Chile Relleno has been a large part of my food education, since I was a little boy. I remember eating Relleno’s at family dinners and enjoying the wonder of which pepper was gonna be the hot one. As I’ve gotten older, and moved to California, the search for the ideal Chile Relleno has become one of disappointment. Oftentimes, when I order Relleno at a Mexican restaurant, the pepper arrives covered in a fried egg batter and the pepper isn’t a Pasilla pepper but some sort of Bell Pepper. No, no, no, NO. There are exceptions to that thought, (the Chile Relleno at Riviera in Redondo Beach Riviera is quite good) but those are just that… exceptions.

A few years back, with the help of Rolando, I embarked on the journey to create my own Chile Relleno. I call it the Rampage Relleno. The first item you’ll note missing, is an egg battered shell. There is no frying and no egg involved whatsoever. It’s about the Pasilla Pepper, what’s stuffed into it and the sauce on top. Let’s begin.

Rampage Relleno

Serving 4.

4 Pasilla Peppers

12 Medium Shrimp (tail off) or 6 Large Shrimp (Tail off) and diced.

One Cup Broccoli Florets (Steamed)

One Cup chopped White Mushrooms

One Cup Asparagus Tips

12 OZ Tomato Sauce

1/4 OZ Henry’s Salsa (available by name at Barnacles in Hermosa Beach)

Oaxacan Cheese.

Turn oven to 350 degrees.

The first thing I do is hold the Pasilla’s over an open flame on the stove. This chars the skin and when finished, I place them under cold water and remove that skin. My suggestion is to wear Latex gloves when removing the skin and leave the gloves on for the next part. I wear contact lenses and the juice from the spicy pepper will give you a third degree burn on your eyeballs if not careful.

After removing the skin, slit the pepper down the middle from the stem very nearly to the end of the pepper. Be careful to not slice all the way through, as you are creating a pouch/pocket for the stuffing. After creating the slit, deseed the pepper. Again, leave the gloves on as this is some spicy stuff you’re dealing with. Place peppers to the side.

I next steam the broccoli. It’s not necessary to steam the broccoli until it is limp as it will also be baked, but I find the broccoli is more receptive to baking inside the pepper if it is steamed first.

Place the Broccoli, diced Shrimp, Asparagus and Mushrooms into a bowl and mix. Then, using a small spoon, spoon the mixture and stuff it into the Pasilla Pepper. There should be enough stuffing to fill four Pasilla’s.

Next, take a slice, maybe two depending on your lactic ability, of Oaxacan Cheese and cover the slit of the pepper. Don’t use Provolone, don’t use Swiss and for the love of God, don’t use American Cheese. Use Oaxacan Cheese. Got it?!?

Alright, after that’s all done, place the four peppers on a baking sheet and place in the oven, cooking for thirty-five minutes.

As the peppers bake, warm the tomato sauce on the stove. As it starts to slowly bubble, add Henry’s Salsa. Henry makes his Salsa at Barnacles in Hermosa. Since many of you do not have the ability to gain access to Henry’s salsa, yet, grab your favorite hot sauce and add it to the tomato sauce. If you’re less adventurous, add your favorite spices to the sauce.

After thirty-five minutes, the Peppers should be done. Remove and plate the peppers and top with your spicy tomato sauce.

And voila, you have a Rampage Relleno. I, personally, like to place the pepper over Spanish Rice but I will leave that to the discretion of the chef in charge.

That’s it for this edition of Rolando Eats. Next week will be the regular blog and in two weeks another Rolando Eats. Thank you all and remember my friends to take my advice; pull down your pants and slide on the ice.