That’s a’Mole!

February 16, 2012

Category: Recipe
Tag(s): mexican, mole, valentine's day

Well, this is indeed late for Valentine’s Day, but perfect for me, because in a couple of weeks, the BF and I will have been together (“officially”) for five years!

Since the BF “isn’t a dessert person,” I decided to make something savory, while still being able to throw in some chocolate. Meet: mole sauce.

The first time I had ever had mole, was a few years ago when we were in Mexico for his older brother’s wedding. We got the chance to take a cooking class with *mumble… mumble….* (I’m sorry, I feel like an ass for not remembering the name of the chef. I was super sick and having gallbladder attacks every day, I barely remember the trip at all.) And for the past few years, the recipe I jotted down has been sitting on my cookbook shelf, collecting dust. The main reason I kept avoiding it, is because the ingredients list is enormous! Look at it! Go ahead. Scroll down. I’ll be here when you get back.

DID YOU SEE IT? WHAT THE HELL ARE ALL THOSE INGREDIENTS FOR???

Don’t panic. This is wicked easy to put together. Sure it may take a few hours, but it’s all easy work. Not tedious or frustrating (like macarons. grrr…).

If you’ve never had mole, here is my best description of it: it’s smooth, smoky, vibrant with spices, hot, tingly heat, and finishes with a quiet sweetness in the background. You can serve it over chicken, pork, turkey; and it freezes wonderfully! Yay!

This recipe does make quite a lot of mole. It’s the only recipe I have, so I just went with it. Afterward I froze the leftovers in baggies. Everything was in grams at the time, so I’ve gone ahead and tried to give a rough estimate of easier measurements (Tbsp, tsp, etc.) along side them. But you should really buy a scale. Really. You should. Have you bought one yet? I can wait.

So I’ve divided the ingredients into three groups (hence the numbering 1, 2, and 3,) each group gets blended into a puree, and then each puree is cooked down before adding the next one. It’s soooooo eaassssyyy. Here we go!

Ingredients for Mole

#1 – 5 cloves of garlic
#1 – 1 large onion
#1 – 500g (~5 whole) vine ripened tomatoes
#1 – 500g (~10 whole) tomatillos
#1 – 1 banana, peel removed
#1 – 1 apple, cored (variety up to you. I used a pink lady.)
#1 – 3 Tbsp raisins

#2 – 5 small corn tortillas
#2 – 3 Tbsp chopped walnuts
#2 – 1/4 C peanuts
#2 – 1/4 C + 1 tsp pine nuts
#2 – 1/4 C + 1 tsp almonds
#2 – 1/4 C + 1 tsp pepitas
#2 – 1/4 C + 1 tsp sesame seeds
#2 – 1 tsp dried oregano
#2 – 1 stick of cinnamon
#2 – 1 tsp black pepper
#2 – 5 cloves
#2 – 5 bay leaves
#2 – 1 tsp all spice
#2 – 1 tsp anise seeds

#3 – 200g Mulato chiles
#3 – 100g Guajillo chiles
#3 – 100g Pasilla chiles
#3 – 2 C pork lard

8 C chicken stock
Water (amount explained below)
2 discs Abuelita chocolate (or 1/4 C of dark chocolate)
2 Tbsp Kosher salt

Instructions for Mole

Starting with Group #1: Set your oven to 400°F. Place tomatoes, onions, garlic, and tomatillos on baking sheet with parchment paper, and roast for 20mins.
Blend veggies together with apple and banana, using enough chicken stock so it becomes a smooth puree. Set aside in first bowl.

Starting with Group #2: Take ALL nuts and spices (omit the corn tortillas, those don’t need to be toasted) and toast until nutty and brown.
Blend together all of Group #2 with enough chicken stock until it becomes a smooth puree. Set aside in a second bowl.

Starting with Group #3: Remove stems and seeds from all peppers, and melt pork lard in a medium pot.
Place peppers (you’ll have to do this in batches) in hot oil, lightly “frying” them. You’re just looking for them to open up and un-wrinkle. This takes about a minute per batch. Reserve about 3 Tbsp of this pork lard for later use.
Drain fried peppers and place into a large bowl and cover with hot water and plastic wrap for 30 mins.
Using the water in which you’ve soaked the peppers, blend peppers into a smooth puree. Set aside in a third bowl.

Putting it all together: Using the reserved 3 Tbsp of pork lard, heat in a large pot (about 7-8 quart pot). Add your Group #1 puree to the pot, and simmer gently, stirring often, for 30 minutes. You’re looking for this mixture to greatly reduce until it’s thick and pasty.
Now add the contents of Group #2 to the pot. This time, stirring almost constantly for about 10-15 minutes. Again, you’re looking for this to reduce, and darken in color, and reach almost the same shade as molasses, and the texture will be a thick paste.
Now add the third and final bowl, Group #3 to the pot. Stirring only often this time, for 30 minutes. You’ll notice that the color will get quite dark, and the mixture will thicken up quite a bit.
After simmering Group #3 for 30 mins, add the remaining amount of chicken stock, and simmer on low, covered, for 1 hour.
Just before it’s finished, add the chocolate, and the salt. If it’s too thick, just loosen with some water or extra chicken stock.

Fill some tortillas with chicken, avocado, and beans, and pour over the mole!

I’m going to add that this particular mole is SPICCCYYY. Next time, for myself, I’m greatly reducing the amount of guajillo chiles. Other than that, it’s perfect!

That’s a’Mole!

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