Making chile rellenos: a lesson with Fernanda

                    Elly's instructions were very precise:  "...walk up the gravel street that angles between the streets to your left and right.  Our red three-story house is beside the tin shack.  Look for the armless mannequin in the front yard.  Use something metal to bang on the gate; there is no doorbell."  The mannequin was the best landmark!

Elly and Marc, new friends here from the west coast of the US, had hired their friend/housekeeper, Fernanda, to teach them how to assemble and cook chile rellenos. Elly is an accomplished cook.  One day over lunch we all moaned that we had no clue how to make the darned things without the cheese oozing out and cooking outside the chile.  She hatched the plot to hire Fernanda, and I invited myself to watch.  Hence the directions and the mannequin photo.








Fernanda was delighful!  For me, it was a great spanish lesson, too, as of course she speaks no english.  The lesson was underway when I arrived, and I took up my position by the kitchen counter, with notebook and camera in hand.  Occasionally, she'd hand Jo Ann, Elly or me a knife or a bowl and give us instructions to chop or whip.  The guys stood back, and offered advice.

Some secrets:  the chiles get soaked in in a water/vinegar/sugar solution.  Epazote leaves line the chiles.  Don't whip more than 2 egg whites at a time.  And, the cheese is important! We used San Pablo Etla cheese, renowned for it's tart, salty taste and dry texture.  Delicious!  We used three different chiles, one of them dried.

Here, Fernanda is stuffing a chile poblano with a chunk of cheese.
















Elly jumped right in, skinning, seeding, deveining and stuffing.





















Fernanda cooked the picadillo.  She began with some cooked chicken and we chopped the rest of the ingredients as directed.















A block of the Etla cheese.  It must be dry!  This block of cheese has been allowed to drain overnight.












Chile pasillo, with queso and epazote leaves.





















Another secret!  Dust the chile rellenos with flour, then sit in the whipped egg mixture.  Pour more egg mixture over the chile.

































Fernanda cooked while we whipped egg whites by hand, filled chiles, dusted chiles with flour, and dunked chiles in egg whip.

















Three samples.


















We had a thanksgiving feast, with rice and vegetables, agua de melon, and good stories around the table.  If you'd like a copy of the recipe and the method, email me!