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    Home » Cinco de Mayo Recipes

    Chile Rellenos with Salsa Roja

    Published: Jan 24, 2023 Last updated: Jan 25, 2023 by Shelby Law Ruttan · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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    Chile Rellenos are a Mexican recipe for cheese stuffed peppers that are battered and deep fried then served with a salsa roja. They make a delicious vegetarian meal with your favorite Mexican sides.
    Jump to Recipe
    Featured image for Chile Rellenos.

    Chile Rellenos are roasted poblano peppers stuffed with cheese and dipped in a fluffy egg batter then deep fried until golden brown. These stuffed peppers are a classic Mexican dish with a salsa roja topping making a delicious vegetarian meal along with your favorite Mexican side dishes.

    Hero shot of Chile Rellenos with Salsa Rojo.
    Jump to:
    • ❤️ Why you'll love it
    • 🥘 Ingredients
    • 🔪 Instructions
    • 🥄 Equipment
    • 🥫Storage
    • 📖 Variations
    • 💭 Tips
    • 🙋 FAQ's
    • 📚 Related Recipes
    • 🍽 Serve with...
    • 📖 Recipe

    ❤️ Why you'll love it

    Authentic chile rellenos recipe: this authentic chile relleno recipe was shared with me by my cousin's fiance, who is of hispanic heritage. She made this recipe for me and then shared it with me so I could share it with my readers!

    Simple ingredients: Just a few simple ingredients with the end result of a meal packed with flavor.

    Traditional Mexican dish: this chili pepper dish is easy to make and will impress the family by serving them at your home dinner table!

    A bowl of fresh poblano peppers
    Two bowls of cheese.
    Ingredients for salsa rojo.
    Ingredients for batter.

    🥘 Ingredients

    Poblano peppers: these are a green chile pepper you can find in the produce section of any grocery store. Look for medium to large peppers that are without blemishes.

    Cheese: you will want to use Queso Oaxaca cheese and Monterey jack cheese. Oaxaca can be found in specialty grocery stores or Walmart. Some grocery stores may carry it as well. If you can't find it, you can substitute mozzarella cheese.

    All purpose flour: you only need enough to coat the outside of the peppers before dipping in the egg white mixture.

    Eggs: you will need to separate the egg whites from the egg yolks.

    Fresh tomatoes: to make the sauce.

    Onion: flavors the sauce

    Garlic powder: flavors the sauce

    Vegetable oil; for frying

    Olive oil: for making the tomato sauce

    Salt and black pepper

    Optional ingredients: Queso Fresco (crumbling cheese) and fresh cilantro to garnish the rellenos.

    Raw peppers sprayed with cooking spray and on a baking sheet.
    Lightly spray peppers with cooking spray, or coat with olive oil before roasting
    Charred pasilla peppers on a baking sheet.
    The peppers should be charred in spots from roasting.
    Steaming peppers in a ziploc bag.
    Steaming the peppers in a ziploc bag will help release the skin from the pepper.
    Peeled and seeded peppers on a baking sheet.
    Peel as much of the skin from the peppers as possible. Cutting a small slit in one side of the pepper to remove seeds.
    A cheese stuffed pepper secured with toothpicks.
    Once pepper is stuffed with cheese, secure with toothpicks.
    Peppers dusted with flour on a baking sheet.
    Gently dust the peppers with flour before dipping into egg batter and frying.

    🔪 Instructions

    Roasting the poblano peppers

    1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place whole peppers on a baking sheet. Coat lightly with cooking spray and place in oven.
    2. Roast for 10 minutes. Using a pair of tongs, flip peppers over. Return to the oven and continue to roast for another 5 minutes.
    3. Remove peppers from oven and immediately place in a ziploc bag, sealing bag shut tight. Set aside for 15 minutes.

    Make the salsa roja

    1. While peppers are steaming in the bag, make the tomato sauce. Place tomatoes, onion, garlic powder, and water in a large saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.
    2. Reduce heat and simmer tomato mixture for 10 minutes, until onions have softened and tomatoes have broken down. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
    3. In a large bowl, toss together the cheese and set aside.

    Stuff the peppers

    1. Carefully remove the peppers from the ziploc bag and peel as much of the skin off each pepper as possible. Cut a small slit down the pepper (vertically) and remove the seeds. Rinse gently with water if needed to get all of the seeds out.
    2. Add oil to a large skillet (about 2 inches in depth) and heat oil until hot (350 degrees f).
    3. While oil is heating, gently stuff the peppers with the cheese and securing the pepper where it was cut with toothpicks to hold it together.

