Fiery rocoto peppers stuffed with seasoned ground beef and topped with cheese, baked until bubbling, an Arequipa specialty.
Rocoto relleno comes from Arequipa in southern Peru, using rocoto peppers, a notably fiery variety that requires careful preparation to tame their heat before they're stuffed with a savory ground beef filling. The peppers are parboiled multiple times, sometimes with a bit of sugar in the water, a traditional technique to draw out some of their intense capsaicin heat while preserving their distinct fruity flavor. Filled with ground beef, raisins, olives and hard-boiled egg — a filling similar to that used in many Peruvian empanadas and pastries — the peppers are topped with cheese and baked until bubbling, resulting in a dish that balances real heat with savory-sweet complexity.
Serves 4
Boil the peppers whole in water with sugar for 5 minutes, drain, repeat with fresh water two more times to reduce their heat, then drain and cool.
Heat oil and cook onion until soft, then add ground beef, browning until cooked through.
Stir in aji panca paste, cumin and salt, cooking 2 minutes.
Repeat the parboiling step multiple times with fresh water — this is what tames the rocoto's intense heat while keeping its flavor.
Stir in raisins, olives and chopped hard-boiled egg.
Fill each parboiled pepper generously with the beef mixture.
Top each pepper with shredded cheese and bake at 190C/375F for 25-30 minutes until the cheese is melted and golden.
Serve hot, ideally with a side of causa or potato.
Parboil the rocoto peppers multiple times with fresh water each time — this repeated blanching is essential for taming their considerable heat.
Wear gloves when handling raw rocoto peppers, since their capsaicin can irritate skin, especially before the parboiling step.
Balance the sweet raisins and savory olives carefully in the filling — this sweet-savory combination is traditional to Peruvian stuffed dishes.
A milder version uses bell peppers instead of rocoto for those sensitive to heat.
Some versions top the peppers with a bechamel sauce instead of just cheese.
A vegetarian filling with mushrooms and cheese can replace the ground beef.
Refrigerate up to 3 days in an airtight container; reheat covered in a 180C/350F oven until warmed through.
Rocoto relleno is the signature dish of Arequipa in southern Peru, and the rocoto pepper itself, distinct from other chiles for its thick walls and black seeds, is considered an essential specialty of the region's cuisine.
Yes, for a milder version, though you'll lose the distinctive fruity heat that defines the traditional dish.
Rocoto peppers are quite fiery, and repeated parboiling with fresh water helps draw out much of the capsaicin while preserving the pepper's flavor.
Add a splash of beef stock or extra aji panca paste to the beef mixture to loosen it before stuffing the peppers.
Per serving (300g / 10.6 oz) · 4 servings total
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