Chef: Ray Wakeland
I like Anaheim style peppers.
Start by putting egg whites in your mixing bowl, to start warming up. Save the yolks.
Directly on an open flame, char the skins all over. The objective is to barely char the skin, but everywhere. Sometimes you can’t get the skin to blacken and blister on a concave surface. If you try too long, the surrounding pepper will be overcooked, and disintegrate when you wash it, so don’t worry too much about getting every spot.
Put the charred peppers in a plastic bag to steam. I used to try to completely cook the flesh of the peppers with the combination of charring and passive steaming, but it was hard to get the peppers fully cooked without over-charring them. Now, I char less, and then pop the bag in the microwave for 30 seconds or so.
the 'char less' option >>
Wash the skins off under running water. If you’ve done the right amount of charring, this step is pretty easy.
Except for cleaning the stovetop, the most annoying part of making Chiles Rellenos is getting the seeds out. You have to make a slit along one side of the pepper. The pepper above was already split by the washing process. Spread open and wash out the seeds.
“Stuff” each pepper with cheese. Personally, I like not so much cheese, so “stuffing” may not be the best word. I always used to use Monterey Jack, but I’ve been moving toward more flavorful cheeses. This was a mild Gouda, which I liked quite well. You probably want something that will melt. I’ve used soft, bree-like cheeses to good effect.
The batter is mostly just separately-beaten eggs. When cooking for myself, I use whites of 2 eggs—it’s very hard to get one egg white to beat well in my mixer, and it makes not quite enough batter. But I usually add just one of the yolks later, and pitch the other.
Beat the whites to soft peaks, or maybe even a little less.
Beat in egg yolk. Just plop it in and mix a bit. I used to separately beat the egg yolks, but I’ve decided it’s not necessary, and it’s a hassle.
Add a little flour. For my 2 whites + 1 yolk batter, I use 2 Tablespoons of flour. Sprinkle it over the top of the eggs, then beat just until incorporated.
Heat up a non-stick frying pan with a little bit of oil.
I used to “dip” the peppers in the batter, but it’s messy and ineffective. Now I lay down layer of batter corresponding to the size of each pepper, then lay the peppers in, then spread the remaining batter on top.
When the first side is browned, flip them over, to brown on the other side.
I have trouble finding white flour tortillas that match the size of my chiles, so now I usually buy big ones and cut them into appropriate sized pieces.
Notice the jar of Pace Picante. That’s my store-bought salsa of choice. Put some on each piece of tortilla.
Lay the pepper on the salsa, and roll up. Then put the rolls back in the pan to warm up the tortillas and salsa, and be sure the cheese is completely melted.
almost there...
I like my tortillas a little bit browned and crunchy, so I flip them over so brown the other side.
Serve immediately!
Voila!
Notes:
Poblano peppers are a lot more robust than Anaheim. If you use them, you can char them longer, which is good, because they tend to have a lot of concave parts. Also, I let them steam for a few minutes after microwaving.
If you’re really opposed to frying (or egg, for that matter), or are just lazy or in a big hurry, and particularly if you’ve got some fairly meaty peppers, you can actually skip the egg batter and just roll up the stuffed pepper in the tortilla and then dry-fry it until the cheese is melted.