Oaxacan Red Mole Sauce (Mole Coloradito)

Sharon123's Note:

This is a classic Oaxacan dish, served with rice. Each family has their own version, this one is made by the Restaurant La Olla, Oaxaca México. A little information: Oaxaca is to Mexican food lovers and cooks perhaps what Florence is to art aficionados. Walking through any village market, or just down the street in Oaxaca is a aromatic as well as visual delight. In Oaxaca, it is difficult for one to walk for very long without ending up in a market and passing a dozen little restaurants. Not only has Oaxaca made significant contributions to the flavors of the world - especially with its extraordinary mole (mo-lay) sauces: sharp, thick, sweetly complex, with top notes of smoke, sometimes clove and citrus and always undertones of dried-chile heat, but the Indians from Oaxaca invented two of the cooking utensils that are still essential in Mexican cooking: the molcajete (stone utensil used to crush and mix spices) and the comal (metal utensil for heating and baking). Oaxaca is justly famous worldwide for its vibrant, inventive, and diverse cuisine. The markets and restaurants produce their succulent, rich moles for which Oaxaca is famous. There are at least seven basic varieties of mole made in the region. Here are nine: negro (black), amarillo (yellow), coloradito (reddish), almendrado (with almonds), verde (green), rojo (red), Manchamanteles (tablecloth stainer) and chichilo negro. There is always mole being served in Oaxaca, such as the coloradito; with its brick-red color of roasted chiles, sautéed spices, and ground, charred bread, it is elusively spicy and with a slightly tangy sweetness, a little smoky, with the fullness of toasted grain and a bit more pungent than the negro or the amarillo, which is especially mild, with its clean chile flavor, a strong top note of cumin and a slightly oily texture.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 55 mins
• Prep Time: 25 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 1 entire skinless chicken breast , with bones but without skin
• ¼ medium white onion
• 3 garlic cloves , peeled
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 5 guajillo chilies
• 10 red ancho chilies
• 1 tablespoon sesame seed
• 2 bread rolls , sliced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tablespoon thyme
• 1 tablespoon marjoram (optional)
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• ½ cup chocolate , cut in pieces
• 4 tablespoons vegetable shortening , divided
• 10 almonds
• 10 raisins
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1⁄8; medium white onion
• 3 medium tomatoes , cooked
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• cooked rice (optional)

Directions:

1. Chicken:.
2. Cook the chicken in 4 cups of water, with garlic, onion and salt on medium heat for 45 minutes. Check to make sure that the chicken is cooked through.
3. Mole sauce:.
4. Wash the chiles with a damp cloth, remove the stems of the chiles, slit open with a knife and remove the seeds and veins. Toast the chiles on both sides in large frying pan over high heat, making sure that they do not burn.
5. Soak the chiles in boiling water to soften them for about 10 minute Meanwhile, fry the almonds in 3 tbls. of the shortening on medium heat for 5 min., or until they are a golden color.
6. Take them out and set aside.
7. Next fry the raisins until they puff up and the skin browns a bit, then remove and strain in a sieve. Turn the heat down a bit, and fry the sesame seeds in the same oil, adding a little salt to prevent them from jumping from pan.
8. Once golden, remove and store on an absorbent paper towel. Still in the same oil, fry the slices of bread, until they are golden. Remove and put on an absorbent paper towel. On a dry pan or skittle roast the garlic, onion and tomato until they are nicely toasted with black spots.
9. In a blender, grind the chiles with a half cup of water, and add more water as necessary to blend. Once the mixture is smooth, pour into a saucepan and fry with one tbsp of the shortening for 10 minute on medium heat. Stirring occasionally to ensure that it does not stick to the pan.
10. Next, blend both the roasted and fried ingredients together, until smooth. Blend the tomatoes and strain through a colander and add into the chile mixture. Now add the cinnamon sick, thyme, marjoram(if using) and the oregano. Cook for 5 more minutes. Add the chicken broth, salt, sugar and chocolate on medium heat, stirring occasionally. Remove cinnamon stick. Cool for 15 minutes. Pour the chicken in a serving dish, serve with rice.

Reviews

[The Wallaces]

This was a lot of work, but well worth the effort, especially because I have at least 2 cups of leftover sauce that I will have fun finding creative ways to use up! My hubby helped with the entire process, and it took us 2 hours working together to make the sauce, so make this when you want something really good and as close to the restaurants as I've found but have tons of time and extra help in the kitchen. I could tell this was going to be great as I was reconstituting the dried peppers and could smell the smoky sweetness that is mole. We omitted the salt and onion entirely and did not miss either at all. The only thing I would play around with next time is making the sauce slightly sweeter. Maybe adding more raisins as I could not taste them at all. Or maybe experimenting with a different type of chocolate. I used unsweetened dark chocolate and maybe a sweetened version would take it to the perfect point for me. Also, hubby felt that there were certain steps that could be combined or eliminated to save time, but I don't know if that would affect the quality of the sauce at all, such as roasting the almonds and raisins together instead of separately. I felt the oregano was a little overpowering for my tastes and would probably use the weaker grocery store dried oregano next time instead of my MIL's dried from her garden which is much stronger. Thanks Sharon for a wonderful recipe that I will definitely make again! Made for Holiday tag.

[Jessievs]

This was wonderful, so delicious and well worth the effort... and effort it is! But hours later a masterpiece did emerge and my husband, who is new to mole, was surprised and very pleased as was I. Thanks

[Chef #910953]

DELICIOUS! My only fault with it is the salt. I'd cut it in half. I took this recipe and added these spices suggested by another recipe: 2 tblsp coriander, 1/2 tsp allspice, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp cloves