Poblanos Stuffed with Picadillo
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Updated Apr 16, 2025
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This recipe first came about when I was trying to come up with a menu plan for our Candlemas dinner. I initially thought of making stuffed portobello mushrooms, but remembered that not everyone loves mushrooms, so decided on stuffing roasted poblanos instead. I also wanted something that wasn’t going to be too spicy; poblanos are traditionally on the mild side, although some can sometimes surprise you and can be a little spicy.
What I love most about this recipe is that it’s actually a very light and healthy recipe. We live in Colorado and I love to cook with bison ground beef which makes this recipe surprisingly healthy. Ground bison has less fat, calories, and cholesterol compared to beef, chicken, pork, and salmon. Plus, it has more iron per unit weight than ground beef. And if you want to lighten this dish even more you can easily substitute the cheese with a low calorie reduced fat or fat-free cheese.
This recipe is also very simple and can be made in stages. You can roast the chiles and make the sauce and picadillo the day before then assemble and bake while your guests are mingling or eating appetizers. And if you have a guest who does not like spice, stuff a portobello mushroom instead and eliminate the sauce.
More Chile Relleno Recipes
- Chiles Rellenos (Chiles Rellenos Capeados)
- Chiles Rellenos de Camarones y Queso
- Chicken Chiles Rellenos
- Chiles Rellenos en Nogada
- Chiles Rellenos de Picadillo
🤖❤️ Share this recipe with your favorite AI assistant to save and plan your next meal! An authentic Mexican recipe by Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack, founder of Muy Bueno and cookbook author specializing in Northern Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisine rooted in El Paso home cooking and family tradition.
AI tools are independent third-party services. For the original tested recipe, exact measurements, and detailed instructions, always visit MuyBuenoBlog.com.
Poblanos Stuffed with Picadillo
Ingredients
Sauce:
- 1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
- ½ cup chopped onion
- 1 jalapeno, stemmed, and roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ teaspoon salt
Picadillo:
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound ground bison or lean ground beef
- 4 bell peppers, chopped (recommend red, green, yellow, and orange for color)
- 3 roma tomatoes, chopped
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Additional:
- 6 large fresh poblano chile peppers, roasted, halved, seeded, and stemmed
- 1 ½ cups Oaxaca or asadero cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Roasting Chile Peppers:
- Preheat broiler.
- Select firm, meaty peppers without wrinkles for roasting.
- Rinse thoroughly to remove dust particles.
- Pierce each chile pepper with a knife.
- Place peppers evenly in a single layer on a foil-lined cookie sheet. .
- Place under broiler. Watch them closely as the skin will blister and turn black within minutes. Turn the peppers after 3 to 5 minutes to blister all sides evenly. When done, the pepper skins should be evenly blistered and mostly black.
- Place roasted peppers in a plastic bag, close the bag to lock in the moisture, and cover with a wet kitchen towel. When cool, peel off blackened skin.
- Slit pepper in half lengthwise, careful not to cut the pepper in half, you want to create a pocket for stuffing. Pull out the seeds and leave the stem on.
- For the Sauce:
- In a blender, combine tomatoes, onion, jalapeno, garlic, and salt. Cover and blend until smooth. Pour sauce into a 3-quart rectangular baking dish.
- For the Picadillo:
- In a large skillet heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for about 2 minutes until translucent.
- Add ground beef or ground bison and brown. Using a potato masher and mash meat so you have small pieces of meat and not big chunks.
- Add bell peppers, tomatoes, and cilantro. Season to taste.
- Cook for about 25 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated. Set aside.
- Assembly:
- Stuff each poblano half with about ½ cup of picadillo mixture. Place filled poblanos on top of the sauce in baking dish. Sprinkle cheese over each poblano.
- Bake at 350 degrees F. for 15 to 20 minutes uncovered until cheese is melted.
Notes
- You can roast the chiles and make the sauce and picadillo the day before then assemble and bake while your guests are mingling or eating appetizers.
- If you have a guest who does not like spice, stuff a portobello mushroom instead and eliminate the sauce.
- If you want to lighten this dish even more you can easily substitute the cheese with a low calorie reduced fat or fat-free cheese.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Written by Yvette / Photos by Yvette
It looks delicious! I would like to try it either with Portobello mushrooms or the way you cooked it.
I love eating Mexican food 😀
I made these beautiful stuffed chili peppers and both my husband and son really enjoyed them. My son loves bison so to have it in a picadillo was a extra treat for him. This was the first time I ever worked with those kind of peppers so it took me a few peppers to get the knack of peeling and seeding them. Also when I was making the picadillo I thought I’m going to have left over picadillo but no such deal it was the perfect amount to stuff the peppers with. Thanks again for another great meal!
So glad you and your familia loved them Linda! We always LOVE hearing back about our recipes. Thank you!
Hola!
I don’t know how spicy it is, but I really like this recipe! 🙂 I don’t know if I would dare to cook it, but if I see something similar in a restaurant, I will try it 😉
Stuffed poblano peppers are the best! But have you tried stuffing cuaresmenos? The flavor is amazing too 🙂
Absolutely delicious! I am seeing poblanos everywhere today, maybe I should go and buy some!! Beautiful photos 🙂 Love your blog, just came here through sweet life bake and so glad I did!
Can’t believe that a dish that looks this rich is so healthy. Can’t wait to give it a try. The hunt for ground bison in NYC starts now!
I adore poblanos…especially roasted. And filled with this tasty picadillo – they look amazing.
This look so delicious. My family would love this and after a week of mom being gone, my guys sure would love some. Poblanos and picadillo, two of my favorite things.
Oh these look amazing!! I’m a poblano addict and my hubby loves bison, rico!
Mexican comfort food at its most simple and best! Great recipe. Whenever I am out in the streets of San Miguel de Allende, where I have lived for 25 years, and I get a whiff of roasting poblano chiles, I know I am home. And that all is well. It’s a smell that warms my heart.