Mole Poblano... from scratch.

I love spending hours cooking in my kitchen, and so nothing could be more self-fulfilling than taking the best part of the day to cook one of those long time-consuming dishes nobody seems to prepare anymore. For once, instead of a tried and tested Italian classic, I decided to give Mole Poblano, one of Mexico's most notorious dishes a try. About a year ago I had my first taste of mole. It was great, but not enough I wanted to try and make it from scratch myself.

As it often is, laziness got in the way and so I procrastinated until the theme of the new eGullet cook-off was announced. If you haven't yet give those cook-offs a look; IMO a great idea to get a group of people to cook a dish virtually together. (Past themes included classics like Pizza, Fried Chicken and Gumbo.) Guess what the new theme was? Mole clearly! Time to use those tips for mexican chilies sources and get working. Remembering Petra's source tip I was the proud owner of a few bags of Mulatos, Anchos and Pasilla chilies in matter of days (from bottom left corner, clockwise).

I took some time deciding which recipe to use to make my mole Pueblano. I settled for this one from Epicurious mainly because it was the most complex, with almost 30 different ingredients (alone five kinds of nuts and seeds), and the most time consuming one. I'm always in for a challenge. Especially having waited so long to try a dish.

The cooking did not begin in the best way possible. Just a tip in case you want to have a go at this: always screw the lid of your blender REAL tight when you make the chili pure for the sauce. Chili splattered t-shirts only look cool in horror movies and cleaning chili puree from your ceiling is no fun. Actually it is a lot of fun for those looking: Daniela is still laughing about it. Lucky for me, the rest of the cooking went on glitch-less apart the occasional splattering and bubbling of the sauce.

Instead of the classic turkey, we made our mole with chicken and served rice, guacamole and beans on the side. During our dinner with two friends we kept wondering about the recipe. Who thought of these ingredients first? How did they come together? Mole is a dish incredibly far from our modern cuisine full of distinct tastes interacting with each other. It's a dish where bliss comes from what you could even call a hodgepodge, and yet one that works great. Which just goes to show that the latest culinary trends should not be taken as "the only truth".

The fascinating thing about mole is how the flavor develops at each stage. The chili puree tastes slightly bitter with the aroma of the best paprika you've ever had, with chocolate and light smoky overtones. Yet, as soon as you add the nuts, the whole changes becoming earthier. The fruit adds a fresh and sweet note; the spices a complex of aromas that blends with the rest of the ingredients. Far from being a dominating taste, the final addition of Mexican chocolate only discretely ads a final note that rounds the taste of the sauce in a perfect way. The mole sauce was great, far from the overly chocolate tasting stuff in jars. Now, if I only could taste the real Mexican stuff...

Comments

[thSo]

I have tasted the real stuff (in Puebla, where it was developed) and - boy! - you are right, hoping to give it a try :-)))

[clare eats]

Hi Alberto!

That sounds absolutely fantastic. I agree, the most fun comes from spending a whole day cooking something and having it work :)

I wish I could get the chillis and esp the mexican chocolate in Sydney.. oh well

Remember if you want some belacan just let me know :)

Clare

[Alberto]

thSo, since you're in Germany I could try and send you a jar with the extra paste I'm keeping frozen for the future . It's not much, just enough for two people, but should be enough for you to tell me how it compares to the original ;-)).

Clare, any chance of chilies making it through the Australian customs? If yes, I have plenty to spare. And thanks again for the belacan offer, I've sent a friend who lives in Berlin out to search for some. If he has no luck I'll definitely take your very kind offer. Thanks!

[wasabi]

ooooh
in wasabi's book
mole=comfort food

I LOVE THE STUFF. I'm really fortunate in that i live in a city with a fantastic mexican restaurant that has lot of regional moles. When I take friends there who never have tried mole before, i ask for the mole sampler before we order. The server brings out a plate of mole, like a color wheel of different spicyness and flavors. Everything from mild and complex negro to the fire-hot amarillo. Amazing stuff.

One weekend I decided I did want to try it. Comparing several recipes, I concocted one of my own out of necessity (i couldn't find some stuff and some recipes were too long, even for the weekend!) and curiosity (you can cook with that?!?) The result was interesting. there will need to be more mole sessions, that's for sure.

but when I told a friend from Mexico City what i had done in my own kitchen he started to laugh. What's so funny? I asked. He replied, you tried to make it from scratch? No i know makes it from scratch. we start with a good canned variety as a base and then we add to it to make it good!

now they tell me.

[Alberto]

wasabi, the one about your friend in Mexico city is a great story! Lazy city dwellers ;-). I would love to hear the comments of someone from Puebla on that: it would probably be a run into inner-Mexican rivalries I guess.

And I'd love to live somewhere where I could get a taste of that mole sampler! Mexican food in Europe is really depressing. That#s why I end up making everything on my own!

[clare eats]

Hi Albeto

I feel you pain Mexican in Sydney.. is pretty depressing too :(, good excuse to go to America though!

