chiles

I picked up some nice looking poblano chiles from my CSA last week and wanted something other than chiles rellenos to make with them. This looked good, with chorizo and goat cheese. Serves 4:

• 4 large (about 1 1/4 pounds total) fresh poblano chiles, look for straight ones
• 1 pound Mexican chorizo
• 2 cups diced white onion (about 1 medium onion)
• Salt
• 1 pound zucchini, diced
• 6 ounces goat cheese
• 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
• ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
• ¼ cup chopped pine nuts
• 2 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

Roast the poblano chiles directly over a gas flame or under a very hot broiler on a baking sheet, turning regularly until the skins have blistered and blackened on all sides, about 5 minutes for open flame, about 10 minutes for broiler. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let stand 5 minutes.

Rub off the blackened skin, then cut an incision in the side of each one, starting 1/2-inch below the stem end and continuing to the tip. Make two more cuts on either side of that opening, next to the stem, to extend the open at the top, about 1/2-inch on both sides. Open up the poblanos and remove all the seeds. Rinse the the chiles,to remove the remaining seeds, being careful not to rip the opening any wider; and drain on paper towels, cut-side down.

Remove the casings and crumble the chorizo into a 12” non-stick skillet set over high heat. Cook for 5 minutes, using a spoon to break up any large pieces, until the chorizo is nicely browned and cooked through. Lower the temperature to medium, scoop in the diced onion, zucchini, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Stir to combine, then cover and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until the zucchini has softened. Remove from the heat and cool completely.

Preheat the oven to 375°. Crumble the goat cheese over the chorizo mixture and stir to combine. Stuff each poblano with 1/4 of the chorizo-goat cheese mixture and then fold the chile around the sides of the filling leaving a gap in the center. Place the filled chiles into a 13 x 9-inch casserole dish and wrap tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes.

Heat the olive oil in a 10-inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, scoop in the panko crumbs and pine nuts. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture is golden brown. Cool completely. While the chiles are baking, stir the chopped cilantro and 1/4 teaspoon salt into the panko/almond mixture. Remove the casserole from the oven, slide the chiles onto a serving dish and sprinkle the panko topping over the top. Serve and enjoy!

My verdict: I think I liked this more than Frank did. The stuffed poblanos were a little dry. It may have been from a slightly overcooked chorizo mix, or the fact that no one remembered to buy a zucchini, so we went without. If I made them again, I’d probably only cook the mix for about 10 minutes, since it will have more cooking time in the oven.

It was funny, because we both had one poblano that was really hot and one that was totally mild. I preferred the hot chile—it gave the dish more flavor.

I roasted and prepped the poblanos ahead of time, stuffed and baked them the next day. You can stuff them and refrigerate until you’re ready to bake them.

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