This chile relleno casserole is whole green chiles stuffed with Monterey Jack cheese, then baked in an egg batter and covered in more cheese and fresh cilantro. An easy vegetarian meal that tastes like your favorite Mexican restaurant but without the frying!
I love ordering chile rellenos at my local Mexican restaurant – these battered and fried stuffed peppers are just SO delicious. Chile relleno casserole has all of the same flavors but with way less work. Serve your casserole with other Mexican food recipes like black beans and rice, avocado corn salad or Mexican coleslaw for a memorable meal.
Every time I go out for Mexican food, I order a combo plate with a chile relleno on it. Those battered stuffed peppers are one of my favorite foods of all time! This chile relleno casserole has many of the same flavors, but in a convenient baked form to feed a crowd, without any deep frying involved.
Table of Contents
Chile Relleno Casserole Ingredients
To make this recipe, you will need whole green chiles, Monterey jack cheese, large eggs, milk, flour, baking powder, cheddar cheese, cilantro and toppings of your choice.
How Do You Make Chile Relleno Casserole?
Preheat the oven, then coat a baking dish with cooking spray. Stuff each one of the chiles with a stick of Monterey jack cheese. Place the chiles in a single layer in the prepared casserole dish. Pour the eggs, milk, flour and baking powder into a blender, then blend until smooth. Pour the egg mixture over the chiles in the pan, then add the shredded cheddar cheese on top. Bake until the casserole is golden brown and puffy. Add a sprinkle of fresh cilantro, then serve with any toppings you like.
Tips For The Perfect Dish
- I use a blender to make the batter because it’s tricky to get everything to blend together uniformly with a whisk in a bowl. If you don’t have a blender, a food processor will also work.
- It’s best to use freshly shredded cheddar cheese in this casserole. The bags of pre-shredded cheese from the store often contain preservatives and anti caking agents and do not melt well.
- Leftover chile relleno casserole will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Canned green chilis typically come with most of the seeds removed. It’s always best to take a quick peek in the chile before you stuff it to remove any stray seeds that might be left behind.
- I find this recipe doesn’t need any added salt, as there is already salt in the cheese and peppers.
Quick Tip
If you’re not a cilantro fan, feel free to use green onions instead.
Recipe FAQs
The most commonly used peppers for chile relleno are anaheim peppers and poblano peppers. Anaheim peppers are in these photos, and they come conveniently roasted and peeled inside cans in the Mexican section of the grocery store. You can definitely roast your own peppers. Using the canned variety is a lot less work and tastes just as good in my opinion. Hatch chiles are also a good option.
This chile relleno casserole is not spicy. If you’re looking for a spicier version, you could use a spicy cheese in the filling, or add hot sauce to the batter.
FOLLOW ME
Flavor Variations
This recipe is delicious as-is, but you can customize the flavors to your tastes.
- Peppers: You can roast and peel poblano peppers and use them instead of the canned green chiles.
- Cheese: Feel free to swap out the cheddar and Monterey jack for other options such as mozzarella, pepper jack cheese, oaxaca cheese, provolone or queso asadero.
- Seasonings: You can add some spices to the egg batter such as taco seasoning, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder or onion powder.
- Toppings: Top your casserole with pico de gallo, a drizzle of enchilada sauce, sour cream, olives, avocado or salsa verde.
I always keep cans of green chiles in my pantry so that I can make this recipe whenever the craving strikes. With all the eggs in the batter, this dish even makes a great brunch option!
No need to get out the deep fryer for great chile rellenos, this easy casserole is all you need to get those same restaurant style flavors.
More Mexican Recipes
Love This Recipe?
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
Chile Relleno Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 7 ounce cans whole green chiles drained
- 8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese cut into 3 inch sticks
- 8 eggs
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- assorted toppings such as pico de gallo, sour cream and avocado optional
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9″x13″ baking pan with cooking spray.
- Stuff each chile with a stick of cheese and place the chiles in a single layer in the pan.
- Place the eggs, milk, flour and baking powder in a blender. Blend until smooth.
- Pour the egg batter over the chiles and sprinkle the top with cheddar cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until light golden brown and puffy. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve with additional toppings if desired.
Notes
- It’s best to use freshly shredded cheddar cheese in this casserole. The bags of pre-shredded cheese from the store often contain preservatives and anti caking agents and do not melt well.
- Leftover chile relleno casserole will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Canned chilies typically come with most of the seeds removed. It’s always best to take a quick peek in the chile before you stuff it to remove any stray seeds that might be left behind.
Really good recipe and much healthier since it’s not fried but tasted just as good!
This one is a keeper!!
An easy way to get the chiles relleno flavor without the mess and fat of deep frying.
In keeping with a traditional merengue, I made one change: I set aside 6 of the egg whites and whipped them separately until stiff peaks formed, then folded them into the batter. This made the casserole light, airy and very close in texture to a restaurant relleno.
This is a fun recipe. I used small poblanos and roasted them first. The toppings are important. Next time I might use pepper jack cheese inside. Like I said, a fun recipe!
Great recipe. I had to use canned chiles, but when hatch season rolls around again, I’m making it from fresh roasted chiles. The only change I made was adding a pinch of salt to the batter. Delicious!
After charring an annual batch of Hatch chile peppers I was looking for a few new recipes. This one is delicious! I used my charred, peeled and seeded Hatch peppers, and stuffed them with part Jack cheese and part Colby Jack. I added chopped green onions to the egg mixture. (I used fresh farm eggs.) And I topped it with a Mexican cheese blend. My husband, who is a chile relleno fanatic, LOVED IT! I will definitely try again, even with other fresh peppers after the Hatch are gone. I guess I would use canned peppers as a last resort, but we can get a good variety of fresh peppers year round here. Thank you!
Curious – did you blend green onion in with egg mixture or simply place on top of batter?