Poblano chillies stuffed with spiced pork, fruit, and nuts, draped in walnut cream sauce and decorated with pomegranate and parsley — Mexico’s most patriotic and spectacular dish.

Chiles en Nogada is perhaps the most visually spectacular dish in Mexican cuisine and one of the most complex. Created by Augustinian nuns in Puebla in 1821 to honour Agustín de Iturbide following Mexican independence, the dish displays the colours of the Mexican flag: green from the poblano chilli and parsley, white from the nogada walnut cream sauce, and red from the pomegranate seeds. It is eaten during August and September — the season when pomegranates, walnuts, and the fruits used in the stuffing are all at their peak.

The picadillo filling is a masterpiece of Mexican sweet-savoury cooking. Pork mince is cooked with tomato, onion, garlic, and then enriched with raisins, almonds, pear, peach, plantain, and a complex spice blend of cinnamon, cloves, and black pepper. The combination of savoury meat with sweet dried and fresh fruits and warming spices is a flavour profile that descends directly from the Moorish-influenced cooking that Spanish colonisers brought to Mexico.

The nogada sauce is made from fresh walnuts — peeled of their bitter papery skin — blended with cream cheese, sour cream, sherry, and spices. Fresh walnuts have a creaminess and delicate flavour that dried walnuts cannot provide. The season for this dish is limited precisely because fresh walnuts are only available in late summer and early autumn.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 560 kcal | Protein: 28g | Carbs: 44g | Fat: 26g | Fiber: 6g

Chiles en Nogada

Recipe by By butter u0026 berriesCourse: Mexican

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Calories

550

kcal

Ingredients

•t6 large poblano chillies
•tFor picadillo filling: 500g pork mince
•tFor picadillo filling: 1 onion, finely diced
•tFor picadillo filling: 4 garlic cloves, minced
•tFor picadillo filling: 3 tomatoes, finely diced
•tFor picadillo filling: 60g raisins
•tFor picadillo filling: 60g almonds, roughly chopped
•tFor picadillo filling: 1 pear, peeled and diced small
•tFor picadillo filling: 1 peach, peeled and diced small
•tFor picadillo filling: 1/2 plantain, diced small
•tFor picadillo filling: 1/4 tsp cinnamon
•tFor picadillo filling: 1/4 tsp ground cloves
•tFor picadillo filling: salt and pepper
•tFor picadillo filling: 2 tbsp olive oil
•tFor nogada sauce: 200g fresh walnuts, papery skin peeled
•tFor nogada sauce: 150g cream cheese
•tFor nogada sauce: 200ml sour cream
•tFor nogada sauce: 3 tbsp dry sherry or white wine
•tFor nogada sauce: 1/4 tsp cinnamon
•tFor nogada sauce: salt and white pepper
•tTo garnish: seeds of 1 pomegranate
•tTo garnish: large handful fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Directions

Roast poblano chillies directly over a gas flame or under a grill, turning, until completely blackened on all sides. Place in a sealed plastic bag for 10 minutes. Peel away the charred skin, make a slit down one side, and remove seeds and veins carefully, keeping the chilli intact.
Make picadillo: heat oil in a wide pan. Cook onion for 8 minutes until soft. Add garlic and cook 2 minutes. Add pork and brown well, breaking up lumps. Add tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add all fruits, nuts, raisins, cinnamon, and cloves. Season well. Cook for 10 minutes until the mixture is fragrant and most moisture has evaporated. Cool slightly.
Make nogada sauce: blend walnuts, cream cheese, sour cream, sherry, cinnamon, salt, and white pepper until smooth and creamy. Taste and adjust seasoning. The sauce should be rich, slightly sweet, and very creamy.
Carefully fill each peeled poblano with the picadillo. Arrange on a serving platter.
Pour the nogada sauce generously over the filled chillies. The sauce should pool on the plate and coat the chillies generously.
Scatter pomegranate seeds and fresh parsley leaves over the top immediately before serving.
Serve at room temperature.

Notes

Chiles en Nogada is served at room temperature, never hot. The nogada sauce should be cool and creamy when poured over the filled chillies.
Peeling the papery skin from fresh walnuts is time-consuming but essential — the skin is intensely bitter and will ruin the sauce.
The picadillo can be made 2 days ahead and refrigerated — it actually improves with time.
Handle the poblanos carefully when stuffing — they are fragile after roasting and peeling.
This dish is seasonal — August and September are the correct months for authentic Chiles en Nogada using fresh walnuts and pomegranate

Storage

Filled poblanos keep in the fridge for up to 2 days. Nogada sauce keeps for 2 days refrigerated — it thickens as it chills, thin with a splash of cream if needed. Do not assemble the complete dish until ready to serve as the garnish wilts and the sauce soaks into the chillies over time.

Serving Tips

Serve at room temperature on a large platter with the red, white, and green colours displayed proudly. This is a celebration dish — serve at the table and let its beauty be appreciated before eating. A chilled glass of white Pueblan wine or a dry sparkling water with lime complements the complex sweet-savoury flavours perfectly. Traditionally served without alcohol in many households.