Inside: Find out how to make these authentic chiles rellenos de queso with poblano peppers and cheese.
I love sharing authentic recipes from Mexico, which is the country I where I grew up. There are so many delicious recipes, including many varieties of chiles rellenos. These are some of my favorite recipes, because they are easy to make and so tasty!
What are Chiles Rellenos?
Chiles rellenos consist of a chile (or pepper) that is roasted, deseeded, cut down the middle and filled with delicious ingredients. There are multiple different types of chiles rellenos. You can experiment with different salsas and fillings.
For example, here is a version made with a salsa de elote (or corn salsa) and filled with chicken.
Here is another called chiles en nogada. They are both easy to make and super delicious.
The variety that I am sharing today is filled with Oaxaca cheese, then coated and fried. It is served with a yummy chile ancho salsa that is mild enough even for picky eaters.
How do you make the coating for chiles rellenos de queso?
For this recipe you will be coating the poblano peppers with an egg white batter before frying them to golden perfection. A trick that works for me to separate the egg whites from the yolks is shown in the video below.
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See? So easy. All you have to do is crack the eggs in a large bowl and then take an empty water bottle and suck the egg yolks up into the bottle. You can then set them aside to use in another recipe if needed.
The finish up the batter, you add some salt and then beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Finally, you will coat the prepared chiles rellenos in flour, then with the egg whites, before frying them until golden brown.
How do you prepare poblano peppers for chiles rellenos?
The first step to make a good chile relleno is to start by roasting the poblano pepper until the skin is blackened all over. Then, immediately put it in a resealable plastic bag and let it sweat for about 10 minutes.
The next step is to remove it from the bag, and under a stream of cool water peel off the skin. Lastly, you will slice it down the top and remove the seeds.
At this point, you can fill it with cheese, beef, chicken, or any other filling. For the recipe I am sharing today, however, you will just fill it with Oaxaca cheese or any other white cheese that melts easily.
I always close off the peppers with toothpicks so that the filling doesn’t spill out when I am frying them. Now the chiles are ready for the batter and to be fried.
How do you make a chile ancho salsa for chiles rellenos?
Chiles rellenos on their own are delicious, but accompanying them with the right salsa can take them to the next level. For this recipe, I used chiles anchos and guajillos to make a mild, but delicious salsa to serve with the chiles.
To make this salsa, you need chiles guajillos, chiles anchos, roasted tomatoes, roasted onions, roasted garlic, salt, pepper, and oregano. After you prepare the ingredients as shown in the recipe below, you will blend it all together. Then you will bring the mixture to a boil before letting it simmer until it is ready to serve.
The salsa is so good that you will want to make extra to serve with other meals throughout the week.
This recipe is so good and everyone will enjoy it. Let me know in the comments below if you loved it (spoiler alert, you will).
Check out these other authentic Mexican recipes
- Mexican Picadillo Recipe
- Authentic Mexican Rice Recipe
- Mexican Birria Recipe (3 Methods)
- Authentic Tacos de Canasta Recipe (Mexican Basket Tacos)
- Authentic Mexican Meatballs Recipe (Albondigas Mexicanas)
Authentic Chiles Rellenos de Queso Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 poblano peppers
- 1 1/2 cups Oaxaca Cheese or any other white cheese that melts easily.
For the Batter
- 3 egg whites
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup all purpose flour for coating the peppers
For the Salsa
- 1 Chile Guajillo
- 1 Chile Ancho
- 3 Roma Tomatoes
- 3 Cloves Garlic
- 1/4 Onion
- 1/2 Cup Chicken Stock
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp oregano
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
To prepare the chiles
- Place the poblano peppers over direct flame or a hot pan and roast on all sides until blackened. Use your oven or stove fan!
- Put the blackened poblano peppers in a ziploc bag and let it sweat for about 10 minutes.
- Remove from the bag, and place under a stream of cool water, removing the skin.
- Slice down the middle from the bottom to just short of the stem
- Add the cheese to each pepper and then seal closed with toothpicks
- Coat in the flour, then in the egg white batter and fry until golden brown.
- Serve immediately with the salsa
For the Batter
- Separate the egg whites from the yolks
- Add the salt and then beat the egg whites until soft peaks form
- Use to coat the chiles rellenos as shown in the first part of this recipe.
For the salsa
- Boil the chile ancho and chile guajillo in sufficient water for 5 minutes.
- Once softened, remove the seeds from the chile ancho and chile guajillo. Set aside.
- Roast the tomatoes, garlic, and onion in a hot pan until browned. Set aside.
- Take the chiles, the tomatoes, garlic and onion and blend with the chicken stock, salt, and oregano until smooth.
- Add to a hot pan with the oil and bring to a boil. Lower heat and let simmer until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Sean M Jenkinson
Thursday 29th of April 2021
I liked it, prepared it just as prescribed. I grew up in northern NM (Taos and Santa Fe). Have cooked for a living for over 20 years, but not in NM, in CO. I guess that makes me a Huge Fan, but I haven't been in the trenches in NM restaurants.
So, comments...
I used Big Jim chiles from south CO, just not the same as NM or Pueblo CO Anaheim chile. while I recognize that the egg batter coating is more traditional, mine came out a bit soggy and greasy, but that's prolly on me. I like a crisp crust around mine, which to me calls for some sort of flour/baking soda setup.
I liked the recommended salsa that went with it, I'd likely add one NM chili with it for heat, then a tsp of sugar to temper it.
But all of tis is a work in progress, just ideas now. I'll actually try my ideas and check back in.
And finally, for whatever it's worth, my girlfriend absolutely Loved this recipe just as it is...
I really liked it, try it as suggested, then play with it!
Cheers!
Sean from Taos
Saturday 19th of June 2021
@Sean M Jenkinson, added flour to mine and came out cripy. Maybe potoato four would be even better, but I agree a batter with just egg is not going to do it.