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This chile relleno casserole features layers of roasted poblanos, melted Monterey and Colby jack cheese, and fluffy eggs, all baked in a large dish instead of individually stuffed and fried. Great for brunch, lunch, or dinner!
Easy Chile Relleno Casserole
When you want chiles rellenos but don’t feel like frying, you need to make this chile relleno casserole. It’s a really great breakfast recipe, but I’ve also eaten this with corn tortillas and spicy salsa for dinner, and it’s just so delicious! The recipe video went viral on Instagram as soon as I posted it, and I knew then and there that this recipe was a total hit!
Here’s why I love this recipe:
- Easy to make. Traditional chiles rellenos can be a pretty labor-intensive dish since each poblano pepper is individually stuffed with cheese, coated in a batter, and then fried. This dish avoids all that and is cooked in the oven instead while still achieving the signature fluffy, egg-based batter everyone loves.
- Baked, not fried. This casserole not only lets you enjoy all the flavors and elements of classic chile rellenos in a fraction of the time and with half the effort, but it’s also baked and requires no frying!
- Enjoy morning, noon, and night! This is a great recipe to serve for weekend brunch, makes a delicious vegetarian dinner, or can be made ahead and enjoyed for breakfast and lunch throughout the week.
Ingredients
- Poblano peppers: I used fresh poblano peppers that were roasted and peeled. I found them to have better flavor and more like a chile relleno than if using canned green chiles. I roasted the peppers under the broiler in the oven, but you could also roast them over an open flame on a gas stove.
- Shredded cheese: I used a mix of shredded Monterey jack and shredded Colby jack cheese. You could also use Oaxaca/Quesillo or Chihuahua cheese.
- Egg mixture: The egg mixture poured on top of the casserole combines eggs, whole milk, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and seasonings for the perfect fluffy texture. This is the binding agent for the casserole.
- Seasonings: I used a mixture of kosher salt, coarse black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and oregano for extra flavor.
How to Make Chile Relleno Casserole
Roast the poblano peppers in the oven directly under the broiler or on the stove over an open flame until blackened and blistered. If you’ve never roasted poblanos before, here’s a more in-depth post all about how to roast poblano peppers.
Once roasted, cover them with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. This will trap the heat and soften the pepper skin, making it easier to remove.
Once softened, peel and remove as much of the skin as you can on each pepper. You can do this by hand or gently scrape with a butter knife. Make a vertical slit down the middle of each pepper and remove the stems, seeds and veins.
Layer the peppers and cheese. Grease a 2 quart or 9×9 inch baking dish and place 3 roasted poblano peppers in an even layer on the bottom of the dish. Top the peppers with 1 cup Monterey jack cheese and ยฝ cup Colby jack cheese. Repeat this process with the remaining peppers and cheese.
Make egg mixture. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, flour, baking powder, kosher salt, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and coarse ground pepper together until fully combined.
Pour the mixture into the baking dish with the peppers and cheese.
Bake the casserole for 45 minutes until the edges of the casserole are golden brown and the middle is puffed up and set.
Rest. Once baked, allow the casserole to rest at room temperature for about 10-15 minutes.
Serve and enjoy! Top with chopped cilantro and serve immediately with sour cream and your favorite salsa.
Tips
- This is a great make-ahead dish. You can roast the poblanos up to 2 days ahead of time. You can also assemble the chile and shredded cheese layers and store them in the fridge the night before.
- Want to add more protein? Mix in some cooked chorizo, chicken, or ground beef during the layering process.
- Make this a bit more filling and nutritious by adding in some corn, black beans, or spinach.
Recommended Tools
Baking sheets. These are my favorite baking sheets. Theyโre a great size and super versatile for baking or cooking.
Glass mixing bowls. I prefer using glass mixing bowls over plastic. Theyโre more sturdy and wonโt stain.
Ceramic baking dishes. This set of 3 comes in all different sizes and is one of those kitchen items that will be weekly!
Storing and Reheating
To store, place in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 1 week.
To freeze, place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
To reheat, place in the microwave in 1-minute increments until warmed through. To reheat from frozen in the oven, bake at 350ยฐF for about 20 minutes until warmed.
Chile Relleno Casserole
Ingredients
- 6 medium poblano peppers
- Cooking spray or olive oil, for greasing
- 2 cups shredded Monterey jack cheese, divided
- 1 cup shredded Colby jack cheese, divided
- 5 large eggs
- 1 ยฝ cups whole milk
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ยฝ teaspoon kosher salt
- ยฝ teaspoon garlic powder
- ยฝ teaspoon onion powder
- ยผ teaspoon dried oregano
- ยผ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- For serving: chopped cilantro, sour cream, roasted tomato salsa
Instructions
- Set your oven rack directly underneath the broiler and turn the broiler on high. Place the poblano peppers on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and broil for 5 minutes on each side until the skin is mostly blackened and blistered.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and loosely cover it with aluminum foil or plastic wrap to trap in the heat. Allow the peppers to steam and the skin to soften for 5 minutes.
- Peel, rub off, and discard as much of the loose skin as you can from each pepper.
- Make a vertical slit down one side of the peppers and remove and discard the stem, seeds, and veins. Set the prepared peppers aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350ยฐF and grease a 2-quart or 9×9-inch baking dish with cooking spray or olive oil.
- Lay 3 of the roasted peppers on the baking dish in a single, even layer. Sprinkle the top with 1 cup of Monterey jack cheese and ยฝ cup of Colby jack cheese. Repeat the layers with the remaining peppers and shredded cheese.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, flour, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and black pepper until fully combined.
- Pour the mixture on top of the layered cheese and poblanos.
- Bake for 45 minutes until it is puffed up in the center and the eggs are set and golden around the edges.
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped cilantro and enjoy.
Video
Notes
- This is a great make-ahead dish. You can roast the poblanos up to 2 days ahead of time. You can also assemble the chile and shredded cheese layers and store them in the fridge the night before.
- I used shredded Monterey jack and Colby jack cheese, but this would also be great with Quesillo or Chihuahua cheese.
- Never roasted peppers before? Here are more tips and tricks on how to roast poblano peppers.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Really enjoyed this. Iโve always like chile relleno but dreaded the fat and mess of deep frying. This will be my preference going forward. Bookmarked!
Loved your recipe!!
Made this for my husband and he loved it!
I may be the cook, but my husband is the official food tester in our household. He loved Chile Relleno Casserole and rated it a 5-star! If the chiles are pre-roasted and in the freezer, the ease of making this recipe makes it a quick favorite for any meal of the day, especially for weekend company brunch. I served it with my roasted tomato salsa, sour cream, and my garden’s fresh cilantro.
It was delicious. My family loved it. I will definitely make it again.
This recipe was so easy to make. I was able to prep ahead of time, making it very easy to put together later. Perfect for the busy on-the-go fam. My family loved it!! I added shredded chicken and corn, for added protein.
My favorite Mexican dish is chile relleno. I wanted to prepare this dish for my family as they are more picky than I am. They all told me they loved it. Watching everyone love this dish and telling me they wanted it again was my favorite part. I still love classic chile relleno the best, but I will be making this again as it was so well received.
What a tasty casserole! Perfect for any meal of the day and so full of flavor!
This chile relleno casserole tastes amazing! I love to eat chile rellenos but donโt always like to make them. This will be my new go to when I want a chile relleno. I like that it can be a side dish and paired with something else. Thank you!
Another delicious recipe from Isabel! Light and fluffy texture. Perfect for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Iโll be making this for Easter Brunch.