Cheese Stuffed Poblanos With Tomato Sauce Chiles Rellenos De Queso Recipes

STUFFED CHEESE POBLANOS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350F. Meanwhile on a gas stove on high or skillet heat chiles directly on flame until charred. Keep in plastic bag for 5 minutes. Peel chiles under cold water.
• Open on one side, remove seeds. Fill each poblano with 3 strips of the cheese. Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons shredded mozarella cheese on each chile. Place in 9x13-inch glass baking dish.
• Bake chiles 15 to 20 minutes or until cheeses are melted and chiles are soft.
• Meanwhile, make tomato sauce. Place all sauce ingredients in food processor bowl or blender; process until smooth. Pour sauce into 2 quart saucepan. Cook over medium high heat about 15 minutes or until sauce is slightly reduced and dark red.
• To serve, place tomato sauce on plate; top with stuffed poblano chile. Drizzle with mexican style cream.

STUFFED POBLANO CHILES ("CHILES RELLENOS")

Steps:

• Sauce: Put the tomatoes, garlic and onion in a blender. Blend until smooth. In a medium saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the sauce and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Chile rellenos: Mix the cheese and oregano in a small bowl. Cut a slit through 1 side of the charred chiles and fill each chile with 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture. Close with toothpicks to hold the filling in place. In a medium bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. Add the egg yolk and continue to beat for about 1 minute.
• In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, pour in enough oil to fill the pan about a third of the way. Heat over medium heat until a deep-frying thermometer inserted in the oil reaches 375 degrees F. (If you don't have a thermometer a cube of bread will brown in about 3 minutes.) Dredge the filled chiles in flour until fully covered. Shake off any excess flour, then dip the chiles into the egg mixture, until well coated. Fry until golden brown and drain on paper towels.
• Arrange the chiles on a serving platter, spoon the sauce on top and serve.

CHEESE-STUFFED POBLANOS WITH TOMATO SAUCE (CHILES RELLENOS DE QUESO)

Steps:

• Roast chiles:
• Roast chiles on their sides on racks of gas burners (1 or 2 per burner) over medium-high heat, turning with tongs, until skins are blistered and slightly charred, 4 to 6 minutes. (Or broil on rack of a broiler pan about 2 inches from heat.) Immediately transfer to a large bowl and cover, then let stand 20 minutes.
• Make tomato sauce while chiles stand:
• Purée all sauce ingredients except oil with 11/4 teaspoons salt in a blender until smooth, then strain through a medium-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing on solids, then discarding them.
• Heat oil in a deep 12-inch heavy skillet or heatproof casserole (preferably one that can go to the table) over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Carefully pour in sauce and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes (sauce should still be thin). Season with salt.
• Stuff and fry chiles:
• Carefully rub off skins from chiles, leaving stems attached. Cut a slit lengthwise in each chile with kitchen shears, then carefully cut out seedpod (including attached ribs) without tearing chile (hotter chiles smell stronger when cut). Wipe chiles clean with a paper towel if necessary.
• Stuff chiles with cheese and enclose filling by overlapping slit slightly if possible, then transfer to a plate. (Use a toothpick to mark any hotter chiles if desired.)
• Heat 1/2 inch oil in another 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until it registers 360°F on thermometer.
• While oil heats, beat egg whites with 1/8 teaspoon salt using an electric mixer until they just hold stiff peaks. Whisk yolks with 1/8 teaspoon salt in a large bowl, then gently fold in whites.
• Put flour in a fine-mesh sieve and dust chiles, turning them to lightly coat all sides.
• When oil is ready, dip chiles, 1 at a time (hold chile by stem), in egg coating, spooning it over chile to cover completely, then fry, turning once, until golden on all sides (lap oil over any lighter areas), 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer chiles with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.
• Meanwhile, reheat sauce over low heat. Lay chiles in sauce to serve.

REAL CHILES RELLENOS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven's broiler and set the oven rack at about 6 inches from the heat source. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, and place the peppers onto the prepared baking sheet.
• Cook under the preheated broiler until the skin of the peppers has blackened and blistered, 8 to 10 minutes per side. When the peppers are about 80 percent blackened, place them a plastic bag, seal, and allow the peppers to steam as they cool, about 20 minutes. Once cool, remove the skins and discard. Cut a slit lengthwise into the side of each pepper, and remove seeds and veins. To reduce spiciness, rinse out any remaining seeds with water. Pat the peppers dry with paper towels.
• Mix together the shredded mozzarella, Monterey Jack, and Cheddar cheese in a bowl until thoroughly blended. Divide the cheese into 4 portions, and squeeze each portion lightly in your hands to make a cone shape. Insert a cone into the slit in each pepper, and pin the openings closed with toothpicks. Dredge each pepper in flour, dust off the excess, and place on a small baking sheet lined with parchment paper or waxed paper. Place the peppers in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
• To make sauce, blend the stewed tomatoes in a blender until pureed, and set aside. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium heat, and cook and stir the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cook and stir for about 30 seconds, and pour in the pureed tomatoes, chicken broth, vinegar, oregano, cumin, black pepper, hot pepper sauce, and cinnamon. Reduce to medium-low, and simmer the sauce until reduced by half and thickened, about 20 minutes, stirring often.
• Preheat an oven to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C), and warm a platter in the oven.
• To make batter and finish the chiles rellenos, mix 1/3 cup flour with salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until the whites form stiff peaks. Lightly mix the egg yolk and flour-salt mixture into the egg whites to make a fluffy batter. Remove peppers from freezer and coat them in flour again; shake off excess flour, and dip each pepper into the egg batter, using a spoon to gently but completely coat each pepper with batter.
• Heat frying oil in a heavy cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until the oil shimmers. Gently lay the coated peppers into the hot oil, and fry on both sides until the batter is golden brown and the cheese filling is hot, about 5 minutes per side. Remove peppers to warmed platter while you finish frying. To serve, ladle a generous spoonful of sauce onto plate, and place pepper on sauce. Serve peppers hot with a dollop of sour cream.