Mexican · Lunch · Dinner
Mole Poblano with Chicken
Mole poblano con pollo
Tender poached chicken in a dark, velvety sauce of toasted dried chilies, charred tomatoes, almonds, raisins, warm spices and a little Mexican chocolate. It has all the depth of the Puebla classic, made with lean chicken breast and only a spoonful of oil.
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 60 min
- Total
- 90 min
- Serves
- 6
Calories come from: Carbs 28% · Fat 32% · Protein 40%
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Ingredients
For 6 servings- 4 medium breasts (about 900 g)Chicken breast, skinless and boneless
- 6 cups1,500 gWater, for poaching
- 1 medium150 gWhite onion
- 4 cloves12 gGarlic
- 440 gDried ancho chilies
- 324 gDried pasilla chilies
- 220 gDried mulato chilies
- 2 cups500 gHot water, for soaking chilies
- 2 medium240 gTomatoes
- 2 medium70 gTomatillos, husked and rinsed
- 3 tbsp30 gAlmonds
- 2 tbsp20 gSesame seeds
- 3 tbsp30 gRaisins
- 1 small25 gCorn tortilla
- 1 tspGround cinnamon
- 1/4 tspGround cloves
- 1/2 tspAnise seed
- 1/2 tspGround black pepper
- 1 tspDried oregano, preferably Mexican
- 1 tbsp14 gVegetable oil
- 1/2 tablet (45 g)Mexican chocolate
- 1 tsp6 gSalt
Steps
- 1
Cut the onion in half. Put the chicken, water, one onion half and 1 garlic clove in a large pot.
- 2
Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer gently for 20-25 minutes, until the chicken reaches 74 °C / 165 °F in the thickest part.
- 3
Lift out the chicken, strain the broth and keep 3 cups (750 ml) of it. Let the chicken cool slightly.
- 4
While the chicken cooks, remove the stems and seeds from all the dried chilies.
- 5
Toast the chilies in a dry skillet over medium heat for 20-30 seconds per side, until fragrant. Do not let them burn or the sauce will turn bitter.
- 6
Cover the toasted chilies with the hot soaking water and leave them for 20 minutes. Drain them and discard the soaking water.
- 7
In the same dry skillet, char the tomatoes, tomatillos, the remaining onion half and the remaining 3 garlic cloves for about 8 minutes, turning often.
- 8
Toast the almonds and sesame seeds in the skillet for 2-3 minutes until golden. Set aside 1 tbsp of sesame seeds for garnish.
- 9
Toast the tortilla in the skillet until crisp and lightly charred, then tear it into pieces.
- 10
In a blender, combine the soaked chilies, charred vegetables, almonds, remaining sesame seeds, raisins, tortilla, cinnamon, cloves, anise, pepper, oregano and 2 cups (500 ml) of the reserved broth. Blend until very smooth.
- 11
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Pour in the sauce carefully, as it will spatter, and stir for 5 minutes as it darkens and thickens.
- 12
Stir in the remaining 1 cup (250 ml) of broth, the chocolate and the salt. Simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce coats a spoon.
- 13
Slice or shred the chicken, add it to the mole and warm it through for 5 minutes.
- 14
Serve topped with the reserved sesame seeds.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use 900 g boneless skinless chicken thighs instead of breasts for juicier meat, simmering them a few minutes longer until they reach 74 °C / 165 °F.
- For a vegetarian version, skip the chicken, use vegetable broth in place of the poaching broth, and stir roasted sweet potato and cooked black beans into the sauce.
- If you can't find Mexican chocolate, use 45 g dark chocolate plus a pinch of extra cinnamon and a little sugar to taste.
- To make it nut-free, leave out the almonds and add an extra tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds or pumpkin seeds instead, checking that your chocolate is labelled nut-free.
Storage
Refrigerate leftovers in a covered container within 2 hours and eat within 3 to 4 days, reheating gently with a splash of water or broth until steaming hot. The mole sauce on its own freezes well for up to 3 months, but chicken breast can turn dry, so freeze the sauce separately if you can.
Make ahead
Make the mole sauce up to 3 days ahead and keep it in the fridge, or freeze it, then reheat it and add freshly poached chicken. You can also poach the chicken a day ahead and keep it chilled with its strained broth.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
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Allergens and nutrition
Contains: Tree nutsSesameSoy
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (605 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 374 kcal | 62 kcal |
| Protein | 38.7 g | 6.4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 26.7 g | 4.4 g |
| of which sugars | 11.4 g | 1.9 g |
| Fiber | 6.6 g | 1.1 g |
| Fat | 13.4 g | 2.2 g |
| of which saturated | 2.2 g | 0.4 g |
| Sodium | 483 mg | 80 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
