Mole Poblano... a little bit more explanation about this amazing dish

Most people associate mole with either with Puebla or Oaxaca, but the origin of mole poblano, the thick, rich, chocolate-tinged sauce made so famous in the colonial mountain city of Puebla, Mexico, is still disputed, and generally involves these two versions of the legend:

The first says that 16^th Century nuns from the Convent of Santa Rosa in Puebla de los Angeles, upon learning that the Archbishop was coming for a visit, went into a panic because they had nothing to serve him. The nuns started praying desperately and an angel came to inspire them. They began chopping and grinding and roasting, mixing different types of chiles together with spices, day-old bread, nuts, a little chocolate and approximately 20 other ingredients. This concoction boiled for hours is reduced to a thick, sweet, rich and fragrant mole sauce we know today.

The other legend states that mole came from pre-hispanic times and that Aztec king, Moctezuma, thinking the conquistadors were gods, served mole to Cortez at a banquet to receive them. This story probably gained credibility because the word mole comes from the Nahuatl word “milli” which means sauce or “concoction”. Another connection could be that chocolate was widely used in pre-columbian mexico, so people jumped to that conclusion.

Most moles are very time consuming, labor intensive and require many ingredients. Some sources state that some moles have as many as 100 ingredients, but that’s an exaggeration. But 30 ingredients is not unheard of, and some mole recipes contain 10 different varieties of chiles alone. Other ingredients include: peanuts, almonds, fried bread, plantains, lard, sugar, bittersweet chocolate, cinnamon, cloves and many more.

Each Mexican woman has her own mole recipe, probably passed down from her mother. Because mole takes so much time to prepare, it is usually made in huge batches, so there is always a frozen batch in a Mexican home's freezer.

Be sure to have plenty of napkins nearby when eating any mole. As you dip your warm, homemade tortilla into the wonderful sauce, you are bound to take some home with you on your shirt, your arms and under your fingernails. Now you know you’re enjoying mole!

 

http://www.puebla-mexico.com/holy-mole-poblano/

Comments

[Marc]

Hey Jenny, do you have a good recipe for a mole? I have been wanting to try it for a while but have heard many horror stories about it going wrong. Any tips on ensuring it comes out good? That picture looks amazing, by the way!!!

[jennychef]

Dear Marc,
Welcome! so glad that you visited my site. My husband is actually from Croatia so I am always impressed by Europeans interested in Mexican cuisine just because it's so different from theirs. As I mentioned above, every family and every region has its own version or recipe for mole poblano. I was privileged to have an outstanding cook as a mother who taught me how to make it from scratch but that's my family recipe that I dearly keep but love to share those flavors with my friends and loved ones.

For a great mole recipe, I would recommend you to go with the hard core masters. That is Patricia Quintana one of the most recognized and outstanding chefs my country has today and she has an incredible cookbook called Mulli (Nahuatl word for mole) with beautiful photography and recipes that will blow you away. I will post the recipe for mole poblano from her cookbook so you can take a look; I've made several recipes from this book and I can't tell you how delicious they are!!!

Please keep the comments, questions and suggestions coming always fun to share what I love with others

[Marc]

Thanks so much, Jenny! I'll check it out. I've become more and more interested in Mexican cuisine lately - more because people associate Mexican food with Taoo Bell or the cheap Mexican food that you can get in a lot of restaurants but there are so many complex flavors that Mexican food can produce that is so intriguing to me that is often under appreciated.

By the way, I signed up for you cooking class next Thursday. Looking forward to it!!