Guest Author - Terri Perkins Fulton

I told a friend from Mexico once that I was making chile rellenos for dinner. He asked me if I stuffed them with tuna. Huh? The ones I was brought up with had always been stuffed with cheese, battered and fried. But my friend is from Puerto Vallarta and apparently it is common to stuff the peppers with some fresh caught fish and forget the frying part all together.

The following recipe is very similar to something from one of my Bobby Flay cookbooks. It uses traditional ingredients in a light and updated version of the kind of chile rellenos you might find in coastal Mexico. Any seafood can be used, but grill it if possible because the smokey flavor compliments the chipotle peppers in the salsa.

Seafood Stuffed Poblanos with Mango and Blackbean Salsa

Serves 4

For chiles:

4 large poblano chiles
1 1/3 cup cooked tuna steaks (about), broken into chunks, or other seafood such as shrimp, halibut, scallops, lobster, or a mixture of any of the above
1/2 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded
1/2 cup queso fresco or goat cheese, crumbled

Roast the chiles by placing them in the broiler or on a hot griddle, turning until blackened on all sides. Place the chiles in a paper bag, seal, and let stand 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Remove the chiles from the bag and peel off the loose skin. Cut a slit from stem to end on one side and remove the seeds. On work surface, stuff the chiles with 1/3 cup tuna each. Mix the cheeses together in a small bowl. Put 1/4 cup cheese over the tuna in each chile. Place the chiles on a cookie sheet or in a baking pan, pressing slightly to close over the filling.

Bake the chiles for about 20 minutes, until the cheese melts and they are heated through. Place one chile on each plate. Top with Tri-Color Salsa. Serve with warm tortillas.

For salsa:

1 cup cooked black beans, drained
1 medium mango, peeled and coarsely chopped
1/2 large Haas avocado, peeled and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped
3 chipotle chiles in adobo from a can, finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Season with salt to taste.

Makes about 2 1/2 cups