Spice Up Bland Corn Casserole With These Flavorful Mexican Staples

A corn-based casserole, such as retro scalloped corn, can be pretty tasty all on its own when you've got sweet and flavorful kernels. But if the taste of the corn alone is too bland for your liking, there are several ways you can jazz it up. Add cheese, tater tots, and ground beef to turn it into creamy cowboy casserole, or use Mexican-style spices to make an elote-inspired dish. Justin Mosel, culinary director at Rubio's Coastal Grill, favors the latter approach, as well he might. (Rubio's is a large U.S.-based Mexican chain.)

Mosel shared a range of chile pepper options that work well with corn casserole. "Ancho chile powder will provide depth in color, mild heat, and slightly sweet smokiness," he told The Takeout. He also suggested spicing things up with fresh or canned chiles. "Adding chipotle peppers to casseroles will provide a smoky, sweet, and spicy depth. Fresno and habanero will add fruity heat to casseroles," he said. 

His favorite addition to corn casserole, however, is the poblano pepper — an ingredient he describes as "earthy, slightly sweet, and mild in heat." On the Scoville scale, these peppers rank anywhere between 1,000 and 2,000 heat units, as compared to the 2,500 to 8,000 units you'd find in a jalapeño or chipotle. Fresno peppers can be even hotter (2,500 to 10,000 units), while habaneros start at 100,000 and go up to 350,000 units.

If there's one downside to poblano peppers, it's that the fresh ones require a bit of prep work. "I recommend charring the poblanos using a gas flame for a few seconds prior to chopping them," Justin Mosel recommended. If you then stick the charred peppers in a plastic bag or sealed container for about 10 minutes, the steam will loosen the skins so they slip off easily. The whole process takes a bit more time, but the resulting texture and flavor are well worth it. 

If you don't have a gas stove and you're willing to fire up the grill, you can blacken the peppers that way. You can also bake poblanos in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit, flipping them over every so often so the skins get an even char. Once again, seal the peppers up after cooking them. When the peppers have cooled down and their skins are loose, remove the skins and slice them open. Scoop out the seeds and veins, chop the poblanos, and stir them into your corn casserole before it goes into the oven. (If you've used it to bake the peppers, it should be conveniently preheated.)

If this seems like a bit too much work for a simple corn casserole, there's a quick and easy workaround: Use a can of chopped green chiles instead. Many canned green chiles are of the Anaheim variety, which has a very similar flavor to the poblano. Anaheim peppers are a bit sweeter and tangier, however, and can also be slightly less spicy since they have between 500 and 2,500 Scoville heat units.