Dutch Oven Chile Relleno Bake
Canned green chiles, two pounds of cheese, and an egg batter poured over the top. Camp casserole with coals on the lid.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 9 oz
- cal / oz
- 69
- protein
- 36 g
- serves
- 8, scales
- prep
- 15 min
- cook
- 45 min
- total time
- 60 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Breakfast
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- Real dishes
- Grab and go
- Needs a cooler
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Butter | 1/2 tbsp | for greasing the oven |
|---|---|---|
| Whole green chiles | 2 large cans | drained and split open flat |
| Cheddar cheese | 1 lb | shredded at home |
| Monterey jack cheese | 1 lb | shredded at home |
| All-purpose flour | 3 tbsp | |
| Evaporated milk | 1 can (13 oz) | shelf-stable, no cooler needed |
| Eggs | 4 | |
| Salt and pepper | to taste |
Method
- Build your coals and get a 12-inch dutch oven to a steady 325°F. That is roughly 9 coals under and 17 on the lid.
- Grease the inside of the oven with the butter.
- Separate the eggs. Yolks in the big bowl, whites in a clean dry one.
- Whisk the flour, evaporated milk, yolks, salt, and pepper together until smooth with no flour lumps.
- Beat the whites until they hold stiff peaks, then fold them into the yolk mixture. Fold, do not stir.
- Lay half the chiles flat across the bottom of the oven. Cover with the cheddar. Lay the rest of the chiles over that, then the jack.
- Pour the egg batter over everything and set the lid on.
- Bake 45 minutes. It is done when a knife into the middle comes out clean. Refresh the lid coals once around the 25 minute mark.
This is a crustless cheese casserole wearing a chile relleno’s name. No frying, no batter-dipping one pepper at a time — the chiles get laid flat in layers and the egg batter goes over the whole thing at once. That is the only way this dish works over coals, where you get one temperature and no ability to fuss.
The flour and evaporated milk are structure. Flour keeps the eggs from weeping into a puddle under the cheese, and evaporated milk is thick enough to set without a fridge in the picture. Whipping the whites separately is worth the extra bowl: it lifts the top into something like a soufflé instead of a wet omelet. Lid coals do the browning, so keep more heat on top than underneath.
Packing
Shred both cheeses at home and bag them; shredding two pounds in camp with a folding knife is a bad hour. Cans and flour ride in the food bin, cheese and eggs in the cooler. In a 10-inch oven use about three quarters of everything and keep the same heat and time.
Variations
- Powdered whole eggs and a bag of powdered milk make this cooler-free, though the batter sets denser without whipped whites.
- A can of diced tomatoes drained and scattered between the layers cuts the richness.
- Crumbled chorizo or a pouch of cooked bacon between the chile layers if you want meat in it.
https://www.boyscouttrail.com/content/recipe/chili_rellano-1305.asp