Creamy Poblano Spaghetti (Espagueti Verde)

square crop of pasta in a green sauce with a fork twirling the pasta.

5 from 1 vote

Creamy Poblano Spaghetti (Espagueti Verde)

This Creamy Poblano Spaghetti (Espagueti Verde) is an excellent recipe for using roasted poblano peppers, which add both flavor and color to the beautifully silky pasta sauce.

Course Main Course, pasta

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword spaghetti, verde

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Total Time 40

Servings servings

Calories 413kcal

Author Debi

Ingredients

Pasta

1 teaspoon salt
8 ounces (227 g) uncooked spaghetti noodles

Sauce

2 large poblano peppers roasted, seeds and veins removed, and cut into strips
⅓ white onion chopped or ½ teaspoon onion powder
1 large clove garlic chopped ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ cup (60 ml) whole milk
¾ cup (180 ml) heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and black pepper

For garnishing

Flat-leaf parsley leaves or cilantro leaves
Crumbled queso fresco

Instructions

To make the pasta:

Place 8 cups (2 quarts/1.9 L) of water in a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, add the salt, then add the pasta. Once the water comes back to a boil, let the pasta cook for about 8 minutes for al dente pasta, then drain.
1 teaspoon salt, 8 ounces (227 g) uncooked spaghetti noodles

While the pasta is cooking, make the sauce:

Place the poblano pepper strips, reserving some for garnishing, in a blender along with the onion, garlic, milk, and heavy cream and process until smooth.
2 large poblano peppers, ⅓ white onion chopped, 1 large clove garlic chopped, ¼ cup (60 ml) whole milk, ¾ cup (180 ml) heavy cream
In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the poblano cream sauce to the skillet and season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let the sauce gently simmer for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until the sauce is hot and has a velvety consistency.
1 tablespoon butter, Salt and black pepper
Add the drained pasta to the skillet, mix well to completely coat the spaghetti with the sauce, and let the pasta heat up again.
Serve on plates or in shallow bowls and garnish with parsley leaves, cilantro leaves, reserved poblano pepper strips, and crumbled queso fresco.
Flat-leaf parsley leaves or cilantro leaves, Crumbled queso fresco

Notes

You can substitute the heavy cream with 6 ounces (170 g) of cream cheese to give the sauce a thicker and richer texture.

Seasoning the sauce with chicken bouillon granules is common. Add 1 teaspoon after you add the sauce to the skillet in step 3, making sure to adjust the salt accordingly because the bouillon is salty.

To roast peppers:
Place the peppers over an open flame on your stove over medium-high heat for 10-12 minutes, turning them with kitchen tongs to roast evenly. The peppers will have charred skin all over and look slightly soft. After roasting, place the peppers in a paper or plastic bag and close it to steam them for 5 minutes. This process makes the skins of the peppers loosen up for easy removal.

Remove the peppers from the bag and scrape off the charred skins by rubbing your fingers on the surface of the pepper or using the edge of a spoor You can leave some of the charred skins on, if you like, to add more flavor to the dish. Do not rinse the peppers, as they will lose some of their flavor.

With a sharp knife, cut a slit along the length of the peppers, then remove the seeds and veins.

Storage: Make sure to cool the leftovers completely before storage. Store the leftover pasta with sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days. To reheat, stir in 1-2 tablespoons of milk or any reserved pasta cooking water and either heat on the stove or in the microwave until hot.

Nutrition