I just realized the other day that I am approaching my 1,000th blog post! Today’s post is officially #975 and on February 16th I will have done 1,000 posts! Hard to believe! Times flies when you’re having fun! :-) Another thing I find hard to believe is not once in those 975 posts have I ever shared this recipe! Why such a big deal? Because I have been making it for close to 30 years and it’s one of our favorites! More than that….every time I make it for an “occasion” (like breakfast, brunch, or a baby/bridal shower) it has been a HUGE HIT with those who have tried it. As a matter of fact, when I used to work as a morning television talk show producer, it became MANDATORY that I bring this dish whenever we celebrated a crew member’s birthday.
So now that I have done #974 posts…I think it’s time I share this family favorite. I present you with post #975!
Chile Relleno Casserole
Ingredients:
- 1 lb. shredded monterey jack cheese
- 1 lb. shredded cheddar cheese
- 4 eggs
- 4 Tbs flour
- (1) 12 oz. can evaporated milk*
- (1) 16 oz jar salsa
- (1) 4 oz can green chiles
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
*If you don’t have any evaporated milk on hand (like me when I decided to make this) you can always make your own: To produce 1 cup of evaporated milk, simmer 2 1/4 cups of regular milk down until it becomes 1 cup. You can also substitute dry milk for evaporated milk in a recipe. If the recipe calls for 1/2 cup of evaporated milk, use 3 tablespoons of dry milk and about 3 ounces of water as a substitute.
Directions:
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, evaporated milk and flour. Set aside. Spray a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray.
Spread the can of green chiles over the bottom of the pan. Cover the chiles with all of the cheese. Pour the egg, milk and flour mixture evenly over the cheese. Spread jar of salsa over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Allow to cool and set up before serving.
Like I mentioned above, this dish is great for breakfast or brunch, but it’s also a nice change of pace for lunch or dinner too. Serve with some of your favorite muffins and the juice of your choice for a tasty, family-pleasing meal!
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Chile Relleno Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 lb. shredded monterey jack cheese
- 1 lb. shredded cheddar cheese
- 4 eggs
- 4 Tbs flour
- 12 oz. can evaporated milk*
- 16 oz jar salsa
- 4 oz can green chiles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, evaporated milk and flour. Set aside.
- Spray a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray.
- Spread the can of green chiles over the bottom of the pan. Cover the chiles with all of the cheese. Pour the egg, milk and flour mixture evenly over the cheese. Spread jar of salsa over the top.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Allow to cool and set up before serving.
I think there is WAY TOO MUCH cheese in this as written. As I was putting it together the first time I seriously thought I should cut the cheese way back but I didn’t – thought I’d give the poster the benefit of the doubt and do a first try as written. Bad Choice! As it was baking, the fat was oozing up all around the edges and thru the top layer in various parts of the casserole. I don’t even want to think what the fat grams and calorie count is! I think it could easily be cut to 8 oz. of cheddar and 8 oz. of monterey jack [or whatever blend you use] and still be flavorful. . . . . or find a healthier recipe.
I used a 7 oz. can of chopped green chilies instead of 4 oz. It was fine, not too spicy. I will try the hint of buying only canned whole chilies & chopping myself; the canned chopped ones are very bland.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I made this awesome dish for breakfast yesterday morning and my husband LOVED it! I made a couple of changes to suit us (it’s just the two of us so I didn’t want to have left overs for a week, although, now I’m wishing I did!) This was so quick and easy to put together and the taste is out of this world! Here are the changes I made:
Used an 8X8 pan (instead of 9X13)
I used a 4 oz can of HATCH chili’s
I used 3 eggs
I used cheddar, pepper jack, velveeta and mozzarella blend to equal 1/2 lb.
I sprinkled a bit of the cheese on top before baking.
I can’t tell you how much my husband raved about this! We had enough left over for breakfast this morning. Definitely a keeper. Can’t wait to try it out on company!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.My grandfather’s favorite meal when we would go to El Charros Mexican place in Mesa, AZ. He would eat half and save the rest for the next day. Thanks for the recipe.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I am sorry! I did read the recipe and comments looking for gluten free flour recommendations! I apparently missed that ? & answer in the comments section!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Jillee,
Please log in or create a free account to comment.have two Celiacs in my household, and more that have flown the coop, but visit at mealtimes! Which gluten free flour would you recommend most as a substitute for the wheat flour in this recipe? I’d love to prepare this for everyone, so I’d love to have your ideas on this! Thanks!
