetable oil for frying
- 2 cups romaine lettuce shredded
- 1 cup tomatoes diced
Avocado Lime Dip
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp cilantro chopped
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1-2 tbsp water as needed
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the chicken, cream cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, red bell pepper, jalapeño, green onions, chili powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and black pepper
- Stir until thoroughly mixed.
- The filling should be creamy and hold together
- Divide the filling evenly among the tortillas, placing it slightly below the center of each tortilla
- Fold in the sides and roll tightly like a burrito
- Add about 1 inch of oil to a large skillet and heat to 350°F
- Fry the wraps seam side down first for 2-3 minutes per side, turning carefully, until golden brown and crisp.
- Transfer to a paper towel lined plate.
- For the dip, blend the avocado, sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, garlic powder, and salt until smooth.
- Add water as needed to reach a creamy dipping consistency
- Arrange the lettuce and tomatoes on a serving platter
- Slice each wrap in half on the diagonal and place over the vegetables
- Serve immediately with the avocado lime dip
Video
Notes
- For an even closer restaurant style texture, chop the chicken very finely rather than shredding it.
- Pepper Jack cheese can be substituted for Monterey Jack for extra heat.
- The filling can be prepared up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerated until ready to assemble and fry.
