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Mexican chicken mole rojo

• Karla Zazueta

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Serves 4

A little effort

Prep: 20 mins

Cook: 2 hrs

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Mole is one of the most iconic recipes from Mexico, a celebration dish traditionally made for special occasions

Gluten free

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Try Karla's Mexican chicken mole rojo, then discover roast chicken with chocolate mole, Mexican salad, Mexican BBQ fish, guinea fowl mole, or easy chicken mole.

"There are different varieties of moles and the recipes change from city to city, and from family to family. My dad’s mum used to make a big pot of mole. She never shared her recipe but this is one I make at home for my family."

Karla Zazueta grew up in Baja California, in the north of Mexico. When she moved to the UK 20 years ago, she brought all her family’s recipes that had been passed down through the generations with her. As well as writing about food and Mexican traditions, Karla runs cookery classes from her home and hosts regular sold-out supper clubs in venues across London. Her cookbook of family recipes, Norteña, is available now.

Mexican chicken mole rojo recipe

Ingredients

Nutrition

• 8 chicken thighs
• 1 onion
• 3 small tomatoes
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tbsp sea salt flakes
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil

MOLE PASTE

• 3 ancho chillies

• 3 guajillo chillies

• 70g blanched peanuts

• 40g sesame seeds

• 1 plantain

  cut into slices

• 4 tomatoes

  halved

• 1 onion

  quartered

• 2 garlic cloves

  peeled

• 1 slice of white bread

• ¼ tbsp ground cumin

• 2 whole cloves

• ½ cinnamon stick or ½ tsp ground cinnamon

• 5 whole black peppercorns

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• ½ tbsp sea salt flakes

• 3 small pieces of 70% dark chocolate

Nutrition: per serving

• kcal597
• fat40g
• saturates8g
• carbs27g
• sugars15g
• fibre5g
• protein30g
• salt2.3g

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Method

• step 1

  Put the chicken in a large pan with the onion, tomatoes, garlic, salt and 1 litre of water. Bring to a boil, skim any scum from the surface, then turn down the heat to medium, cook for 35 mins, then turn off the heat.

• step 2

  To make the mole paste, clean the chillies and remove the stems and seeds. Put a dry pan over a high heat and toast the chillies for 1 min, then put them in a small bowl of hot water to rehydrate for 5 mins. Toast the peanuts and sesame seeds in the same pan for a few minutes until lightly browned, then remove from the pan. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in the pan and fry the plantain, tomatoes, onion and garlic for 2 mins – you may need to do this in batches.

• step 3

  Put all the mole paste ingredients, except the chocolate, into a bowl and mix well, then blend in batches in a food processor until you have a smooth, thick paste – use a little of the water from the chillies or chicken to loosen, if needed. Strain the mole paste through a sieve.

• step 4

  Heat the remaining oil in large lidded pan over a medium heat, then tip in the mole. Lower the heat and cook for 3 mins, stirring constantly to avoid burning. Pour in a ladleful of the chicken cooking liquid and add the chocolate. Stir every few minutes, adding extra cooking liquid to loosen, until the chocolate has melted and it is a thick but pourable consistency that coats the back of a spoon – you will know it is ready when a light layer of oil appears on the surface.

• step 5

  Add the chicken and cook for 5 mins until warmed through. To serve, put a layer of mole on a plate, topped with two chicken little bitter, add 1 tsp of thighs and an extra drizzle of the sauce.

More Mexican-inspired recipes.

Authors

Karla Zazueta

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