I made this for dinner last night and LOVED it!! I’ve made chile relleno casserole before and it was too ‘eggy’ – this was just perfect!!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Chile Rellenos is my favorite Mexican food! I wouldn’t find just 4 oz of chile peppers would be enough for me. I like to use the whole green chile peppers, they retain more flavor than chopped chile peppers. Personally, I would line the whole bottom of the casserole dish with whole chiles. In AZ we can get a small can of whole green chile peppers but I prefer a gigantic can! Love the flavor! You can also put a whole green chile pepper on a hamburger or chicken sandwich to add tons of flavor!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I think the word Rellenos means stuffed. Chilies can be stuffed with cheese or meat or I guess some veggie mixture. If you use fresh Hatch green chilies or fresh poblanos, the amount of seeds and veins you leave in them helps determine how hot they are. More seeds equals hotter.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I am guessing that even though it says “Allow to cool and set up before serving”. This dish is served warm.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Sounds like it would be great wrapped in fresh corn tortillas and served with beans & rice.
I was fascinated to see this recipe. Like Jillee, I’ve made it for decades. It has become our Christmas morning breakfast dish. I have the recipe written in a well-worn recipe book I started forever ago. I misplaced the book a few years back, and was distraught when I couldn’t remember how to assemble the dish on Christmas day. I scoured the internet searching but never found the exact recipe. When I did find my book, I made the casserole twice in a week out of sheer gratefulness to have recovered my favorite egg dish.
My recipe differs so slightly, I’m assuming it has gotten tweaked over the years as cooks generally like to suit their individual tastes.
I use 2 4-oz. cans of whole green chiles. The whole chile tastes more flavorful to me than the chopped. Because these chiles are mild, the dish is not fiery hot, just flavorful. I use 1 and 1/2 lbs. of cheese, mix in most of it with the other ingredients (except salsa) and save some for the top. It sounds like a lot of cheese, but it doesn’t taste overly cheesy when done. My recipe does not call for salsa, which is the major difference. Mine is baked at 350 for 25 min., covered with 8 oz. of tomato sauce, the remainder of the saved cheese (usually a cup or so), then baked an additional 10 min. for the cheese to melt. It never occurred to me to use salsa, so I might try that next time. This dish will rise like a souffle. It’s very pretty and so delicious.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Do you have a gluten free recommendation for the flour?
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Colleen, See my post above on the gluten free flour sub!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I had NO idea that Chili Rellenos could be so simple. I’m not into muss and fuss when I make dinner but LOVE LOVE chili rellenos. Thank you, Jillee! My only regret is that you waited for post #975 to give me a head’s up. LOL.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I love chile rellenos, I bet this is just incredible.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Have been using a similar recipe in the Crock Pot since maybe 1968 :) Cooked on high, it takes a short while for the eggs to set, while getting breakfast/brunch ready. It’s sort of a traditional Yule breakfast here, too.
Will try it in the oven :)
Please log in or create a free account to comment.This sounds really great! When our family makes chili rellenos, we wrap the stuffed chilies in wonton wrappers and fry in the skillet, rather than the egg batter. There are never any leftovers!!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Shauna, I would love to have your recipe. Will you please share it with me?
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Yes, please, Shauna, share your recipe with us – sounds fabulous!!!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.What makes it “relleno”?
Please log in or create a free account to comment.The casserole itself is not “relleno” but gets its name from the idea that it mimics the flavor of the popular dish “chilies rellenos” without having to blister, steam, peel, stuff, and fry peppers for a whole family.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.This seems like an awful lot of cheese! I love cheese, but 2 lbs.? Wondering if you could get by with 8 oz. of each.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I guess it all depends on how many you’re cooking for. Jillee’s recipe is great for a larger family and for special occasions like she mentioned. I don’t have a large family & the recipe I use, while very similar, only calls for 1/2 lb each of the cheeses instead. We also use 5 eggs instead of four. Some recipes I’ve seen also call for half & half instead of evaporated milk.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Wish I could print off a recipe without all the pictures since that uses a ton of ink.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Vickie, if you look at the end of her post, just above the video advertisement and before the comments, you’ll find a little white tab with green print that says “cleanprint”. Click on that and it will set up the blog to print without the pictures. It gives you several choices for what you want to include or exclude before you click om print.
