Ingredients
4 pounds previously poached chicken pieces reserve all of the broth
10 dried chile ancho
10 dried chile guajillo or chile California for a darker mole, replace guajillo( or California) with chile negro(pasilla) or mulato
3 dried chile chipotle
8 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup of raisins
5 Roma tomatoes
1 medium white onion cut into thick slices
4 serrano peppers stems removed
10 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup slivered almonds 1/4 cup pepitas
1/4 cup sesame seeds plus another 1/4 cup for garnish
1 teaspoon anise seeds
2 inch piece of cinnamon stick broken in half
2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
1/3 cup of roasted peanuts or 1/4 cup of creamy peanut butter
12 saltine crackers or 1 toasted bolillo roll sliced
2 corn tortilla tostadas, blackened slightly
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt more to taste
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 tablespoons traditional pork lard
1 disk of Mexican chocolate 3 ounces , broken into pieces
2 tablespoons brown sugar, optional
Preheat comal (griddle) to medium heat for 5 minutes. Remove stems and seeds from the dried peppers. Transfer to comal. Toast for a few minutes, turning as needed. Do not leave them unattended or they will burn and become bitter. Transfer the peppers to a pot of simmering water. Cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat.
Drain liquid from peppers, transfer to the blender. Add 3 cups of reserved chicken broth, 1/2 tablespoon of cumin and 2 teaspoons of salt. Blend on high until smooth. Strain the sauce through a wire mesh strainer for a smoother sauce. Set aside. Cover the raisins with enough hot water to cover, set aside.
In a large pan add the almonds, pepitas, sesame seeds, anise, cinnamon stick and oregano. Heat pan to medium/low heat. Toast, stirring often, do not leave unattended, or they will burn. After about 6 to 8 minutes, remove all spices and nuts from the pan and transfer to coffee or spice grinder. You may have to grind in two batches. Grind into a paste, set aside.
Add tomatoes, serranos, onions and garlic to comal and char for 12 minutes, turning after 6 minutes. Remove from the comal and let cool. In the blender, add the ground almonds/spice mixture, broiled tomatoes, serranos, onions, garlic, peanut butter, crackers, tostadas, cumin, drained raisins, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon salt and 2 cups of reserved chicken broth. Blend until smooth, set aside.
This is where your mole comes together. In a large, heavy pot, heat 4 tablespoons of olive oil to medium heat. After 3 minutes, add the chile sauce and cook for 20 minutes. Add in the other blended sauce. Stir well to combine. When it comes to a boil, taste for salt. Add the Mexican chocolate, brown sugar and remaining 3 cups of chicken broth. Add the cooked chicken pieces and continue cooking for 1 hour. The sauce will darken as it cooks. Toast the remaining sesame seeds for garnishing the mole. Serve with warm tortillas, rice, beans and a fresh salad.
