The chile relleno (, literally "stuffed

chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

") is a dish in

Mexican cuisine Mexican cuisine consists of the cuisines and associated traditions of the modern country of Mexico. Its earliest roots lie in Mesoamerican Cuisine, Mesoamerican cuisine. Mexican cuisine's ingredients and methods arise from the area's first agr ...

that originated in the city of

Puebla Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...

. In 1858, it was described as a "green chile pepper stuffed with minced meat and coated with eggs". The most common pepper used is Puebla's

poblano The poblano (''Capsicum annuum'') is a mild chili pepper originating in Puebla, Mexico. Dried, it is called ancho or chile ancho, from the Spanish word ''ancho'' (wide). Stuffed fresh and roasted, it is popular in chiles rellenos poblanos. W ...

pepper, though

New Mexico chile New Mexico chile or New Mexican chile (Scientific name: ''Capsicum annuum'' 'New Mexico Group'; , ) is a cultivar group of the chile pepper from the US state of New Mexico, first grown by Puebloan peoples, Pueblo and Hispanos of New Mexico, Hispa ...

pasilla The pasilla chile ( ) or ''chile negro'' is the dried form of the ''chilaca'' chili pepper, a long and narrow member of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. Named for its dark, wrinkled skin (literally "little raisin"), it is a mild to hot, rich-f ...

, or even

jalapeño The jalapeño ( , , ) is a medium-sized chili pepper Fruit, pod type cultivar of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. A mature jalapeño chili is long and wide, and hangs down from the plant. The pungency of jalapeño peppers varies, but is usual ...

peppers are popular as well. It is typically stuffed with melted cheese, such as

queso Chihuahua In Mexico, queso Chihuahua is commonly recognized as a soft white cheese available in braids, balls or rounds and originates in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. In Chihuahua and neighboring states, it is called ''queso menonita'', after the Menn ...

queso Oaxaca Oaxaca cheese () ( ), also known as quesillo and queso de hebra, is a white, semihard, low-fat cheese that originated in Mexico. It is similar to unaged Monterey Jack, but with a texture similar to mozzarella or string cheese. History It is nam ...

NOT made of meat, raisins and nuts, seasoned with

canella ''Canella'' is a monospecific genus containing the species ''Canella winterana'', a tree native to the Caribbean from the Florida Keys to Barbados. Its bark is used as a spice similar to cinnamon, giving rise to the common names cinnamon bark, ...

; covered in an egg white batter, simply corn

masa ''Masa'' or ''masa de maíz'' (; ) is a dough made from ground nixtamalized maize. It is used for making corn tortillas, '' gorditas'', '' tamales'', '' pupusas'', and many other Latin American dishes. It is dried and powdered into a flour f ...

flour and fried, or without any batter at all. Although it is often served in a tomato sauce, the sauces can vary.

Regional variation

Mexico

Some regional versions in Mexico use rehydrated dry chiles such as anchos or pasillas.

United States

In the United States, chiles rellenos are usually filled with asadero or

Monterey Jack Monterey Jack, sometimes shortened to Jack, is a Californian white, semi-hard cheese made using cow's milk, with a mild flavor and slight sweetness. Originating in Monterey, on the Central Coast of California, the cheese has been called "a vest ...

cheese, but can also be found with cheddar or other cheeses, as well as ground or minced meat. Variations, which can be seen based on regional tastes or experimentation, include: *

Chiles en nogada ''Chiles en nogada'' is a Mexican dish of poblano chiles stuffed with ''picadillo'' (a mixture usually containing minced meat, aromatics, fruits and spices) topped with a walnut-based cream sauce called ''nogada'', pomegranate seeds and parsle ...

* Pecan-encrusted * Crab-filled * Inside of a "chile relleno

burrito A burrito (, ) or burro in Mexico is, historically, a regional name, among others, for what is known as a taco, a tortilla filled with food, in other parts of the country. The term ''burrito'' was regional, specifically from Guanajuato, Guerre ...

" * In a

casserole A casserole (French language, French: diminutive of , from Provençal dialect, Provençal , meaning 'saucepan') is a kind of large, deep cookware and bakeware, pan or bowl used for cooking a variety of dishes in the oven; it is also a categor ...

form (which can be more practical for serving groups of people) * Tuna-filled *

Squash blossom Squash blossoms (called courgette flowers in Great Britain) are the edible flowers of ''Cucurbita'' species, particularly ''Cucurbita pepo'', the species that produces zucchini (courgette), marrow, spaghetti squash, and many other types of s ...

-stuffed * Mushroom-stuffed * Shrimp-stuffed A recipe from 1914 (as "chili reinas") is published in a period guidebook to

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

restaurants.

Guatemala

In Guatemala, the pimiento pepper is stuffed with shredded pork and vegetables. Like the Mexican version, it is covered with egg batter and fried. It is served with tomato sauce or inside a bread bun.

Gallery

Image:Breaded-Chile-Rellenos.jpg, A variation on the classic recipe using egg batter rather than dipping in

flour File:Jalapeños.jpg, Jalapeño "

poppers Poppers are recreational drugs belonging to the alkyl nitrite family of chemical compounds. When fumes from these substances are inhaled, they act as potent vasodilators, producing mild euphoria, warmth, and dizziness. Most effects have a r ...

", another form of chiles rellenos File:Chile Relleno casserole.jpg, A Mexican-American variation which has chiles stuffed with monterey jack cheese and an egg batter, baked in a casserole dish

References