Hows the Belacan search going? Can you get the dried anchovies too? It is very cheap here $3 aud for a BIG packet... can you get the dried anchovies?

[Alberto]

Clare,
anchovies are no problem. I can get them quite easily. Sourcing Asian ingredients in this small town is quite weird: you find stuff that's hard to find elsewhere quite easily, and then basic stuff, like galangal for Thai dishes, is almost impossible to get.

The Belacan search has had some results: no reply from my friend in Berlin yet but I found an Internet source that's based here in Germany. So I guess I'll be able to try your recipe soon. Thanks again for the help and for the very kind offer! The mexican chilies offer stands, if you'de like some (and if I'm allowed to send something like that down under ;-) ) just drop me a line.

[clare eats]

Wow, thats great!
You should try and get some dried Galangal, It works really well in thai soups (like the one I included in the email :) )I always have some on standby incase I cant buy any galangal. If you find fresh galangal, buy heaps cut it into slices and freeze it, it lasts quite well.

I dont know about the chillis, I have looked on the customs website.... and I dont seem to be able to find an answer either way. :(

[Alberto]

Clare, thanks for the freezing tip! I never trusted doing so. Next time I travel to somewhere with a better asian store I'll buy get plenty fresh galangal and freeze it.

If you find out about the chillis just let me know. Or should I try to send them off anyway and see what happens?

[Helen]

Hi Alberto,

Another Sydneyite here... I'm assuming the mexican chocolate for the mole is unsweetened yes? Not like the sweetened mexican chocolate that we can get here. Would a 70% dark choc substitute ok?

PS. I wouldn't recommend sending the chillis without the ok from customs. They should be available here in dried or powdered form from herbies.com.au or The Essential Ingredient at Camperdown.

[Alberto]

Helen,

the chocolate is sweetened. I think it is exactly the same as the one you get there. You could clearly use a 70% substitute, without any problem. Still, don't get scared by the sugar, it only adds a very weak not to the complex flavors of the sauce.

Thanks for the chili tip. I just checked on the customs page and dried chilies should be fine, expecially if they do not come from SE Asia (problems with a beetle there).

[Jeanne]

Hi Alberto

WOW! I've only had mole once, and that was made by a Mexican friend using mole paste brought back from Mexico, not from sratch. I am deeply, deeply impressed by your ingredient-scavenger-hunt abilities and your patience in making the sauce. Would LOVE to have tasted a spoonful...

[Alberto]

Jeanne, if you drop by I still have two large thubs full of sauce in my freezer ;-).

[james]

do you think this dish is oversauced in your picture? just seems overwhelming.
-james

[Alberto]

James, You're right. It's definitely oversauced, but I just love mopping up the extra sauce with tortillas!

[Mark]

WOW!, you guys ar real into Mexican cooking. Maybe someone can explain to me how you can make a tortilla. I guess it is something that has to be learned by practice.

[Alberto]

Mark, I wish I could say you're right, but actually my knowledge of mexican cooking is only superficial... at least untill I move somewhere where I can get good ingredients for a reasonable proce :-). Flour tortillas are quite simple, masa harina ones definitely need practice and a tortilla press.

[veronica]

HELLO EVERYONE, BASED ON WHAT I HAVE READ, YOU DO HAVE THE RECEPIE DOWN PRETTY GOOD. DID YOU KNOW THAT THE CANNED MOLE TASTES JUST AS GOOD, BUT THE ONLY THING THAT I DO RECOMEND IS THAT YOU ADD SESAME SEEDS TO IT IN THE BLENDER ALONG WITH A FEW PEANUTS. ALSO, DID YOU KNOW THAT YOU CAN KEEP THE SAUCE FROZEN FOR UP TO A YEAR AND IT WILL STILL BE GOOD AS LONG AS YOU KEEP IT IN A SEALED CONTAINER. FOR THOSE WHO ASK ABOUT TORTILLAS, THEY ARE QUITE SIMPLE. AND FLOUR TORTILLAS ARE MORE COMPLEX THAN CORN. THE CORN TORTILLAS ARE EASILY MADE FROM A BRAND OF CORN MIX CALLED MASECA. MASECA IS ORIGINALLY FROM MEXICO AND SELLS ALMOST EVERYWHERE IN THE U.S. WHAT YOU DO IS JUST PUT THE AMOUNT OF CORN THAT YOU DESIRE AND ADD ROOM TEMPATURE WATER TO IT JUST ENOUGH TO BRING THE MIX TOGETHER MAKING SURE THAT WHEN YOU POKE WITH YOUR FINGER IT DOES NOT CRACK THEN YOU JUST DIVIDE INTO SMALL BALLS AND PUT IT THE TORTILLA PRESSER, COVERING THE TORTILLA WITH A PIECE OF PLASTIC SO IT DOESN'T STICK TO THE PRESSER. IF IT STICKS TO THE PLASTIC, THEN IT IS TO SOFT AND YOU SOULD ADD MORE CORN MIX. COOK IN A FLAT IRON SKILLET ON MEDIUM-HIGH TEMPERATURE. QUITE EASY