cook: chile rellenos

I snapped these pics off an IG reel because I like that the recipe calls for much less oil.

I watched the making in her video, and the cook did all the usual that I do when preparing Chile Rellenos. Roast or broil the peppers and steam in a covered bowl before peeling the skin and removing the seeds. Lightly dust with flour and then fill the peeled and de-seeded peppers with cheese of your choice--you bet I'm going to buy Mexican cheese when I pick up the Pasilla peppers. Then separate the whites from the yolk and whip the whites before gently folding the yolks into the stiff peaks. But she added just a tablespoon of oil into the pan and put the batter down first before laying the prepared pepper into the egg cloud. Next she maneuvered spatulas to cover the pepper like you would a quesadilla before lightly browning.

 

Oh wow. This preparation and method looks so much easier and less oily.

Look Ma! No rack needed, nor are the fried egg-battered peppers pooling in grease on the baking pan.

I could do this. I make my own chile/enchilada sauce to enrobe the egg-covered peppers before baking in the oven for a few minutes to further heat and melt cheese. But first I had to go to the grocery store after work to pick up an American panini for lunch the next day, and there was Pliny the Elder beer there. My friend, Bob raves about this beer, and so I picked up a bottle to drink with cooking and dining.  I broiled the peppers and put them in a bowl and covered with a plate to steam and then peeled and removed the seeds. I also sliced planks of Oaxaca cheese to tuck inside the peppers. 

I dusted the cheese-filled peppers with flour, but in retrospect, I don't think that was necessary and could make this recipe gluten-free if necessary. What takes the longest is the separating of yolks from whites, whipping the egg whites and then folding in the yolks. And then the excitement began. I put a tablespoon of oil on to the cast iron and poured the batter onto the hot oil and pan and let it set in the heat. I then laid the pepper on one side as if filling an omelet.

And then folded the whole caboodle as if it were an omelet. Next pepper....

And cooking each individual Chile Relleno instead of pan frying all four in the pan took longer. However, the outcome is superior. I didn't bother with draining and instead laid and squished all 4 peppers into my homemade chile sauce.

While cooking the peppers, I was also refrying frijoles with onion and garlic in bacon grease and then adding chopped cilantro. When the peppers were in the oven and the beans were simmering in the pot, I cooked buttered corn but added chopped jalapeno, chopped cilantro, and lime juice. Yep, definitely can make a gluten-free Mexican meal.

Patrick declared the Chile "Rellanos" (his pronunciation and why do non-Spanish speaking Americans do that?) restaurant quality, better than the raw Chile Rellenos he was once served at a fancy Mexican restaurant. That was a crazy dining experience at Flores San Mateo, and that is why I do so much home cooking.