    Fry the chiles rellenos

    1. Place egg whites in a large non-reactive bowl, and beat with an electric mixer for 4-5 minutes, until stiff peaks form. Add the egg yolks to the egg whites, and beat until thoroughly combined. You will no longer have stiff peaks, but should have soft peaks with the whites and yolk mixed together.
    2. Place 1 cup flour in a large shallow bowl, season with salt and pepper if desired. Lightly coat each pepper with flour, tapping to remove any excess flour from the pepper. Place each pepper on a baking sheet once coated with flour.
    3. When oil is hot, dip pepper in the egg mixture and carefully place pepper in hot oil. Fry pepper for 2 minutes, until golden on bottom side, then flip pepper over to fry the other side, deep frying another 2-3 minutes, until golden brown.
    4. Remove chiles rellenos from the hot oil and place on a paper towel-lined baking sheet and allow the paper towel to absorb any excess oil from deep frying.

    Reheat the salsa roja and serve

    1. Transfer the tomato sauce from the saucepan to a food processor and blend until smooth. Place sauce back in saucepan and reheat over medium heat until hot.
    2. Serve each chile relleno with 2 tablespoons of sauce, a sprinkling of queso fresco, and fresh cilantro (if desired).
    Frying peppers in hot oil.
    Peppers that are cooked on one side in a skillet of hot oil.
    Fried Chile Rellenos draining on paper towels.
    Use a paper towel to absorb any excess grease from the rellenos.
    Angled shot of chile relleno with salsa rojo and a dish of rice in the background.
    Serve with salsa roja.

    🥄 Equipment

    Paper towels

    Baking sheet

    Large frying pan

    Skimmer

    Large saucepan

    Plastic bag

    Food processor or immersion blender

    🥫Storage

    Refrigerate: store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge up to 5 days.

    Freeze: store freezer safe, airtight container in the freezer up to 3 months.

    Reheat: Reheat rellenos in a 400 degree oven or air fryer for 15 minutes, until hot. I highly recommend using the air fryer for reheating as it allows the coating to crisp back up. Using the microwave to reheat is not recommended.

    Tomatoes, onion, and garlic powder in a saucepan.
    Blended salsa rojo.
    Once the tomato mixture is softened, blend it in a food processor to smooth the sauce.

    📖 Variations

    • Cook ½ pound of ground beef with ½ tablespoon of chili powder, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon salt and black pepper to taste. Reduce the cheese by half and toss beef and cheese together. Stuff peppers with the meat mixture.
    • If you don't want to take the chance of a spicy pepper, use anaheim peppers instead. You will need a larger volume of peppers if doing so as they are smaller than the poblano.

    💭 Tips

    • If you own a gas grill or stove, roast the chilies on the open flame of the gas burner instead of the oven. This will give you charred chiles with a more smoky flavor.
    • If the poblano chiles do not get blackened skins at the roasting temperature, once roasted, place them under the broiler on high for 1 minute on each side to char the skins.
    • Make sure to use a thermometer to gauge the temperature of the hot oil. It must be at 350 and stay in that range or you risk the chance of the chiles being grease logged.
    • Separate egg whites and yolks when eggs are cold. Then allow the components to come to room temperature before whipping. Room temperature eggs will whip up in a greater volume when room temperature.
    Chile Relleno on a plate with a portion cut from the chile and cheese oozing out.

    🙋 FAQ's

    Are poblano peppers hot?

    As with any pepper, the poblano are ranked as a medium heat pepper. It is spicier than a banana pepper but not as hot as a jalapeno however there may be the occasional pepper that is more on the spicy side!

    📚 Related Recipes

    You will love these Air Fryer Stuffed Peppers!

    Homemade Horchata is a refreshing beverage made with rice milk.

    Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos are a vegetarian take on the taco with buffalo flavors.

    Everyone loves this Ground Beef Mexican Casserole

    Mom's Skillet Home Fries are one of my childhood favorites.

    Bite shot of pepper and cheese with sauce.

    🍽 Serve with...

    Serve chili rellenos with a side of arroz con tomate and refried beans.

    Don't forget to check out my Amazon storefront for some of my favorite products!

    When you make this recipe, please comment below and let me know what you think. I'd love it if you tag me on Instagram @grumpyshoneybunch or #grumpyshoneybunch so I can see your photos!

    If you love this recipe, please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating

    📖 Recipe

    Featured image for Chile Rellenos.

