Roasted poblano peppers are stuffed with Monterey Jack cheese, sautéed onion and tomato, coated in a light egg batter and fried until golden. The rellenos are then briefly simmered in a homemade California chile sauce before being baked until hot.
Servings: 8 rellenos
Prep Time: About 45 minutes, plus resting time for the chiles
Cook Time: About 45 minutes
Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients:
- 7 dried California chiles
- 2 tomatoes
- 2–4 cups water
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- ½ tablespoon all-purpose flour
Instructions:
- Place the California chiles and tomatoes in a medium saucepan and add enough water to cover, approximately 2–4 cups.
- Bring to a boil. Just before the water reaches a boil, add the garlic.
- Once boiling, turn off the heat, cover and allow the chiles and tomatoes to steep for 1–2 hours.
- Place the salt and oregano in a blender. Add the softened chiles, tomatoes, garlic and cooking liquid. Blend thoroughly until smooth.
- Heat the canola oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Add the flour and stir constantly for about 1 minute to make a light roux.
- Strain the blended chile mixture directly into the pan, pressing it through the strainer to remove the chile skins and seeds.
- Cook over medium heat until the sauce reaches a gentle boil and begins to thicken. Reduce the heat as necessary and keep warm while preparing the rellenos.
Chiles Rellenos
Ingredients:
- 8 poblano peppers
- 1 pound Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
- ½ white onion, chopped
- 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
- ½ cup all-purpose flour, plus additional flour for coating the peppers if needed
- 3 large eggs, separated
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Canola oil, for sautéing and frying
Instructions:
- Roast the poblano peppers directly over an open flame, turning frequently, until the skins are thoroughly blackened and blistered.
- Transfer the hot peppers to a bowl and cover. Allow them to steam for about 1 hour, or until the skins loosen.
- Carefully peel away the charred skins. Cut a lengthwise slit in each pepper and remove the cluster of seeds near the stem, taking care not to tear the peppers.
- Heat about 1 teaspoon canola oil in a skillet. Add the onion and tomatoes and cook until the onion is translucent.
- Add the shredded Monterey Jack and stir until the cheese is melted and thoroughly combined with the onion and tomato. Remove from the heat.
- Using a tablespoon, carefully stuff each roasted pepper with the cheese mixture.
- Separate the eggs. Beat the egg whites until thick and fluffy.
- Gently fold the egg yolks into the beaten whites. Add the flour, season lightly with salt and fold gently until incorporated.
- Lightly dredge each stuffed pepper in flour, then coat it with the egg batter.
- Heat canola oil in a sauté pan. Carefully add the battered peppers and fry until the egg coating is set and golden, turning as necessary.
- Transfer the cooked rellenos to a sheet pan while you finish the remaining peppers.
- Bring the enchilada sauce to a gentle simmer. Carefully place the rellenos in the sauce and cook for about 1 minute.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the rellenos to a glass baking dish and spoon the enchilada sauce generously over the top.
- Bake at 350°F for about 20 minutes, or until the rellenos and sauce are heated through.
Tip: These peppers are commonly labeled poblano peppers when fresh and ancho chiles when dried. “Pasilla” is sometimes used on grocery-store signs for fresh poblanos, so I standardized the recipe to poblano peppers.
Source: Maria