{"id":6858,"date":"2025-03-17T07:00:18","date_gmt":"2025-03-16T20:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dinnertimesomewhere.com\/?p=6858"},"modified":"2025-03-17T07:23:38","modified_gmt":"2025-03-16T20:23:38","slug":"cheesy-stuffed-peppers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dinnertimesomewhere.com\/index.php\/lunching-on-leftovers\/cheesy-stuffed-peppers\/","title":{"rendered":"Cheesy Stuffed Peppers (Easy Chili Rellenos)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This is our version of a simple homemade Cheesy Stuffed Peppers recipe. The dish is a take on the classic Mexican recipe known as Chili Rellenos, where Poblano Peppers are stuffed with Cheese, covered in a batter and then fried until crispy. When you cut into the Pepper an abundance of gooey golden cheese will ooze out. The dish is typically served with a Red Chili Sauce, and makes for a delicious appetizer or a fun lunch

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Jump to Recipe<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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This is a great recipe to make if you\u2019ve got a few leftovers Poblano Peppers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You can absolutely make this dish from scratch, but I find it works great to utilize some leftovers. Mainly because it only requires a small handful of ingredients, of which you would likely have them all readily available in the pantry

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We\u2019re not going super-authentic with this dish, instead we\u2019re happy for you to use the best version of the ingredients you have available to avoid making this a costly endeavor. By that we mean, you don\u2019t need to use specialty Mexican cheese like Oaxacan Cheese (known for its melting qualities), or roast down specialty Red Chilis like Ancho Chilis for the Red Sauce

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Our simple Cheesy Stuffed Peppers is a great recipe to use with leftovers you have around the house<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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You absolutely can use these ingredients if you have them, but to make this a quick and simple dish, we\u2019ll share with you the best alternatives to use for these specialty ingredients. The results are still great. Amazing tasting Cheesy Stuffed Peppers that are light and crispy, and a Red Chili Sauce absolutely loaded with flavor

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What ingredients are needed to make this dish<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s kick off with the Peppers. For the best result we recommend using large Peppers, which is why Poblano Peppers are the ideal choice. If you don\u2019t have any Poblanos you can easily replace them with other Peppers (any color is fine too!)

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Suitable alternatives are Jalapenos or even Bell Peppers. Just be aware that the different sized peppers will require filling. You\u2019ll obviously need a lot more Cheese filling to stuff a Bell Pepper than you would a Jalapeno! Also, each Pepper is going to vary wildly in their spice levels. So, choose warily based on your spice tolerance. A little spice is fine, so we recommend keeping a few of those seeds in the Peppers as you go

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For the cheese, a great alternative to Oaxacan Cheese is simple Mozzarella. You will achieve the same gooey, melty texture using Mozzarella along with that famous \u2018cheese pull\u2019 that we all know and love. Mozzarella doesn\u2019t pack a lot of flavor, however. Therefore, we recommend mixing in some Sharp Cheddar Cheese to give the dish some real cheesy flavor

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For the Red Sauce, you can roast down some beautiful Ancho Chilis to produce an authentic Mexican Red Sauce. Alternatively, you can make a super easy Red Sauce using canned Tomatoes and just load the dish up with spices. We combined Chipotles in Adobo Sauce along with a spice mix of Smoked Paprika, Cumin Powder, Coriander Powder, and Chili. It\u2019s a simple, affordable, and delicious way to make a beautiful tasting spicy Red Sauce that\u2019s perfect for our Cheesy Stuffed Peppers recipe

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Make a cut along the length of the Peppers, then another one to form a ‘T’. This will allow you to remove the filling and then stuff it generously with Cheese<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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Stuffing the Peppers with Cheese<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The best method to stuff the Peppers is to make a cut along one side of the Pepper with a sharp knife. Then at the top (near the stem), make a small T cut. You will then be able to slightly open up the Pepper enough to pull out the Seeds and flesh inside

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You don\u2019t want to make a particularly large cut. In fact, the smaller the cut you can make to be able to get the Cheese inside the better. The \u2018T cut\u2019 is a great way to get inside the Pepper without having to remove any of the actual Pepper to do so

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Once all the flesh is removed, stuff it with the shredded Cheese. You can really pack it in there, so keep stuffing until there\u2019s no more room. Repeat this process for the remaining Peppers and then it\u2019s time to heat up the Oil ready for frying

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Deep Fry the Peppers in Oil set at 320F. This will ensure a crispy, golden-brown batter with perfectly cooked Peppers and melty Cheese<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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Our Cheesy Stuffed Peppers are Deep Fried in Oil at 320F<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Unlike other frying, the Peppers are fried at a slightly lower temperature. Usually, you would look to deep fry at around the 350F \u2013 375F mark, however for this dish we fry at 320F. This is mainly due to the balance of cooking required to cook everything evenly

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The outer shell of the Poblano Pepper is quite thick, so requires a little bit more time in the Oil to get perfectly cooked. Reducing the temperature ensures the Pepper gets properly cooked without the Batter burning. Fry the Peppers for about 5 minutes until the Batter is a rich golden-brown color and then lay them on a wire rack to cool

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Preparing the simple Spicy Red Sauce<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For the Red Sauce we are keeping things very simple and easy for this recipe. Simply add a can of Crushed Tomatoes into a saucepan along with Paprika, Cumin, Coriander Powder, and Chili. The secret ingredient to extract some authentic Mexican smoked flavor comes from the addition of Chipotles in Adobo Sauce

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A simple Red Sauce compliments the Cheesy Stuffed Peppers perfectly<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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This amazing ingredient consists of wonderful Chipotle Peppers which are grilled and then jarred in a Tomato based sauce. The flavors are rich, with smoky, spicy flavors that will instantly transport any home cooked dish to a Mexican-restaurant quality level

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Cook the sauce for about 15 minutes over a medium heat. You want to ensure that it\u2019s simmering, but not a ranging boil. After 15 minutes the sauce will be a beautiful thick consistency which is great for coating \/ dipping the Peppers

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If you want your Red Sauce to be a little more developed in flavors, we recommend you can add some oven roasted Red Bell Peppers. This will add about 1 hour to the cooking time, as it involves roasting, cooling, then peeling the Peppers before they are blitzed in the blender. If you\u2019re interested in this sauce, check out our recipe here<\/a>. Otherwise, the simple Red Sauce in our recipe below will be great with your Cheesy Stuffed Peppers

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