Quick (and fake) Chicken Mole

Meal Monday

I love rich, thick mole (pronounced mole-lay), redolent of peppers, suggestive of chocolate and speaking  of hidden secrets. Unfortunately, I no longer live in a part of the world where you can get that kind of mole, and mole-from-a-jar is an abomination. I don't have the fortitude to make real mole myself (it has a million ingredients, a hundred steps, and takes days to make correctly). So I resort to this relatively quick, quite inauthentic mole when I'm hungry for a rich Mexican meal.

The basic technique for this recipe is simple: cook some chicken and set aside, brown some spices, melt some chocolate, add some cans of stewed tomatoes, then simmer. Easy-peasy. However, there are two terrifying steps that require great strength of mind. The first is when you throw the ground spices into the hot oil. You must stir like mad and toast the spices until they are brown, but not black. You want to get them as brown as you can -- right to the line of blackened. But don't cross that line! Then you'll have burned muck and have to start over. The second is when you melt the chocolate. You must melt it in the oil without burning it. This simply requires attention, but since it comes after the part where you've browned the spices, your confidence will be low and your anxiety high. Just focus and everything will be fine.

If you are cooking for a picky eater, consider setting aside some plain cooked chicken and serving it with plain rice with a bit of butter.  Serve some mole on the side as a dip for the chicken.

Inauthentic chicken mole

2 tablespoons chili powder (mild is preferred--mole isn't hot)
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1-1/2 pounds chicken (skinless and boneless, cut into chunks. I prefer thighs.)
black pepper
1 tablespoon oregano
1.5 ounces unsweetened chocolate (like Baker's), chopped into bits
1/4 cup raisins
4 (14.5 ounce) cans stewed tomatoes
salt to taste (about 1 teaspoon)
garnish with fresh parsley

It is important to get everything ready before you begin. You don't want to burn the chocolate because you had to stop and open the cans of tomatoes.

Mix the chili powder, cumin and cinnamon together in a small bowl and set it aside.

Heat a dutch over over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil or canola oil (do not use extra virgin -- it will burn). Grind fresh black pepper over the chicken, then sear the chicken on all sides, turning frequently, until browned and cooked through.  Set chicken aside.

Add 2 more tablespoons of oil to the pan. Reduce heat to medium low. Add the spice mix to the oil, and stir like mad until all of the spices are moistened in the oil. Add more oil if needed. Cook and stir the spices until they are very dark brown, but not black, about 4-5 minutes. If the spices burn, throw them out and start over. You don't want to taste burned muck in your sauce.

Reduce the heat to low and add the raisins, oregano, and unsweetened chocolate. Keep stiring until the chocolate is melted, being careful not to burn anything. When the chocolate is melted, add the stewed tomtatoes.  Now you have a choice to make. If you want your mole to be more like the real deal, use an immersion blender to blend it until it is smooth. I like sauces to be a bit chunky, so I add 3 cans of tomatoes, blend until the sauce is smooth, then add the fourth can. This gives the sauce a bit of tooth.  Taste the sauce at this point and salt it to your liking.  I add about 1 teaspoon of kosher salt.

Bring the sauce to a boil, then lower the temperature and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occassionally.  Add the cooked chicken back to the pot and simmer until the chicken is heated.

Serve over rice.

Options: If you have the time, carmelize some onions by slicing them very thin, then cooking them in a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes. Spoon the onions over the rice, then top with chicken and sauce. Delicious.

 

 

Comments

[JenB]

Fantastic! I love mole. I'm gonna add this one to my growing list of fake recipes.