Chiles en Nogada (Stuffed Poblanos in Walnut Sauce)
Roasted poblano chillies stuffed with fruity spiced pork, under a cool walnut cream and jewelled with pomegranate. The famous dish of Puebla.
- Time2 hr
- LevelHard
- Costabout £1.27 a head
- Oven180°C (160°C fan)
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Put the walnuts in a bowl, pour over the milk, heated until steaming, and leave them to soak for 30 minutes while you do the rest. To roast the chillies, char them under a very hot grill or over a gas flame for 12 to 15 minutes, turning, until blackened all over. Put them in a bowl, cover with a plate and leave to steam for 10 minutes.
30 min - 2
Peel off the skins. Slit each chilli down one side, keeping the stalk on, and scrape out the seeds and pith with a teaspoon.
- 3
Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the onion for 5 minutes. Add the pork and cook for 8 minutes, breaking it up, until browned. Stir in the garlic, tomatoes, apple, pear, raisins, almonds, cinnamon, cloves, vinegar, sugar and 1 tsp of the salt.
13 min - 4
Cook gently for 15 minutes until the fruit is soft and the mixture is moist but not wet. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
15 min - 5
For the nogada, tip the walnuts and their milk into a blender with the cream cheese, double cream, cinnamon and the remaining salt. Blend for 2 minutes until smooth. It should coat a spoon, so add a splash of milk if too thick.
- 6
Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Stuff the chillies generously with the pork mixture, stand them in a baking dish and warm through for 15 minutes.
15 min - 7
Serve warm or at room temperature, each one spooned over with the cold walnut sauce and scattered with pomegranate seeds and parsley.
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.
