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Rajas con crema

Name: Rajas con crema
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 3 piece large poblano chiles; 1 tsp salt, for sweating the chiles; 1 piece white onion, sliced; 2 tbsp olive oil; 200 g queso panela, cut in medium cubes; 60 ml thick cream (crema espesa); salt and pepper

rajas con crema

Poblano chiles charred over a flame, sweated, peeled and cut into strips (rajas), then fried briefly with onion and finished with cubes of queso panela and thick cream. Ricardo Muñoz Zurita's recipe for Larousse Cocina.

Editorial illustration of the documented recipe; not a photograph of a kitchen-tested result.

Servings: 4
Preparation: 30 min
Cooking: 10 min
Total: 40 min
Difficulty: Easy

Equipment

Gas flame, grill or griddle for charring
Plastic or paper bag (or covered bowl)
Frying pan

Servings4

Ingredients

Shopping list

Method

Roast the chiles directly over the flame, turning them, until the skin blisters and blackens lightly. Sprinkle them with the salt, close them in a plastic bag and leave for 20 minutes.
Why The trapped steam loosens the charred skin so it rubs off easily.
Timer · 20 min20:00
Take the chiles out and rub off the skin with your fingers. Open them and remove the stems, veins and seeds.
Why The veins and seeds hold most of the heat.
Cut the chiles lengthwise into strips about ½ cm wide.
Fry the onion in the oil until translucent, add the rajas and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring all the time.
Timer · 2 min2:00
Add the cheese and the cream, season with salt and pepper and take off the heat.
Why Panela softens but does not melt into strings, and the cream needs only warming.

To drink & serve with

Editorial suggestion: as a taco filling with warm corn tortillas, or beside rice and grilled meat.

Substitutions

Queso panela → Another fresh, mild cheese that softens without melting, such as a fresh white cheese or halloumi-style cheese.
Crema espesa → Crème fraîche or sour cream thinned with a little milk.

Common mistakes

Rinsing the peeled chiles under water: it washes away the smoky flavour.
Boiling the cream: it can split, and the cheese turns rubbery.

Storage & reheating

Best freshly made. Refrigerate within 2 hours and eat within 2 days; reheat gently.

Safety

Contains milk. Poblanos are usually mild but can be hot; wash hands after handling them and keep them away from the eyes.

Allergens

Milk

Check labels: stock, bacon and sauces can contain further allergens.

Dietary

vegetarian

Strips of poblano

Rajas are strips: here, strips of roasted and peeled poblano chile. Cooked with onion and cream they make a simple dish of the Mexican home table, eaten as a side or in tacos. Ricardo Muñoz Zurita's version for Larousse Cocina adds cubes of queso panela and calls it 'a simple but delicious preparation'.

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Char, sweat, peel

The chiles are blistered directly over the flame until lightly blackened, salted and shut in a bag for 20 minutes so the steam lifts the skin. Peeled, seeded and cut into half-centimetre strips, they need only two minutes with the onion before the cheese and cream go in off the heat.

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How it connects

Place

origin Mexico In preparation

Recipe

pairs with Arroz rojo (Mexican red rice)