Mole sauce is a rich sauce flavoured with chocolate, chillies, spice and a whole host of other ingredients. This particular recipe is a famous traditional recipe from the Martinez family of Oaxaca and is served every day at their wonderful restaurant Casa de la Abuela. It uses Ancho Poblano and Guajillo chillies. Mole is traditionally served with Turkey but can be used with Chicken or Pork. Mole sauces are thought to originate from the state of Puebla east of Mexico City. The exact origin is disputed but one of the more interesting stories is that it was served to Cortez and the invading Conquistadors by the Aztec King Moctezuma who thought they were Gods.
Time
Approx 1 hour
Instructions
Place the sesame seeds in a small heavy bottomed frying pan over a medium heat. Stir constantly shaking the pan until they start to turn golden. Transfer the seeds into bowl and put to one side
Grate the chocolate coarsely or break into small pieces and put to one side
Crush the bread into fine crumbs or grind in food processor and put to one side
Wash and dry roast the chillies a couple at a time for 30-60 seconds in the a heavy bottomed frying pan. Do this on a medium heat and shake the pan as you do this to make sure they do not burn. Then place them in a bowl and cover generously with boiling water. Soak for 20 minutes
Grind the cinnamon, cloves and peppercorns together with a mortar and pestle or spice grinder
Drain the chillies
Heat half the oil in a medium sized skillet over medium heat, add the ground spices and cook for 1-2 minutes stirring constantly. Add the onion, garlic, tomatoes, plantain (or banana), thyme, oregano, sesame seeds, raisins and almonds. Cook uncovered stirring frequently for about 15 minutes
Allow this to cool for about 10 minutes and then place in a blender with the stock and the drained chillies. Blend for 3 minutes or until very smooth.
In a large non stick saucepan heat the rest of the oil over a medium high heat. Add the blended mixture stirring constantly. Stir in the remaining stock a little at a time. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes. Stir in the bread crumbs and cook stirring constantly for about 10 minutes or until the sauce is lightly thickened. Stir in the chocolate and cook stirring constantly until well dissolved. Add salt
The sauce is now ready to use
If you are making the sauce ahead of when you plan to use it allow to cool for half an hour and then place in a container with tightly fitting lid and refridgerate. Use within 2 - 3 days.
Courtesy of Zarela Martinez. This recipe comes from her popular Mexican cookery book Food and Life of Oaxaca. Other titles by Zarela include Food From my Heart and Zarela's Veracruz. To read more about Zarela please see her profile on our friends page.
