One of my favorite things when I eat out at a Mexican restaurant is chile relleno. And if I’m really lucky, one of my friend will make them for me occasionally.
But, I’ve never made them myself. I’ve done some plays on them, in casserole form, but not the real thing.
Last week I was at Kansas City’s City Market, and saw some poblanos that were large and fairly evenly shaped and flat. I thought they would be easy to work with and decided it was time to try them myself.
Monday was Labor Day, and we grilled some steaks for dinner. While I the grill was lit, it seemed a good time to roast the poblanos. I cut a small horizontal slit near the stem, and a vertical slit down towards the point of the pepper, then roasted them. Into a bowl with Saran Wrap they went after they were nice and charred.
I didn’t have a lot of time that evening, so I just put the roasted peppers in the fridge until Tuesday night. It was so easy to peel them the next night!
I stopped to put together a red sauce.
I chopped 1/2 of a small onion, minced 2 cloves of garlic, then got together 1 Tablespoons of chili powder (I had a great one someone sent me from New Mexico), 2 teaspoons cum.
I heated up some olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and added the onions and a bit of salt. I softened the onions, stirring regularly, about 6 minutes. I wanted them softened, not browned.
The garlic and spices were added next and stirred until they became fragrant, about 30 seconds.
I had my own tomato sauce that I had canned, and I stirred in a cup of that plus 1/2 cup chicken sauce. I brought them to a boil then lowered to a simmer. I let it simmer, stirring occasionally, until the peppers were ready.
Back to the peppers!
I cut slices of Monterey Jack cheese, about 1/4 inch thick, and fitted them into the peppers, fastening with toothpicks.
Then I got everything else going, separating 3 eggs into yolks and whites, and whisking the yolks together. I whipped the egg whites but never could get them quite where I wanted them to be.
I also prepared a large pan with about 1/2 inch of canola oil, heating the oil up to 375 Fahrenheit.
Although the egg whites weren’t as stiff as I wanted, I gave up and folded the egg yolks into the whites for the batter.
Next I carefully coated the poblanos in pepper, then in the batter, spooning it over the top as needed.
When the oil reached the right temperature, I used a fish spatula to lift the peppers into the oil.
It took only 3 minutes on each side.
Then I put on a rack to drain.
I prepared a plate by spooning some of the red sauce in the center, and placed a pepper in the center.
It was delicious.
They weren’t perfect. But I learned a lot and think I would be be able to do better next time. I wouldn’t whip the egg whites in the mixing bowl for one thing, I’d use the whip attachment to my immersion blender. I tied to stuff too much cheese in the first pepper and split the peppers, so I would be more careful about that.
But, those are quibbles. These were delicious.
Prepare the sauce:
1/2 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp chile pepper
2 tsp ground cumin
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup chicken stock
Heat vegetable oil over medium heat, then add the onions and a bit of salt. Soften the onions, stirring often, about 6 minutes. Don’t brown. Add the garlic and spices and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add 8 ounces tomato sauce and 1/2 cup chicken broth. Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer and let it simmer, stirring occasionally, until the chile rellenos are done.
Chile Rellenos
Poblano peppers
Monterey Jack cheese
Flour
Salt
3 eggs
Vegetable oil
Cut a small (1 inch) horizontal slit at the top of the pepper beneath the stem. Don’t cut through, you want it to help hold the pepper together. Roast the peppers until charred, and place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap to steam and make it easy to peel.
When ready to prepare the peppers for frying, remove some of the seeds if you like, but again be careful to leave the cap at the top under the stem intact so it holds the pepper together. Cut 1/4 inch thick slides of Monterey Jack cheese and fit one layer inside the poblanos. Trim the cheese to fit as needed. Don’t overstuff or you won’t be able to close the pepper. Secure the edges of the pepper together with toothpicks.
Pour vegetable oil into a large sauté pan to depth of about 1/2 inch, and start heating to 375 Fahrenheit.
Separate the eggs. Place the egg yolks in one bowl, and whisk until yellow and frothy. Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks, and gently fold in the egg yolks. Have two pie plates ready. In one, place some flour and season with salt. Place the batter in the other pie plate.
Gently place the peppers one by one in the flour, and dust the flour over the top. Shake it gently so there is just a think layer, then place in the batter. Spoon batter over the top if needed.
Use a fish spatula to lift fro the batter and put into the oil once it is at 375. Let them fry 3-4 minutes, checking by lifting with a spatula to make sure they aren’t getting too brown. Turn and fry 3-4 minutes more. I placed them on a rack in a rimmed baking sheet. Others drain on paper towels, but they really were not oily and I didn’t have to worry about paper towel sticking to them.
Spoon the red sauce into the middle of a plate, and create a circle. Place the chile relleno on the sauce.
Labels: Main Dish