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What to do with 9 gigantic chilies

1K views 18 replies 10 participants last post by  brianshaw 
#1 ·
So, leaving the fruit market yesterday the cashier stopped me to hand me a bag she said I had forgotten. I thanked her and tried to stuff it into my larger shoulder bag without looking inside. It was too bulky to fit in my shoulder bag, so I just carried it, still without looking inside. When I got home and unpacked my groceries, it turned out that the bag was filled with 6 of the largest poblano and 3 of the largest Anaheim (only here the markets call them Cubanelles for some reason) chilies I have ever seen. Seriously huge. I'm not quite sure what to do with this many very large chilies. The market is a mile away and I don't have time to walk back there with them. I also don't have room in my fridge for this unexpected, um...bounty. I suppose I could roast them but then what? Chilies rellenos would require insane amounts of cheese for these monsters.
 
#10 ·
Make keftaji (a Tunisian brunch saute of zucchini, green peppers, onions, potatoes, tomato paste, vinegar, coriander, and parsley, usually topped with fried eggs). Fine dice the keftaji, fold in some hummus to bind together. Use this mix to stuff the poblanoes (fire roasted and peeled). Make a sauce with the Cubanelles (fire roasted and peeled) seasoned with harissa, coriander, and caraway. Lightly sauce the stuffed peppers and fire in oven to heat. Sauce plate, top with stuffed pepper, top with fried egg.
 
#12 ·
Wow! Thanks for all the ideas! The sheer volume of chilies in that bag will probably allow me to do every single one of these things! I'm telling you, I've looked at a lot of heaps of chilies at my neighborhood market and never seen poblanos or anaheims this huge. 

That Tunisian dish sounds fabulous. And, I do have tomatillos. And vinegar for pickling...and...and...

Thank you!
 
#13 ·
Wow you've got ME curious now...can't you like....snap a photo of these mutants
next to your car keys or something for scale, you know as in "seeing is believing"
before you carve em up? :)
Personally, I would have a look around your pantry and stuff them babies with somethin
rich, spicy and above all....unusual.
 
#16 ·
+1 for  everyone's suggestions.  Relleno's are definitely the first thing that comes to mind.  As others have said, it doesn't just need to be cheese filled. Fresh Corn and Shrimp, Picadillo (ground beef), ground pork, shredded chicken can all be mixed with cheese to make a great filling.  I am not a huge fan of the egg batter that is used for traditional rellenos.  I prefer a "breading" made from crushed tortilla chips-flour, eggwash, crushed tortilla chips.

Rajas-strips of roasted and peeled chiles-are great to have a around.  They can be used to top just about anything to give your food extra flavor.  Or, after roasting, dice them up, freeze them into 1/2 cup portions and pull them out when making chili  or anytime you would want some roasted peppers.

So many options that there's no way they should go to waste.
 
#18 ·
Looking at those peppers, I would say that you definitely have cubanelle peppers and not anaheims.  Both are very similar in appearance although I usually find cubanelles to be a little wider at the top than anaheims, which usually remain a pretty consistant width for most of the length of the pepper.  As for flavor differences, cubanelles are usually more mild than anaheims (they are actually considered a sweet pepper) although they do contain a bit of heat.  Cubanelles are also more subtle and slightly less flavorful than anaheims.  Very similar to a banana pepper and used in Italian cooking often.  I would definitely roast and peel them before using.
 
#19 · (Edited)
I agree... the top picture and the pepper on the left is a Cubanelle. Sweet with no heat. Treat as an Italian Roasting Pepper... or pickle. Roast and put on an Italian sausage sandwich!

The other two (dark green to the center and right) are Polbano/Pasilla (depending on where you live.  Great for relleno or green chile stew,
 
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