Cheese filling or picadello filling (recipes follow)

About 1/2 cup all-purpose four, un-sifted

Thin and crispy coating, puffy coating, or omelet-like coating (recipes follow)

Salad Oil

Salsa de jitomate (recipe follows), optional

Garnishes; shredded jack cheese, sliced green onion tops, or Mexican red chile sauce.

To make chiles rellenos, you stuff the peppers, cover them with an egg batter, and fry. Here you have a choice of three batters for three different kinds of coatings--thin and crispy, puffy, or omelet-like.

Drain canned chilies and cut a slit down side of each; gently remove seeds and pith. Prepare fresh chilies, if used.

Stuff chilies with th filling of your choice. Slightly lap cut edges to hold filling inside. Roll each chile in flour to coat all over; gently shake off excess.

Prepare one of the suggested coatings just before you want to fry chiles. coat and fry chiles according to instructions with each coating recipe.

If you like, top with hot salsa de jitomate and garnish with cheese and onion; or use Mexican red chile sauce. (Some prefer chiles rellenos without sauce, particularly the thin, crispy coated chile.) Serve immediately. Makes 3 or 4 servings.

Cheese filling.
Stuff each chile with a piece of jack cheese about 1/2 inch wide, 1/2 inch thick, and 1 inch shorter than the chile. (Use a total of about 1/2 pound  of jack cheese)

Picadillo filling.
Lightly toast 1/4 cup slivered almonds in 1 tablespoon butter or margarine in a frying pan over medium heat; remove almonds. Brown 1/2 pound lean ground beef in remaining butter. Add 1 minced or pressed clove garlic, 1/4 cup tomato puree, 1/4 cup seedless raisins, 2 tablespoons dry sherry, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1-1/2 teaspoons sugar, and the almonds. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat for 20 minutes or until most liquid has evaporated. Cool. Fill each chile with about 2 teaspoons of filling.

Thin and crispy coating.
Separate 5 eggs. Beat egg whites with 1 teaspoon salt until they hold firm, soft peaks. Using same beater, or a whip, beat egg yolks until thick; fold yolks into whites and use immediately.\

Heat about 1/4 inch salad oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat. coat chili all over with egg batter and use two forks to remove from batter. (If fresh chiles are used, hold each by its stem and just dip into batter, canned chiles have no such handy stems.)

Fry in hot oil just as many at one time as can be done without crowding. When each is golden brown on one side, turn over with a spatula and fork or two spatulas) and fry until golden on the other side. Remove and drain briefly on paper towels.

Puffy coating.
Separate 3 eggs. Beat whites until they form soft peaks. Beat yolks with 1 tablespoon water, 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, and 1/4 teaspoon salt until thick and creamy; fold into whites.

Heat about 1-1/2 inches of salad oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat. Dip stuffed chilies into the fluffy batter, place on a saucer, and slide lint hot oil. When bottoms are golden brown, gently turn using a spatula and fork, and cook other side (3 to 4 minutes per side). Drain on paper towels.

Omelet-like coating.
Separate 4 eggs. Beat whites until they form soft peaks. Beat egg yolks with 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon water, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Fold into whites.

Over medium heat, melt enough butter to coat bottom of omelet pan or frying pan. Make an oval mound of about 1/2cup of the mixture. (You can cook each in a small omelet pan or 2 or 3 at a time in a wide frying pan.) Quickly lay a stuffed chile in center of mound and spoon about 1/3 cup mixture over top to encase chili. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes; gently turn and cook for 2 or 3 minutes longer, or until golden.

Salsa de jitomate.
In a frying pan over medium heat, cook 3 tablespoons finely chopped onion and 1 minced or pressed clove of garlic in 1 tablespoon butter or margarine until golden. Stir in 1 can (15 oz.) Spanish-style tomato sauce, 1/3 cup water, 1/4 teaspoon saltl, and 1/4 teaspoon oregano leaves, crumbled. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Serve hot. Makes 2-1/2 cups.