You’d normally take the time to stuff the poblano peppers for authentic Mexican chile rellenos. For this chile rellenos casserole, however, we’re letting the layers speak for themselves, in particularly the creamy, fluffy egg topping.
Chile Relleno Casserole
Updated on Oct. 20, 2024
The chile relleno recipe, which hails from Puebla, Mexico, translates as “stuffed peppers.” But we’re taking an easier route for this chile relleno casserole recipe by layering the peppers, meat, cheese and egg mixture in a single dish. It’s quicker and less fussy but delivers the same great taste.
The fluffy egg and melted cheese on top make any chile relleno casserole so comforting and inviting. That also makes it versatile. You can try this Mexican chile relleno casserole recipe for breakfast, lunch or weekday dinner. It’s also a dish you can take to a potluck or family gathering.
Ingredients for Chile Relleno Casserole
- Poblano peppers: These aren’t too spicy. They give off a sweet and smoky flavor. They also have a large surface area to make the layers.
- Ground beef: Choose a lean 80/20 mix for the meat to be flavorful but not too fatty.
- Onion: Chop a small onion for aromatics.
- Garlic: Mince the garlic cloves to boost the savory flavors.
- Cumin: Ground cumin powder adds depth and a gentle heat.
- Salt: You need a little salt to bring out the combined flavors.
- Pepper: Freshly ground black pepper lends a gentle background heat.
- Crushed red pepper flakes: These give a spicier and more distinctive heat.
- Eggs: Use whole eggs (including their yolks), for the creamy topping that will puff up to become fluffy.
- Cream: Choose half and half cream to blend the eggs and bind the entire casserole.
- Flour: A little all-purpose flour is required to thicken the egg mix.
- Cheddar cheese: This is one of three shredded cheeses that you’ll divide into layers.
- Monterey Jack: This cheese gives a creamy and tangy flavor to the casserole.
- Pepper Jack: Shredded pepper jack adds that spicy note we love in Mexican dishes.
Directions
Step 1: Prepare the poblano peppers
Place all the whole poblano peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet. Broil them close to the heat for about five minutes so that the skin chars and blisters. Rotate them with tongs and continue until all sides are blackened. Immediately place the peppers in a large bowl and allow to cool for 20 minutes. Peel off and discard the charred skins, remove the stems and seeds, and cut the peppers into halves.
Editor’s Tip: Cover the charred peppers in aluminum foil when resting to make the skins easier to peel. Use the tip of a knife to nick the skin and peel, of dip your fingers in cold water and peel by hand.
Step 2: Cook the ground beef and seasoning
Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large skillet, cook ground beef and chopped onion over a medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes until the beef is no longer pink. Leave it to brown at first and then break into crumbles. Drain any excess fat. Stir in the chopped garlic, cumin powder, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes then set aside.
Step 3: Prepare the egg mix
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, cream and flour until smooth and not lumpy and then set aside.
Step 4: Build the layers and bake
Cover the bottom of a greased baking dish with half of the peppers, laid flat. Top with half of the meat and seasoning mixture. Cover with a layer of shredded cheddar, Monterey Jack and pepper jack cheese. Add another layer of the remaining meat mixture and the rest of the peppers. Top with a final layer of cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese and gently pour the egg mixture over the ingredients so that it covers the surface to the edges. Bake, covered, for 30 to 35 minutes until bubbly. Sprinkle with the remaining pepper jack cheese and bake uncovered for a further 10 minutes until golden brown around the edges.
Recipe Variations
- Time-saver tip: You can skip the rigmarole of roasting poblano peppers by using canned whole green chillies. Just drain, de-seed and layer as before.
- Bulk up: Boost the volume and the texture by adding freshly chopped spinach, black beans or even chopped chorizo
- Use bell peppers: If you can’t get poblano peppers, this recipe works just as well with green bell peppers, prepared in the same way
How to Store Chile Relleno Casserole
Allow to cool and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Since the dish contains eggs, you wouldn’t want to store it for longer. Reheat in the oven or microwave, although it’s pretty good cold too.
Can you make chile relleno casserole ahead of time?
To save time, roast the peppers ahead so that you’ve done all the picky work. You can assemble the pepper, meat and shredded layers the day before, storing the covered dish in the refrigerator overnight. Make the egg mix fresh and add it once you’re ready to bake.
Chile Relleno Casserole Tips
What can you eat with a Mexican chile relleno casserole?
Since this is a popular breakfast/brunch dish, you can serve it with homemade tortillas or hash browns. For lunch or dinner, it’s often eaten with Spanish rice, pico de gallo or black beans.
How do you serve chile relleno casserole?
Fresh from the oven, these slices of creamy cheese, meat and pepper are great with a cooling sour cream dip, fresh salsa or tangy tomato or tomatillo salsa. Scatter some fresh cilantro on top too for color, with a squeeze of lime just before serving as a pleasant introduction.
How do I spice up chile relleno?
Some people will expect a dish called chile relleno to be spicy. If you don’t want to disappoint them, you can sneak some sliced jalapeno peppers into the pepper layer and add cayenne pepper, chili powder and paprika to the meat mix.
Chile Relleno Casserole
Prep Time
40 min
Cook Time
40 min
Yield
12 servings
Ingredients
- 5 poblano peppers
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 5 large eggs
- 1-1/2 cups half-and-half cream
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- 1-1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
- 1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese, divided
- Optional: Sour cream, salsa and cilantro
Directions
- Place peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet. Broil 4 in. from heat until skins blister, about 5 minutes. With tongs, rotate peppers a quarter turn. Broil and rotate until all sides are blistered and blackened. Immediately place peppers in a large bowl; let stand, covered, 20 minutes. Peel off and discard charred skins. Remove stems and seeds. Cut peppers in half; set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, cook ground beef and onion over medium heat 10-12 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, breaking into crumbles; drain. Stir in garlic, cumin, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes; set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk eggs, cream and flour; set aside.
- Place half of the peppers in a greased 13x9-in. baking dish; top with half of the meat mixture. Layer with 3/4 cup cheddar cheese, 3/4 cup Monterey Jack cheese and 1/2 cup pepper jack cheese, remaining meat mixture and remaining peppers. Top with remaining cheddar cheese and Monterey Jack cheese. Gently pour egg mixture over ingredients. Bake, covered, until bubbly, 30-35 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining pepper jack cheese; bake 10 minutes longer until golden brown around the edges. If desired, top with optional ingredients.
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