Mole sauce is a traditional part of Mexican cuisine. It was allegedly created at a convent in Puebla where the poor nuns struggled to prepare a meal for the visiting archbishop. They were able to scrounge up some chili peppers, spices, day-old bread, nuts, and a little chocolate that they made into a sauce and served over cooked turkey. When asked the name of the dish, a nun replied that it was a mole, an ancient Spanish word meaning “mix.” The ingredients of mole sauce fall into five categories: chilies, sour, sweet, spices, and thickeners. Tomatoes and tomatillos are most often used to fill the sour category, while dried fruits such as raisins are an ingredient of the sweet group. Spices typically used include black pepper, cumin, cloves, anise, cinnamon, and allspice. Tortillas and bread are commonly pureed with the sauce as thickeners. The spicy gravy-like sauce is typically served over meat.
Recipe Servings: 4
+ 10 minutes resting
Ingredients
- 3 cups chicken broth, divided
- 2 dried guajillo chili peppers, stems and seeds removed
- 2 dried ancho chili peppers, stems and seeds removed
- 3 dried chipotle chili peppers, stems and seeds removed
- 1 dinner roll, torn into pieces
- 2 corn tortillas, cut into 1-inch wide strips
- 2 tomatoes, cut in half crosswise
- 5 tomatillos, cut in half crosswise
- 1 Tbsp lard
- 1 onion, halved and thinly sliced
- ½ head garlic, peeled and sliced
- ⅓ cup peanuts, shelled and chopped
- ¼ cup raisins
- 2 Tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 Tbsp dried thyme
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 5 whole cloves
- 6 whole allspice berries
- 5 oz dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
Directions
- Pour 2 cups of chicken broth in a small saucepan set over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes or until it begins to simmer. Then remove it from the heat.
- Toast the guajillo chiles, ancho chiles, and chipotle chiles in a dry pan set over medium heat, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes.
- Toast the pieces of dinner roll and tortilla strips in a dry pan set over medium heat, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Combine the warm chicken broth, chiles, roll pieces, and tortilla strips in a blender, making sure the dry ingredients are fully submerged. Let the liquid rest for about 10 minutes.
- Blend the mixture until smooth.
- Cook the tomatoes and tomatillos in a dry skillet set over medium-high heat until soft and blackened, 3–4 minutes per side. Place them in the blender with the chile puree.
- Melt the lard in a large skillet set over medium heat.
- Stir in the onion, garlic, peanuts, raisins, cumin seeds, thyme, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and allspice berries.
- Cook for 5–8 minutes or until onions are soft and golden.
- Remove the cinnamon sticks, cloves, and allspice berries.
- Add the mixture to the blender with the chile-tomato mixture and blend until smooth.
- Pour the puree into a large saucepan set over medium heat.
- Stir in the chocolate, remaining chicken broth, sugar, and salt.
- Simmer the mixture for 10–15 minutes, stirring until the sauce is thickened and slightly reduced.
- Remove the sauce from the heat and serve over meat.
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