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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 ½ 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. They’re a great size and super versatile for baking or cooking.
Glass mixing bowls. I prefer using glass mixing bowls over plastic. They’re more sturdy and won’t 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 350°F 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 ½ cups whole milk
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ 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 350°F 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 ½ 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.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe! The entire family enjoyed it! It was easy to make and full of flavor!
This recipe was simple and delicious!
I made a comment last week that never went through. I added a layer of leftover Easter ham to it (trying to use it up). It turned out wonderful and I will be making this again.
I prepared this for Easter Sunday Brunch and everyone loved it. I followed recipe as written except added a little Cotija cheese on top. Will definitely make again. Gracias Isabel!
All of the flavor of chile relleno, in a neat package. I’ll be making this again.
This was delicious! I was worried it was too many peppers but it was perfect. I really enjoy how these cooking challenges inspire me to try new things. Thank you.
This casserole is creamy and delicious. The family loved it. I reduced the recipe by half and it was a perfect light meal served with a simple salad and some corn bread. I’ll definitely make this again.
This was wonderful-made for office brunch this morning.
My huband loves chile rellenos but we don’t like to make a lot of fried food at home and they are a lot of work to make. This is a great alternative and very easy to make. I will definitely make these regularly.
My wife and I love authentic Chiles Relenos but they are a pain to make so this recipe caught my eye. We loved it! Tasted very much like the real deal so this is now a go-to dish for us. Easy to customize too with your favorite ingredients.