Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Red Pepper Puree
Breaking tradition with Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Red Pepper Puree and Coconut Rice.
When you think of Chile Relleno, what comes to mind?
Fried. Heavy. Spicy. As someone who avoids frying like the plague, I’d like to dump the first two stereotypes and add the terms Creamy, Succulent and Elegant to the mix.
Most Chile Relleno recipes prepared here in the states, are deep fried masses of oozing cheese. As tempting as that may sound, they often leave you feeling like you got a swift kick in the stomach.
I’d like to propose that Stuffed Poblano Peppers do not have to be deep fried. (Pause for shock and awe.)
Believe it or not, not all stuffed peppers prepared in Latin America are deep fried. And even if they were, that doesn’t mean we have to do it that way, right?
RIGHT?
After all, chile relleno simply means “stuffed chile” in Spanish. How it’s stuffed and cooked is up for debate.
Tradition is a guide and not a jailer. ~ William Somerset Maugham
These Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Red Pepper Puree, served with Coconut Rice, are an elegant alternative to “traditional” chile rellenos. Creamy goat cheese and shrimp snuggle in fire roasted poblano peppers, atop tender coconut rice.
As if that weren’t enough, a pool of silky red pepper puree gently caresses both the sweetness of the rice and the spicy poblano pepper. Delicioso!
If you’ve missed enjoying chile relleno because of deep frying, give this Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Red Pepper Puree a try.
You can serve it as 4 large servings, or divide it into 8 light portions!
Other Latin American Favorites:
More Stuffed Poblano Pepper Recipes:
Quinoa Stuffed Poblanos ~ Eat Drink Better
Brisket Stuffed Poblanos ~ Burnin’ Love BBQ
Chicken Stuffed Poblanos ~ The Wicked Noodle
Traditional Chile Rellenos ~ The Paupered Chef
Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Red Pepper Puree
Ingredients
For the Stuffed Poblano Peppers:
- 8 large poblano peppers
- 1 pound chopped, cooked shrimp (or cooked chorizo, shredded chicken or pork sausage)
- 5 diced shallots, divided
- 4 ounces softened goat cheese
- 3/4 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese, or Mexican blend
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 2 tablespoons chopped basil + extra for garnish
For the Red Pepper Puree:
- 2 whole red peppers
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- Pinch cayenne pepper
For the Coconut Rice:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups long-grain rice
- 14 ounces sweetened coconut milk, (1 can) OR unsweetened coconut milk + 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
- Salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Either on the grill or over a gas burner, roast 8 poblanos and 2 whole red peppers until blackened on all sides. (I like to do this on the grill.)
- Place all peppers in a large zip lock bag (or paper bag) seal, and let steam for 15 minutes.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add 4 diced shallots and sauté for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté another 2 minutes until onion becomes translucent and tender.
- REMOVE HALF the onions and garlic and place in the blender. Add rice to the remaining onions in the pot and sauté another 2 minutes to toast rice. Add coconut milk, jalapeno, 1 1/2 teaspoon salt, and one 14-ounce can full of water. Bring the rice to a simmer, cover and cook until rice is tender and liquid has evaporated, about 15-17 minutes. Remove from heat and keep covered another 5 minutes.
- Once the rice is started, GENTLY peel all the peppers. Carefully remove the tops of the poblanos. Mix the shrimp, cheeses, 1 chopped shallot, cilantro, basil, and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl.
- GENTLY stuff each pepper with shrimp mixture and fold the top to close. Lay the peppers on a greased cookie sheet and bake 15 minutes.
- While the peppers are baking, add 1/4 cup cream, a pinch of cayenne pepper and 2 whole roasted peppers (seeds removed) in the blender. Puree until smooth. Taste and salt as needed—about 1 teaspoon. *You may need a little extra cream to create desired thickness!
- To plate: Pour about 1/4 cup of sauce onto a dinner plate. Place a round mound of rice to top of the rice with 2 stuffed peppers.
Nutrition
I make stuffed poblanos all the time. Sometimes with meat, sometimes with rice. But usually ground chicken. I can’t handle a lot of heat in my food so the poblano is perfect. Because a lot of my friends are off of gluten, rather than bread crumbs or even rice, I use quinoa as a filler. Yes, I cook it first. *grin* I think we’ve all watched that Chopped segment. Heh.
For sauce I generally use tomato. Adjusted, of course. Now I’m going to have to make up another batch when it’s poblano season. I really prefer them to bell peppers.
Just made these( but subbed colored bell peppers to use up and sausage as we do not eat shrimp) and really delicious. Pepper sauce is fantastic and love the coconut rice. So appreciate the menu ideas—after 50 years of cooking meal plans are as much effort as the prep!
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Gorgeous dish and it has my stomach growling!
Stufgfed poblanos are one of my favorites. They’re the best pepper to stuf fin my opinion: sort of smoky, spicy and sweet, all rolled into one marvelous package. I have made them before without frying them Mine tend to fall apart. You look like you’ve mastered keeping them in shape.
OK! I live in San Diego, and I can HONESTLY say, I’ve never seen a stuffed pepper as good as yours. And your photos are absolutely stunning. The colors, the favors, the texture, OH MY!!!
Shrimp-stuffed poblano peppers? Red pepper puree? Coconut rice? This sounds fantastic. I love that it’s a twist on a Mexican (?) classic, with just a tease of Thai thrown in there. I’ll definitely have to give this one a try.
This is a wonderful dish, Sommer! Love the red pepper puree..what lovely color and combo you ave used in the recipe. Awesome.
i love how you plated this dish. simply beautiful and so elegant. love the flavors in here… yum!
Great recipe! I love cheesy chiles too, but can’t handle them that often. Great way to lighten them up and make them a real main course.
I absolutely must make this. I love everything about it especially that you didn’t fry it. I’m pinning it to try this week. It looks fantastic!
Gorgeous plate of food! I love the look of the green Poblano peppers on that pool of red pepper puree, and the stuffing!!!!
Yum…looks great. I made stuffed poblanos last year and my HANDS WERE ON FIRE! I was carefuly to not touch my eyes, but still my hands were stinging like mad. What do you recommend to prevent that?
Hi Amy,
Poblanos are tricky because sometimes they are very mild and other times they are HOT! After you’ve cut the tops off, always smell them so you know what you’re dealing with. If they are spicy, you can put on rubber gloves before peeling them, or try rubbing your hands with veg. oil before touching the peppers. The oil offers a protective layer and allows the pepper juices to wash off easily.
Seriously a unique recipe. I’ve also been looking for a good coconut rice recipe, I’ll have to try yours.