An Inspired Cook

Poblano Chiles are a great pepper to stuff.  Their size and shape enable you to stuff them with almost anything.  They have a mild taste and a meaty texture that will hold all that goodness inside.  I like to bake them with with a creamy cheese filling, grilled chicken with corn salsa over top.  And for a little added crunch I coat them with a bread crumb coating.  Sometimes I go vegetarian and switch out the grilled chicken for black beans.  It takes a little prep work but it’s so worth it when you taste all the flavors going on inside this poblano chile.

If you can roast the poblanos outdoors it makes for easy work.  My brother Carl made this homemade gas grill that works perfectly for roasting chiles.

Place the poblanos over the grill and they will start to blister and pop.  Use long handled tongs to turn the peppers so that they blister over all sides.

These are roasted just about perfect.  Now place all the poblano peppers into a plastic bag and seal for 20 – 30 minutes to steam.  The skin will peel off easily under running water.

While the poblanos are steaming, I’m going to season 3 chicken thighs with Arizona Dreaming (Southwest Seasoning) and drizzle with olive oil.

Be generous with your seasoning.  Grill over medium high heat for about 20 minutes give or take, turning the chicken after 10 minutes. ** Arizona Dreaming is a salt free seasoning so I added a little salt.

I’m going to stuff the poblanos with a cream cheese and monterey jack blend with some garlic and green onion, with some corn salsa spooned over the top.  It’s too early to get good corn on the cob so I used canned corn for the salsa.

In a medium sized bowl, add 8 ounces whipped cream cheese, 8 ounces shredded Monterey Jack Cheese, 1/4 cup of sliced green onion and 1 clove garlic minced.  Combine all the ingredients together.  The mixture will be thick.

Once the chicken has cooked and rested a few minutes, slice into bite size pieces.

Run the poblanos under running water and gently peel off the outer charred skin.

Slit each poblano from the stem to the bottom and gently remove the seeds.

Spoon some grilled chicken into each poblano pepper.

Next comes a big dollop of cream cheese filling topped by some corn salsa.

They are stuffed and ready to go.  But I want a little crunch on the outside so I’m first going to dip each one into a beaten egg.

And then into some bread crumbs.  About half way through I ran out of breadcrumbs so I used Panko crumbs to finish the rest.  I think the bread crumbs coated the peppers easier and had a better taste but in a bind the Panko worked well as a substitute.

Line the bottom half of a broiler pan with aluminum foil.  Place the poblanos on the top pan and drizzle with olive oil.

Place in a 400 degree oven to bake for 15 – 20 minutes.

I thought a little red was needed and spooned some homemade salsa over top.

Every bite was layered in flavors!

Stuffed Poblanos

8 large Poblano Peppers
3 Chicken Thighs, skinless and boneless
1 – 2 tablespoons Southwest Seasoning (I used Arizona Dreaming from Penzey’s)
Olive Oil, for drizzling
1 (8 oz) container Whipped Cream Cheese
1 (8 oz) package Monterey Jack Cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Green Onion, sliced tops only
1 clove Garlic, grated on a microplane grater
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups Plain Bread Crumbs
Corn Salsa
Traditional Salsa, optional

Roast Poblanos over a gas grill turning every few minutes until charred on all sides.  Remove chiles and place in a plastic ziplock bag for 20 –  30 minutes to steam.   Run the poblanos under running water and gently peel off the outer charred skin.  Slit the poblanos from stem to the tip and remove the seeds from inside.

Prepare chicken thighs for the grill.  Sprinkle southwest seasoning over both sides and drizzle with olive oil.  Place on hot grill turning after 10 minutes to cook the other side.  After another 10 minutes check to see that the juices run clear before removing from grill.  Let chicken rest for 5 minutes, slice into small bite size pieces.

Combine cream cheese, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, sliced green onion and grated garlic.  The mixture will be thick.

Divide chicken and cheese mixture and place equal amounts of first chicken pieces and then cheese filling into poblano peppers.  Top each poblano with corn salsa.

Beat 2 eggs into a medium sized bowl and place breadcrumbs into another medium bowl.  Gently dip the stuffed poblano in the beaten egg and then into the breadcrumbs.  Place stuffed peppers on a broiler pan lined with aluminum foil.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Place in a 400 degree oven for 15 – 20 minutes or until cheese has thoroughly melted.

Serve with traditional salsa if desired.

Makes 8 stuffed poblano peppers.

** An alternative to roasting chiles on the grill is to place under the broiler at the highest temperature.  Chiles will start to blister after a few minutes.  Turn the chiles so that they blister on all sides.  Place in a plastic zip lock bag for 20 minutes to steam.