Sometimes you’re looking for an easy meal thats packed with flavor. For me, you can’t go wrong with peppers and cheese. Add those to almost anything, and you’ve got a delicious dinner in the works. Those elements – plus savory tomato sauce and spiced black beans – come together in this Chiles Rellenos Chicken with Spiced Black Beans for an easy dinner thats bursting with flavor. All the flavors of classic chiles rellenos elevate simple chicken into a satisfying, healthy, and delicious main course.
This past weekend, we had a crazy ice-storm! It was freezing cold and everything was covered in snow for days. Perfect time for grilling, right? Well, it turns out that the toasty heat and savory flavor of char-grilled poblanos was just what I needed.
Thankfully, my dad braved the storm to char these beautiful poblanos. Charring the poblanos whole helps soften the peppers quickly by trapping the steam inside while also making the skin easy to peel off. You’ll wonder why you ever cooked poblanos any other way!
When it comes down to it, this dish is really just a few simple components: chicken, peppers, cheese, sauce. Once they are all prepared, simply layer and bake for a pan of bubbly, delicious, chicken that would taste great served over rice or with beans. Sometimes, its the simple, classic flavor combinations that taste best. And thats what I crave on a cold, snowy night!
I hope you love this Chiles Rellenos Chicken with Spiced Black Beans as much as I do! If you make this recipe, leave a comment and let me know what you thought or feel free to ask a question! I’d also love to see what you made! Tag me in your food pics #fortheperfectbite on Instagram.
Chiles Rellenos Chicken with Spiced Black Beans
Ingredients
Tomato Sauce
- 1 medium sweet onion
- 3 large cloves garlic
- 1 jalapeno pepper
- olive oil
- 15 oz. tomato puree
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 small bay leaf
- ⅛ tsp ground cinnamon
Chiles Rellenos Chicken
- 4 large poblano peppers
- 6-8 chicken breasts, depending on size
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- olive oil
- ¾ cup chihuahua cheese, shredded
- ½ cup Monterey jack cheese, shredded
Spiced Black Beans
- 2 15 oz. cans of black beans, drained
- 1 cup chicken stock
- ¾ tsp ground oregano
- ¾ tsp ground cumin
- 1 medium shallot minced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 small lime, juiced
- freshly cracked black pepper and kosher salt to taste
Instructions
Tomato Sauce
- Preheat the oven to 450 °F.
- Peel and slice the onion into quarters, and peel the garlic cloves. On a baking sheet, drizzle the onion, garlic cloves, and jalapeno with olive oil.Roast the veggies 12-15 minutes, until soft.
- Add the tomato puree, ¾ cup water, salt, dried oregano, black pepper, bay leaf, and cinnamon to a sauce pan and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
- Once soft, add the onion, garlic cloves, and jalapeño (stem removed and seeded, if desired) to the sauce. Allow to simmer further, about 10 minutes.
- Remove the bay leaf and puree the sauce, either with an immersion blender or in batches using a traditional blender.
Spiced Black Beans
- Combine all ingredients (black beans, stock, oregano, cumin, shallot, garlic, lime juice, salt and pepper) into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Reduce to simmer and allow to cook until the liquid is reduced by half.
- Serve as is or blend the beans until a smooth texture is reached, if desired.
Chiles Rellenos Chicken
- While the sauce cooks, char the poblanos on a hot grill or over a gas stove, until blackened on all sides. Place the charred poblanos in a plastic bag or airtight container to steam for 10 minutes.
- After the steam has loosened the charred skin, use a paper towel and your hands to remove the charred skin from the poblanos. At this point, you can also remove the seeds and stems, slicing the peppers open so they lay flat.
- Pound the chicken breasts until evenly flattened to about ½-inch thickness.
- Whisk together the all-purpose flour, garlic powder, kosher salt, and black pepper. In a large skillet, add enough olive oil to completely coat the bottom. Heat over medium high heat.
- Turn the oven down to 350°F.
- Dredge each chicken breast lightly through the flour mixture, tapping off any excess, before carefully laying them into the skillet.Sear the chicken 3-4 minutes per side, until fully cooked, working in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding the pan.
- Arrange the cooked chicken in a baking pan. Top each chicken breast with a piece of poblano pepper, then evenly sprinkle the cheese over the chicken breasts. Top with the finished tomato sauce.
- Bake the chicken for 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
- Serve with the spiced black beans, and enjoy.
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