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- Chillis (essential), most commonly:
- ancho
- pasilla
- mulato
- chipotle
- Herb/Spice Options:
- cilantro
- garlic
- cinnamon
- chocolate
- black pepper
- achiote (annatto)
- cumin
- cloves
- anise
- sugar
- lard
- hoja santa (a herb) and many others.
- Ingredient options:
- peanuts
- almonds
- pine nuts
- other nuts
- sesame seeds
- pumpkin seeds
- squash seeds
- seedless grapes
- plantains
- onion
- cinnamon
- chocolate
- guaje (Leucaena leucocephala, a legume)
- bread (sometimes fried)
- tortillas
- tomatoes
- tomatillos
- dried fruit and many others.
- Ingredient Selection:
- The ingredients of mole can be grouped into five distinct classes:
- chillis
- sour (e.g. tomatillos)
- sweet (e.g. dried fruits; sugar)
- spices
- thickeners (e.g. ground nuts; tortillas).
- The aim is not to create a very hot dish, but a complex and unique blend of different flavours which reflects the local culture and/or family.
- The ingredients of mole can be grouped into five distinct classes:
- Recipes:
- Preparation:
- The ingredients are roasted and then ground into a fine powder or paste. The powder can be stored for months, or a paste for weeks in the fridge.
- The powder or paste is mixed with broth (chicken or other meat), and simmered until it is pungent and very thick. This may take several hours. It is most often prepared in a cazuela (a thick heavy clay cauldron) and stirred almost constantly to prevent burning.
- Chocolate, if used, is added at the end of cooking.
- The meat is cooked separately, and then served with the hot sauce on top. Any vegetables etc, are served separately as side dishes.
- Leftover sauce is often used in the making of tamales, as a topping for enchiladas or over eggs at breakfast.
- Varieties:
- Mole Poblano: From Pueblo, the best known of all mole varieties and is often called the "national dish" of Mexico. Mole poblano contains on average 20 ingredients, and is a heavy consistency and dark colour due to the chillis and chocolate. The chocolate works to counteract the heat of the chillis, but does not dominate the flavour. It may also contain nuts, raisins, chicken or other broth, sometimes ground corn tortillas, a small amount of sugar, and various other spices. This sauce is traditionally served over turkey with a side dish of unfilled tamales (cornmeal masa steamed in corn shucks). It is often eaten at Cinco de Mayo.
- Oaxacan Mole Negro: Oaxaca is called "the land of the seven moles". Mole Negro is the best known. It is darker than mole poblano and just as thick and rich. It also includes chocolate, as well as chillis, onions, garlic and more, but what makes it distinct is the addition of a herb called hoja santa. It is the most complex and difficult to make of the sauces.
- Oaxacan Mole colorado:
- Oxacan Mole Amarillo:
- Oxacan Mole Verde: Mole verde is a green sauce made fresh with herbs native to the region. Mole verde can also refer to a number of different sauces with a green color. Most of these are made fresh and cannot be dried or kept long. It may contain green chiles, chicken broth, ground pumpkin seeds, and various herbs and spices. It is traditionally served over chicken or pork. Another version comes from Veracruz, where pork is covered in a sauce made from ground peanuts, tomatillos and cilantro, with the last two giving the sauce its green color.
- Oxacan Mole Chichilo:
- Oxacan Mole Colaradito: Mole coloradito is another popular preparation, often simplified and sold as an enchilada sauce. There is another mole of the same name originating from the Valley of Mexico in the South.
- Oxacan Mole Mancha Manteles: AKA "tablecloth stainer", it is debated whether this chicken and fruit stew is a mole proper.
- __ Mole San Pedro Atocpan:__ This mole only became well-known in the 1940s. The women of this impoverished region were still grinding the paste by hand until the popularity of the variety allowed them to purchase an electric mill and eventually open a restaurant. In 1977, the Feria Nacional del Mole (National Festival of Mole) was inaugurated in the town. Over 20 variations are made by different family businesses in the town, and their blends are strictly guarded.
- Mole San Pedro Atocpan Almendrado: This variety features ground almonds. It may have 26 or more ingredients.
- Mole Roja: (red mole) contains red chiles, herbs and spices, ground nuts or seeds, ground corn tortillas, and usually no chocolate. It is traditionally served over chicken or pork.
- Other Varieties: Mole amarillito: native to the southeast. Mole prieto: from Tlaxcala. Mole ranchero: from Morelos. Mole Rosa: from Taxco, a pink, very mild variety. Pipian: a type which mostly consists of ground squash seeds. It does not contain chocolate, but generally contains tomatillos, hoja santa, chili peppers, garlic and onion to give it a green hue. There is also a red version which combines the squash seeds with peanuts, red jalapeños or chipotle and sesame seeds. Like other moles, it is cooked with broth and then served with poultry and pork, and sometimes with fish or vegetables. And of course, guacamole is also a variety of mole: the word guacamole is derived from "guaca" (from “aguacate” or avocado) and the word "mole" (sauce).
- Similar dishes: While not moles in the classic sense, there are some dishes that use the term in their name. Mole de olla is a stew made with beef and vegetables which contains guajillo and ancho chiles as well as number of other ingredients found in moles. Huatzmole is a mole sauce variation which is soupy, often served over goat meat (cabrito).
dec 22 2013 ∞
nov 8 2014 +
nov 8 2014 +