Description
This authentic Oaxacan mole recipe features toasted chiles and warming spices, designed for busy families seeking robust flavor without all-day cooking.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 oz ancho chiles, stemmed, seeded, and torn
- 2 oz mulato chiles, stemmed, seeded, and torn
- 2 oz pasilla chiles (Pasilla Oaxaca variety preferred), stemmed, seeded, and torn
- 1 medium white onion, roughly chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 ripe Roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 2 tomatillos, husked and roughly chopped
- 0.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 0.25 teaspoon ground cloves
- 0.25 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 0.25 teaspoon ground cumin
- 0.125 teaspoon ground star anise
- 0.4 oz piloncillo or dark brown sugar
- 0.2 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 0.9 oz sliced almonds
- 0.9 oz peanuts
- 0.7 oz sesame seeds (0.2 oz reserved for garnish)
- 0.2 oz pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
- 0.9 oz raisins
- 5 cups chicken or turkey broth, divided
- Cooked chicken or turkey pieces
- 0.5 cup vegetable oil, divided
- 0.5 small corn tortilla, torn
- Salt, to taste
- Fresh cilantro, finely chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Toast and Rehydrate Chiles: Heat a large dry skillet over medium heat. Toast ancho, mulato, and pasilla chiles for 1-2 minutes per side until fragrant. Immediately transfer to a heatproof bowl. Add 3 cups broth to the bowl with chiles, ensuring they are submerged, and let soak for 30 minutes.
- Fry Aromatics: In the same skillet, add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil over medium heat. Fry chopped onion, garlic, tomatoes, and tomatillos until softened and lightly browned, about 8-10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
- Fry Nuts & Seeds: Add another 2 tablespoons vegetable oil to the skillet. Fry torn corn tortilla, almonds, peanuts, 0.5 oz sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes. Transfer to a separate bowl.
- Blend the Mole Paste: Drain rehydrated chiles, reserving their soaking liquid. In a high-speed blender, combine drained chiles with the fried onion-garlic-tomato mixture, fried nuts/seeds/tortilla mixture, raisins, piloncillo, unsweetened chocolate, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, cumin, and star anise. Add 1 cup reserved chile soaking liquid and blend until very smooth (add up to 0.5 cup more soaking liquid if needed).
- Strain the Sauce: Pass the blended mole paste through a fine-mesh sieve into a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven. Discard any solids left in the sieve.
- Fry & Simmer Mole: Heat the remaining 0.25 cup vegetable oil in the pot over medium heat. Carefully pour in the strained mole paste. Fry the mole paste, stirring constantly, for 20-25 minutes until it darkens significantly and thickens. Slowly stir in the remaining 1.5 cups chicken or turkey broth. Bring to a gentle simmer, reduce heat to low, and cook for another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt to taste.
- Add Protein: During the last 15 minutes of simmering, add cooked chicken or turkey pieces to the mole sauce, stirring gently to warm through and coat evenly.
- Serve: Ladle a generous portion of hot mole over warm corn tortillas or rice. Garnish with the reserved 0.2 oz toasted sesame seeds and fresh, finely chopped cilantro.
Notes
Store leftover mole sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freeze for longer storage. This recipe is naturally gluten-free and dairy-free if served without cheese or crema.
- Prep Time: 70 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Simmering
- Cuisine: Mexican
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup (250 g)
- Calories: 450 calories
- Sugar: 15 g
- Sodium: 350 mg
- Fat: 25 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 15 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fiber: 8 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
Keywords: authentic Oaxacan mole, Mexican, easy mole, chicken mole, weeknight, spicy, rich flavor, gluten-free, dairy-free