    Chile Rellenos with Salsa Roja

    Shelby Law Ruttan
    Chile Rellenos are a Mexican recipe for cheese stuffed peppers that are battered and deep fried then served with a salsa roja. They make a delicious vegetarian meal with your favorite Mexican sides.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Go to Collections
    Prep Time 20 mins
    Cook Time 10 mins
    Total Time 30 mins
    Course Main Dish
    Cuisine Tex-Mex
    Servings 4
    Calories 761 kcal

    Equipment

    • Baking Sheet
    • Large skillet
    • Skimmer
    • Large saucepan
    • Ziploc bag
    • Food processor , or immersion blender

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Ingredients
      

    • 8 poblano peppers
    • ½ pound oaxaca cheese
    • ½ pound Monterey jack cheese
    • 1 cup all purpose flour
    • 3 large egg whites
    • 2 large egg yolks
    • 4 medium tomatoes , diced
    • ½ medium onion , diced
    • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • 2 tablespoons Vegetable oil , for frying
    • Salt and pepper , to taste
    • 2 tablespoons queso fresco , optional
    • 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro , optional

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place whole peppers on a baking sheet. Coat lightly with cooking spray and place in oven.
    • Roast for 10 minutes. Using a pair of tongs, flip peppers over. Return to the oven and continue to roast for another 5 minutes.
    • Remove peppers from oven and immediately place in a ziploc bag, sealing bag shut tight. Set aside for 15 minutes.
    • While peppers are steaming in the bag, make the tomato sauce. Place tomatoes, onion, garlic powder, and water in a large saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.
    • Reduce heat and simmer tomato mixture for 10 minutes, until onions have softened and tomatoes have broken down. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
    • In a large bowl, toss together the cheese and set aside.Carefully remove the peppers from the ziploc bag and peel as much of the skin off each pepper as possible. Cut a small slit down the pepper (vertically) and remove the seeds. Rinse gently with water if needed to get all of the seeds out.
    • Add oil to a large skillet (about 2 inches in depth) and heat oil until hot (350 degrees f).
    • While oil is heating, gently stuff the peppers with the cheese and securing the pepper where it was cut with toothpicks to hold it together.
    • Place egg whites in a large non-reactive bowl, and beat with an electric mixer for 4-5 minutes, until stiff peaks form. Add the egg yolks to the egg whites, and beat until thoroughly combined. You will no longer have stiff peaks, but should have soft peaks with the whites and yolk mixed together.
    • Place 1 cup flour in a large shallow bowl, season with salt and pepper if desired. Lightly coat each pepper with flour, tapping to remove any excess flour from the pepper. Place each pepper on a baking sheet once coated with flour.
    • When oil is hot, dip pepper in the egg mixture and carefully place pepper in hot oil. Fry pepper for 2 minutes, until golden on bottom side, then flip pepper over to fry the other side, deep frying another 2-3 minutes, until golden brown.
    • Remove chiles rellenos from the hot oil and place on a paper towel-lined baking sheet and allow the paper towel to absorb any excess oil from deep frying.
    • Transfer the tomato sauce from the saucepan to a food processor and blend until smooth. Place sauce back in saucepan and reheat over medium heat until hot.
    • Serve each chile relleno with 2 tablespoons of sauce, a sprinkling of queso fresco, and fresh cilantro (if desired).

    Nutrition

    Serving: 2peppersCalories: 761kcalCarbohydrates: 45gProtein: 38gFat: 49gSaturated Fat: 26gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 168mgSodium: 962mgPotassium: 877mgFiber: 7gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 2549IUVitamin C: 209mgCalcium: 553mgIron: 3mgNet Carbohydrates: 38g
    Keyword Chile Rellenos, Chile Rellenos with Salsa Roja
    Tried this recipe?Mention @grumpyshoneybunch or tag #grumpyshoneybunch!

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    About Shelby Law Ruttan

    Shelby is the author/owner of Grumpy's Honeybunch. Established in 2007, she shares and preserves family recipes as well as recipes for cooking light and keto. She has authored the One-Pot Paleo Cookbook and The Pescatarian Keto Cookbook. She is an experienced, self-taught home cook who loves to share recipes with others. She also authors the websites Honeybunch Hunts and The Best Vegetarian Recipes. You can see her work on websites such as Veal Made Easy, Parade, Community Table, SoFab Food, Yummly, and FoodGawker.

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    Welcome! I'm Shelby Law Ruttan, author and content creator at Grumpy's Honeybunch. She is self taught in the kitchen and has been sharing keto low carb recipes and family recipes since 2007.

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