Cinco de Mayo and Chocolate! So many great recipes and such a natural combination.
Cinco de Mayo (The Fifth of May)
is a Mexican holiday celebrating the victory of the Mexican army over
the French at the Battle of Puebla, May 5, 1862. Puebla's signature dish
is
Molé Poblano--a Chocolate spicy stew--the national dish of Mexico. It's
not sweet, even with the chocolate, since there are groundnuts, seeds,
bitter chocolate and spices. There are so many varieties. Here are a
few variations. Want to go the easiest route? Try Molé paste with
Mexican Ibarra chocolate. You'll still want to add some chicken broth
and tomato juice and maybe
some peanut butter, but it's quick -- or you can try one of these
recipes:
MOLÉS
Chicken Molé, my favorite
Mexican chocolate main dish, can be very complicated to make. Here's an easy recipe adapted from
Paula
Deen for a quick Chicken Molé. o.k. it's not all that quick, but
faster than the traditional recipes.
1. Quick Chicken Molé
Ingredients
2 tablespoons good quality olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 chipotle peppers, roughly chopped
1 (10-ounce) can chicken broth
2 tablespoons peanut butter
2 ounces Taza Chocolate Mexicano, chopped
1 (5-pound) chicken, cut into 8 pieces
Toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds), for garnish
White rice, for serving
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Heat
oil in saute pan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until
translucent. Add garlic and spices and continue to saute to toast and
develop flavor. Add diced tomatoes, peppers, chipotles, broth, peanut
butter, and chocolate. Simmer for 10 minutes. Strain and puree until
smooth.
Sear chicken in heavy bottomed hot saute pan over
medium-high heat until browned on both sides. Add to casserole dish,
cover with sauce and braise in oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Garnish
with pepitas and serve with white rice.
You can also use this molé recipe with Enchiladas!
The following recipe is from
Kendall Jackson. Pair a Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve Malbec with this.
2. Chicken Molé Poblano with Animal Crackers
For chicken:
1 whole chicken
3 quarts water
½ onion
3 garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
2 Tbsp. kosher salt
1 Tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
¼ tsp. oregano
Place all ingredients in large pot and bring to boil. Reduce to
simmer and cook for 1 hour or until chicken is done. Strain and reserve liquid and chicken.
For mole sauce:
4 Tbsp. rice oil (or other neutral flavored oil)
8 dried mulato chilies, stems and seeds removed
4 dried pasilla chilies, stems and seeds removed
4 dried ancho chilies, stems and seeds removed
2 dried cascabel or chipotle chilies, stems and seeds removed
12 almonds
¼ cup peanuts
3 garlic cloves
¼ large onion
½ plantain, diced
12 animal crackers
5 raisins
3 whole black peppercorns
2 cloves
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp. sesame seeds, toasted
5 cups reserved chicken stock
2 slices bacon
½ bar (1½ oz.) Mexican chocolate (Ibarra)
In large heavy bottomed pan over medium heat, add oil and sauté
the chilies for approximately 3 minutes. Stir chilies constantly,
being careful not to burn them. Using slotted spoon, remove chilies and reserve.
Add almonds and peanuts and cook for 2 minutes or until golden
brown. Add garlic, onions and plantains and cook until golden brown,
approximately 3 minutes. Add animal crackers and cook for 2 minutes
or until golden brown.
Add raisins, peppercorns, cloves and cinnamon and cook until
aromatic. Remove from heat and place in blender, add chilies, 1
tablespoon toasted sesame seeds and the chicken stock. Purée until
sauce is smooth consistency.
In small pan, cook bacon until fat has rendered. Remove
bacon and all but 1 tablespoon of fat from pan (
bacon can be eaten
or reserved for another use). Add chocolate to pan. Once chocolate has dissolved, cook for 2 minutes or until aromatic. Add
bacon fat and chocolate mixture to purée and stir to combine.
To serve: Slice chicken onto platter and cover with mole sauce.
Garnish with remaining sesame seeds. Serve with Mexican rice and
tortillas on the side.
Extra mole sauce can be frozen for up to 2 months.
***
Here's a completely different mole recipe--this time for
WHITE Chocolate Molé with Animal Crackers.
Recipe from Judy Walker in the Arizona Republic a few years ago.
3. White Chocolate Molé with Animal Crackers
Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted peanuts
1/4 cup sliced blanched almonds
1/4 cup walnuts
2 cups water
1 cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
2 whole cloves
1 fresh poblano chile, seeded and chopped
2 fresh serrano chiles, seeded and chopped
1 small clove garlic
1/2 white Spanish onion, cut into chunks
5 animal crackers, toasted
1/4 cup sweet butter
1/2 cup chopped white chocolate
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread peanuts, almonds and walnuts on a
jelly-roll pan. Toast in oven, shaking pan occasionally, until
nuts are slightly colored and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes.
In blender, combine nuts, water, cinnamon stick and cloves; blend
until nuts are very finely ground. Strain through medium-mesh sieve
over bowl, pressing on solids with back of ladle or rubber
spatula to release liquid. Reserve liquid and discard
solids.
In blender, combine chiles, garlic, onion and nut liquid. Add animal crackers; puree until smooth. Strain through medium-mesh
sieve over bowl, pressing on solids with back of ladle or
rubber spatula to release liquid. Discard solids.
In large saucepan, heat butter. Stir in nut-chile liquid.
Simmer, uncovered, over medium heat, scraping bottom of pan
occasionally with a rubber spatula, until mixture is consistency
of thick pea soup, about 15 minutes.
Stir in chocolate, salt and pepper until chocolate is melted. Use immediately.
Note: The molé without the chocolate can be made ahead and
refrigerated, tightly covered, for up to a week. To serve, heat in a
saucepan and stir in the chocolate.
