Rice with Poblano Chili Peppers

Poblano chili peppers are the most versatile Mexican chili pepper. They are used for stuffed Chile Rellenos and when dried (called an "ancho chile") makes a  Red Chili salsa. And, I like to stuff them like a bell pepper (my recipe here.)

A pastilla pepper is another name for poblano pepper.

For most of my Latin recipes I make Mexican Rice using tomato sauce. But, I like to mix it up, so here's my Rice with Poblano Chili Peppers recipe.

Poblanos are mild for a chili. They are larger than familiar hot chilis, about the size of a bell pepper, so you only need a couple to make this recipe. And at Latin markets they come cheap. Look for pastilla or poblano peppers, they are the same thing.

I blacken them on my gas stove top burner. It only takes a few minutes to do, but use thongs so you don't burn yourself. You do have to watch and turn them as they burn. Next, you cover the heated chilis and allow the skin to soften, so you can peel off the blackened skin, which reveals the tender, smokey, green flesh.

Now, you know that rice is a good deal, especially at Oriental and Latin grocery stores. The other ingredients, garlic and onion, come cheaply.

If you are into Mexican food then give my Rice with Poblano Chili Peppers a try. It's a delicious change of pace over boring white rice or typical tomato sauced rice.

And, just click on the following entrees to see one of my blog post recipes that will pair perfectly with my Rice with Poblano Chili Peppers side dish: Pozole, Calabsitas, Fish Veracruz, Cactus Quesadilla, Charro Beans, Pollo en Mente (Mint Chicken), Stuffed Poblano Chiles, Salmon Enchiladas, Fish Tacos, Albondigas Soup, Mexi/Turkey Burger, Carne Asada (steak) Taco, Carnitas (pork) Taco, Mole Chicken, Mexican Chorizo and Eggs, Scrambled Eggs with Refried Beans, and a hearty Breakfast Burrito,

Ingredients

• 2 poblano chili peppers
• 1 cup of rice - white or brown
• 1/2 onion - chopped
• 1 teaspoon garlic - chopped, fresh or from jar.
• 1 tablespoon of oil - to saute onion.
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 and 3/4 cups water - or follow package directions if brown rice is used.

Directions
Char poblano peppers on stove top. I have a gas stove so it's pretty easy to do. You can blacken peppers in a pan on an electric stove top. It takes longer to do. Place poblano on the gas grill with fire on medium/high. Be careful and rotate poblano as it blackens. You don't need to blacken the total surface - charring half the surface is good enough.

Place blackened poblano peppers in a bowl and cover it with a plate, so the skin will continue to steam. This will make it easier to rub off the burnt skin. Let the cooked peppers set covered about 5 minutes.

While peppers steam covered, saute chopped onion in your rice pot with a tablespoon of oil. Saute about 5 minutes to soften. Add chopped garlic to cooked onions and saute another minute.

Add a cup of rice and saute it with the onion for another 5 minutes. (You can skip this stage if you are in a hurry.)

While rice is cooking you can rub off blacken skin from poblano peppers. Open the peppers and remove seeds and the stem. Give the peppers a quick rinse of water to get the remaining blackened bits. You don't have to remove all the char, though - it's extra flavor.

Next, add the cooked, chopped, poblano peppers.

Add 1 and 3/4 cups of water (or follow rice package directions.) If you have a preferred way to cook rice, then do it your way. Salt and pepper to taste.

 Bring water to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cover the pot. Cook about 20 minutes covered.

After the rice is cooked, uncover the pot and give the rice a stir. Cover the pot again and let it set another 10-15 minutes. This will give all the rice a chance to cook evenly.

Rice freezes well, so make plenty to serve with my other Mexican recipes, anytime.