These Stuffed Anaheim Peppers, with a spicy Tex-Mex style filling of Pork and Hot Chili Sauce topped with Cheese, make a terrific appetizer.
This spicy little dish of Stuffed Anaheim Peppers doesn’t attempt to reproduce any particular ethnic recipe but, with the addition of cumin and added hot sauce, is probably to being Mexican, or ‘Tex-Mex’ in spirit. There is a bit of preparation involved but none of it terribly difficult and, while I created this as an appetizer, it could easily be part of a main meal if served with rice and a little salad.
The Basic Method
First chop your pork into fine dice.
Slice your chillies in half and trim out the ‘innards’ to make little ‘boats’.
Sauté your pork in a little oil over moderate heat along with the dry seasonings until the pork is just cooked through. Add the tomato and chilli sauces and cook a little longer until the mixtures is thick. Stir in the onion and red bell pepper and remove to a bowl. Add the Parmesan Cheese and put into the refrigerator to chill.
Brush the chilli halves with a little oil and bake, cut surfaces down on a baking pan in a 350-degree oven for about 5 – 7 minutes until just starting to soften then remove. Transfer to a suitable casserole dish and then pop this, along with the stuffing mixture, into the fridge to chill (this makes stuffing much easier).
Finally (and apologies for forgetting to photograph this step), stuff the shells, lay strips of Swiss cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 or 12 minutes until the stuffing is good and hot and the cheese nicely melted. Let sit for at least five minutes and serve.
Your Recipe Card:
Stuffed Anaheim Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 small boneless Pork Cutlet;
- 2, 3 or 4 Anaheim Chillies depending on size;
- 1 tsp. crushed Cumin Seed;
- ½ tsp. each Garlic Salt and Black Pepper;
- ¼ cup or so of Tomato Sauce;
- 1 Tbsp. or more to taste Hot Chilli Sauce;
- ¼ cup each finely chopped Onion and Red Bell Pepper;
- 2 Tbsp. Parmesan Cheese;
- Narrow strips of Swiss Cheese;
Instructions
- Finely dice the pork, then slice the peppers in half and cut out the inner pith and seeds to make little ‘boats’.
- Fry the pork in a little oil over moderate heat along with the dry seasonings until just cooked through.
- Add the tomato and chilli sauces, cook until the mixtures is thickened, then stir in the onion and red bell pepper and remove from the heat.
- Remove the pork mix to a bowl, stir in the Parmesan cheese and chill in the refrigerator.
- Brush the chilli halves with a little oil and bake, cut surfaces down on a baking pan in a 350-degree oven until softened, then transfer to casserole dish and chill for at least 15 minutes.
- Finally, stuff the shells, lay strips of Swiss cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 or 12 minutes.
- Let rest for five minutes or so before serving.