Ole Mole

It is once again my honor to present a post from colder climates, not from Mexico as this post might have one believe. And yes, my bike does have a name. Without further ado, here is Meg!

When trying to come up with a name for Graham's bike, his all-important transportation compatriot, we tended towards Mexican foods. Southern California and our affinity for good Mexican were probably the inspiration, but for some reason "taco" and "nacho" were stricken from the list, perhaps because the nacho fetish is more mine than Graham's. Alas, "mole" was the obvious choice, the beautiful brown sauce that came into our lives senior year of college.

I spent a good part of my winter break senior year in the Huatusco region of Mexico trying to understand the impact of Fair Trade certification on coffee farmers. It was not the party-filled adventure that most Americans associate with the coast of Mexico, however I did need a souvenir and was rightfully instructed that mole was the proper choice. The wonderful coffee farmer who hosted me drove down a windy road to a little, mostly dilapidated, house. Together, we walked up to the front door and knocked, and a plastic bag of brown goo was presented to me. I must admit that my initial thoughts were mostly negative: "you want me to go through US customs, admit to hanging out on Mexican farms with all sorts of livestock, and carry this bag of unidentifiable mass?" But, I did make it back to Boston with mole in hand, enjoying it's complex tastes shortly after taking a much needed shower.

Imagine. A sauce of chocolate, chilies, almonds, cinnamon, tomatoes, onion, sesame seeds... the list goes on. This is mole poblano, one from a long line of moles native to Mexico. It can be served over any meat (this particular recipe calls for an entire turkey) or with tamales or enchiladas. I should make it clear upfront, though, that this is not a quick meal. Most Mexicans only prepare mole on special occasion given the length of time required. The recipe I am about to present actually recommends spreading the tasks over four days, although I think an entire day spent at home (with ingredients already procured) is sufficient. On our first attempt, we spent about three hours, but most seem to agree that more time means more amazing mole. The aromas aren't so bad either.

This recipe makes about 3 quarts (apparently enough to feed a dozen hungry graduate students with leftovers.)

Mole Poblano

Adapted From Rick Bayless'
Authentic Mexican

Everything and Then Some

• 16 medium dried mulato chiles
• 5 medium dried ancho chiles
• 6 dried pasilla chiles
• 1 dried chipotle chile
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or lard)
• 1/3 cup unskinned almonds
• 1/3 cup raisins
• 1/2 medium onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 slices bread (stale preferred but toasted works)
• 15 oz. can of diced or crushed tomatoes, drained
•  3 oz. Mexican chocolate, roughly chopped (or 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa)
• 4 cloves (or 1/8 teaspoon ground)
• 10 black peppercorns ( or 1/4 teaspoon ground)
• 1 inch cinnamon stick (or 1 teaspoon ground)
• 8 cups broth (I used chicken)
• salt (to taste)
• 1/4 cup sugar (or to taste)

The General Ordeal

1. Prepare. Seriously. With this many ingredients, you need to accumulate, chop, and measure everything before turning on the stove. I like to put my ingredients in lots of little bowls so they are on hand and ready to be added to the pot. In separate bowls, measure out the almonds, chocolate, sesame seeds, raisins, coriander. If using whole peppercorns, cinnamon, and cloves, pulverize those together (either with a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder) and dump those into their own bowl. Slice half an onion and add to its own bowl. Get out your two slices of bread and peel two cloves or garlic. Have your broth and oil (or lard) on hand. Drain the can of tomatoes and dump into a large bowl (other things will be added). I will call this the "tomato bowl."
2. Now the chiles. Carefully devein and remove seeds (keep 2 teaspoons of the seeds and add to another bowl), ripping into flat pieces. Just pile them all together somewhere in your cooking area.
3. Time to turn on the stove. I use a dutch oven for the process, but a large pot will work too. Turn the stove on to medium heat. First we will toast the seeds: sesame, coriander, and chili (not the chiles themselves, just the reserved seeds). Dry toast (no oil) until they are slightly browned. I chose to do them separately just to be sure not to burn. Add the toasted seeds into the tomato bowl. Add 1/4 cup oil to the dutch oven. Once hot, add the almonds and toast for about 4 minutes Remove from pot and add to the tomato bowl. Add the raisins and cook until they start to puff up. Remove and add to the tomato bowl. Then add the onions and garlic and let cook down for about 8-9 minutes, until soft but not brown. Add to the tomato bowl. Add the two pieces of bread, just a few seconds on each side, then remove, tear into small pieces and add to the bowl. Add the chocolate, ground peppercorns, cinnamon, and cloves into tomato bowl too. Set this bowl aside for now.
4. Now onto roasting the chiles. Chile fumes can get intense, so you might want to warn your housemates and also turn on the exhaust fan above your stove. In the same dutch oven still on medium heat, rid of the old oil and add another 1/4 cup vegetable oil (or lard). Once hot, dump in a handful of chiles. You want to brown them a bit on each side, just a few seconds each. Once they seem a bit soft, take them out of the pot and dump into a large bowl (a new bowl, not the tomato bowl). Repeat with all of the chiles. Bring some water to a boil and dump over the bowl of toasted chiles. You want to submerge them all, so I put a plate on top to make sure they all remain under water. Let sit for at least one hour (I opted for 1.5 hours).
5. Time to puree. The contents of each of our two bowls will be pureed separately. Add 1/4 of the mixture from the tomato bowl into the bowl of a food processor along with 1/2 cup of broth. Puree until smooth. Repeat with each portion of the tomato mixture (use 2 cups broth total for all of the tomato mixture). Dump back into a clean bowl. Now we will do the same thing with the chiles. First, drain the chiles in a colander to remove steeping water. I took 1/3 of the chiles at a time into the food processor along with 1/2 cup broth. Repeat with all portions of chiles (use 1.5 cups broth total for all of the chile mixture). Return to a separate clean bowl.
6. Now we can combine. Reheat your dutch oven or pot and add 2 tablespoons oil. Once warm, add the chili puree mixture through a metal strainer, trying to rid of larger chunks. I started to do this, then decided I wanted those chunks of chili and just dumped it all in. Completely up to you. Then stir constantly for about 5 minutes or until the mixture appears to thicken. Do the same thing with the other mixture, adding to the chile mixture, straining of you desire. Stir again and let cook together for about 5 minutes. Add another 4 cups of broth or so (the consistency should resemble thick cream) and let simmer on low heat for at least 45 minutes (I went for about 2 hours). You probably want to cover, at least partially, to prevent a large amount of mole from splashing onto your stove top. Here, add a pinch of salt and the sugar. Stir and taste. Feel free to add whatever other spices seem necessary and serve with your chosen accompaniment.

NB: I served this over chicken, but I am sure you can be more creative. The sauce could easily be made vegetarian by using vegetable broth and serving with a variety of squash or pumpkin.