My Chili Relleno Recipe

I have never cooked Chili Relleno. But this dish has been my favorite since we immigrated to the US in the 1960's. It is the dish that I would normally order if we dined in a Mexican restaurant. I can judge the quality of a Mexican Restaurant by the taste of their Chili Rellenos. However, since I started cooking for the family about ten months ago ( my wife current illness prevents her from working in the kitchen), I have been trying all kinds of recipes and even creating my own recipe. I have also tailored my cooking to ingredients that are currently on sale at our local grocery stores. Today's post is my own Chili Relleno recipe inspired by my own readings and Internet search on this dish.

Ingredients

4 pasilla or poblano chiles
1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese( any other kinds of cheese can be use)
1/4 cup oil
1/4 garlic cloves
1/2 onions minced
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup picante sauce(hot)
1 cup water
salt and pepper to taste
toothpicks

Procedure

1. Lay 1 chile on a work surface so that it sits flat naturally without rolling. Using a paring knife, make two cuts forming a “T” by first slicing down the middle of the chile lengthwise from stem to tip, then making a second cut perpendicular to the first about a 1/2 inch from the stem, slicing only halfway through the chile (be careful not to cut off the stem end completely). Carefully open the flaps to expose the interior of the chile and, using the paring knife, carefully cut out and remove the core. Scrape the inside with a small spoon to remove the seeds, ribs, and any remaining core. Repeat with the remaining 3 peppers.

2. Broil the chiles in the oven on High or Grill on a Flat pan.

3. Char the chiles on both sides. Once blackened put in a plastic bag for 10 minutes to sweat out any moisture. Remove from the bag, and carefully removed the burnt skin. Stuff the peppers with the shredded mozzarella cheese and use toothpicks to hold them together.

3. Add the oil to a frying pan over medium heat. Dip the stuffed peppers into the freshly prepared batter and fry until golden brown on both sides. Remove from the oil to a serving platter.

4. Pour the tomato sauce over the cooked chile rellenos on the serving platter and serve.

Tomato and Picante sauce Preparation:

1. Add the tomatoes sauce and the picante sauce( hot) and water to a small pot over medium heat. Simmer the mixture and stir in the minced garlic and and onions. Continue simmering until the onions and garlic are cooked.

An Alternate Tomato Sauce: My son who is also an amateur cook has an alternate recipe for the sauce as follows: To a pot pour 6 oz of cranberry juice and 8 oz of picante mild sauce. Simmer the mixture. In a separate bowl add 2 tablespoon of corn starch to 16 oz of tomato sauce for thickening. Add and mix the thickened tomato sauce to the picante-cranberry mixture above. Mix and simmer for another two minutes. This sauce is thicker than my sauce above.

Ingredients for the Batter

1 cup all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt (substitute sugar for sweet batter)
1 cup water (substitute beer or whole milk as desired)
Black pepper, to taste (optional)

Procedure for the Batter:

1. Mix all dry ingredients. 1 cup (240 mL) all purpose flour, 1 tablespoon (15 mL) baking powder and 1 teaspoon (5 mL) salt.

2. Mix thoroughly to distribute the baking powder and salt evenly among the flour.

3. Pour 1 cup (240 mL) of water and mix slowly. Add just enough water to the dry ingredients to create a smooth, thin batter. Stir your batter until you incorporate all the dry ingredients. At this point, your batter becomes smooth.

4. Use the batter immediately for the best results. If there is leftover batter, you can put it in an airtight container and store in your refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.