Hope this helps.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Thank You !! What a terrific app for printing. I have been copying & pasting into a Word doc then removing the pics before printing. This is so much easier. Yeah “Clean Print”
Me, too…..just want to print without all the extra
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I select the text then do a copy and paste of the text only into a Microsoft Word document, this usually eliminates the photos. If the photos do copy, I delete them. Saves tons of ink.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Here in Texas, we use Old El Paso Chopped Green Chiles that come in a 4.5 oz can, in many of our recipes. I buy the ‘mild’.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Where do I “unsubscribe” ?? Help !! Please !!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.At the bottom of your email on the bottom left, there should be an “unsubscribe” underlined and highlighted link.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Actually in yahoo there is no unsubscribe link
Casserole looks great.
Did you make it with mild or hot chilies?
Please log in or create a free account to comment.The canned chilis can be found in milk or medium I believe. Since we have a 14YO in the house, it’ll be the mild ones.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.This looks great and I would love to make it for my family. One question, though; what kind of flour would you recommend for those of us who can’t tolerate gluten? Thanks!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.You can substitute regular plain flour with various gluten free flours. King Arthur Flour makes a gluten free flour mix, Betty Crocker has one made mostly of white rice flour, Bob’s Red Mill has a gluten free flour but this one has bean flour in it that gives a product a little different taste sometimes. You will never know the difference in a recipe like this by taste when you sub gluten free flour. Some Walmarts carry gluten free flour in their baking section, most big chain grocery stores do also.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.To add to the post of how to cook the fresh chili, you can also bake them till they blister and then let them steam. It is easier and quicker.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Trish,
Please log in or create a free account to comment.What temperature and how long? Blistering on the stovetop doesn’t take long on a gas flame and doesn’t overcook the peppers. Just curious.
Easy, peasy! Just the way I like it!!!! Thanks!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.This looks delicious can’t wait to try it.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Hi I dont live in the US so i’m not quite sure what green chiles are. I know chillies and they’re really hot and I get the fresh ones. Please help.
Thx in advance
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I wondered the same thing. If they are the same as the green chillies here then this dish would probably be too hot to eat. If they are different, just wondering what I could substitute please.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Here in the far-western part of the United States the green chiles in question are a very mild unripened chile called an Anaheim chile (or chili.) One brand, Ortega, is so common here that Anaheim chiles are often referred to as Ortega chiles. Poblano chiles are another relatively mild chile used in the same way. Both chiles are often found in Chile Rellanos, cheese-stuffed chiles dipped in batter, fried, and sauced in various ways. The casserole Jillee shares is an example of an easier family-style version of Chile Rellanos often found in this region.
Anaheim and Poblano chiles can also be found fresh here, and you prepare them by roasting them over an open flame till the skin is blistered and brown or black, then putting them in a bag or other container to steam for a few minutes. At that point the outer skin is be very easy to peel off by hand (most people wear kitchen gloves for this, even though these are mild chiles.) After peeling them, you slice them open, remove the stem and seeds, and cut or slice as desired. Canned chiles have this work already done, and usually only contain water, and sometimes a little salt, in addition to the chiles. They just need to be drained before use.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Usually Jalapeño chilies that are chopped up in a can. Aboard, you can find them in the grocery store in ethnic cuisine aisle.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Usually Jalapeño chilies that are chopped up in a can. Aboard, you can find them in the grocery store in ethnic cuisine aisle. They are a bit spicey but not too hot.
Jalapeños are significantly hotter than Anaheims and Poblanos, and they are much smaller. Though they are used in poppers, they are not normally used in chiles rellenos. Please don’t use Jalapeños in this dish unless everyone who will be eating it loves hot things.
Margaret, you are sooooooooo correct on this. Besides, green chiles and jalapenos taste different. I love poblanos and anaheims, but can’t stand jalapenos. Anaheims are also sometimes called Hatch chile because they primarily come from Hatch, New Mexico.