Learn to make homemade turkey mole

Turkey can be found everywhere in the days leading up to Thanksgiving. Hit a cafeteria around then. Eat with the kids at school. Go to a church supper. Turkey probably is on the menu. That's all even before you attend one or more family meals on Thanksgiving day.

Yes, many will be suffering from turkey fatigue by the fourth Friday in November. But after, there'll still be a carcass-load of bird left in the refrigerator. What to do?

Mexico's most famous sauce, Mole Poblano, is the solution. This opulent blend of chiles, chocolate, spices, fruit, and nuts has a special affinity for turkey and other poultry--and is way more exciting than a turkey soup or casserole. Mole (pronounced mow-LAY) has the magic to make even the mundane special.

The name is believed to come from an Aztec word for sauce, milli. Mole actually is a family of sauces--often thick, sometimes not--made from a seasoning paste mixed with water or broth and simmered.

Regional variations abound in Mexico. Many moles are brown from toasted nuts, dried chiles, and sometimes roasted tomatoes. But moles also can be black (from using darker dried chiles and deeply roasting their seeds), green (from tomatillos, cilantro, and fresh green chiles), and even yellow (from chiles amarillo).

Many mole recipes call for mulato, ancho, and pasilla chiles, which some call the "holy trinity" of Mexican cooking.

Mulato and ancho are dried poblano peppers, although the peppers for mulato are ripened longer to a dark-brown color (anchos are dried when the poblano turns red). Mulato chiles are fruitier than anchos. Both are wrinkly and almost as wide as they are long.

Pasilla, a dried chilaca pepper, has an elongated shape. Chipotle (dried and smoked jalapeno) also is sometimes added to moles.

Seeds and nuts in the sauce might include one or more among sesame, pumpkin, almonds, peanuts, pecans, or pignoli.

Mole cooks add raisins, chocolate, plantains, pineapple, and other dried fruit like prunes for sweetness. Aromatic spices like cinnamon, clove, anise, and allspice are tempered with oregano, thyme, and bay leaf. Corn tortillas and bread pureed in the sauce contribute to the thicker texture.

Mole Poblano, which originated in the Mexican state of Puebla, can have two dozen or more ingredients. Moles from Oaxaca and Veracruz are similarly complex. But many Mexican moles are simpler, reducing the variety of chiles and spices and sometimes eliminating nuts or fruit.

In Mexico, markets and stores teem with freshly-prepared pastes for different moles, ready to be mixed with liquid into sauce. Here in Birmingham, both general grocery stores and Latino specialty markets sell jarred mole pastes. But, while they will do in a pinch, they are not as tasty as fresh-made.

Look to local Latino markets like Mi Pueblo and El Mercado for individual mole ingredients. Some standard grocery stores also carry the components.

Don't be intimidated by Mole Poblano's long list of ingredients and all of the frying and soaking involved in making it. The process breaks down to four steps: prep, puree, strain, and simmer.

Mole gets even better when its flavors have time to fully meld. Cooking the sauce mid-week is perfect for an easy post-Thanksgiving supper or to feed fans during college football rivalry weekend.

Mole also works as a delicious sauce for homemade enchiladas. Or serve it as a full-flavored dip with fresh, warmed corn tortillas.

No doubt, making Mole Poblano is fairly involved. That's why you should always prepare a big batch. Cook with some now and freeze the rest for future meals.

This is the time of year we set aside to give thanks for all the blessings we receive. Considering Turkey Day involves a bunch of cooking anyway, why not add a batch of mole to bless leftovers for that weekend and meals beyond?

Mole Poblano
Canned tomato works best when fresh is out of season locally. For a vegetarian version, use vegetable broth. Yield: About 3 quarts

  • 1 (14-ounce) can tomatoes (do not drain)
  • 1 (3-ounce) tablet Mexican chocolate (we used Ibarra brand)
  • 12 mulato chiles, seeded and cut into pieces
  • 5 ancho chiles, seeded and cut into pieces
  • 6 pasilla chiles, seeded and cut into pieces
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground or whole coriander seed
  • 1/2 cup sesame seeds, plus extra for topping
  • 5 whole cloves (or a heavy teaspoon ground)
  • 1 stick whole cinnamon (or 1 teaspoon ground)
  • 1/3 cup cocktail peanuts
  • 1-2 tablespoons cooking oil (or lard)
  • 1/3 cup raisins
  • 1 ripe plantain, sliced into discs and peeled
  • 1 small onion, peeled and diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 corn tortilla (stale is preferred), torn into pieces
  • 2 slices white bread, crusts removed and cut into pieces
  • 2 1/2 quarts broth, preferably from the turkey's carcass
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Prep:

  1. Add tomatoes to a bowl. Break tomatoes into chunks.
  2. Shave chocolate. Set aside.
  3. In a dry skillet, working in batches, briefly pan-fry chile pieces on both sides. Set aside and repeat until all chiles are done. A hood fan helps with fumes. Soak toasted chile pieces in water to soften for 30 minutes.
  4. In a heavy pan with no oil, toast coriander seeds until browned, shaking pan regularly to avoid scorching. Set aside in a bowl. Toast sesame seeds, shaking pan, and set aside. Use the same method to toast both whole cloves and cinnamon stick until fragrant, and set aside. (If using ground spices, do not toast them.)
  5. In the same dry skillet, toast peanuts, shaking pan, until they start to brown. Set aside.
  6. Add oil to skillet. Cook raisins until they plump. Set raisins aside, leaving as much oil as possible in skillet. Brown plantains on both sides. Set plantains aside, leaving as much oil as possible in skillet.
  7. Add more oil to pan if needed. Cook onion until it starts to brown. Add garlic and cook 2 more minutes. Set onion and garlic aside, leaving as much oil as possible in skillet.
  8. Fry tortilla pieces and set aside. Don't worry if pan is dry at this point. Fry/toast bread pieces and set aside.
  9. Remove chiles from water and drain.

Puree: Using a powerful blender or food processor, puree all prepared ingredients from above steps in four batches by adding 2 cups of broth for each portion of prepped ingredients. Combine, add remaining spices, and thoroughly blend the mixture again for a smoother sauce.

Strain: Strain sauce, preferably through a chinois, to remove as many solids as possible.

Simmer: Simmer 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching (a whisk works best). Add remaining seasonings. Cool and refrigerate to allow flavors to meld.

Finish: In a pot, add enough mole to cover cooked meat such as leftover turkey, and simmer 10-15 minutes or until heated through. (For vegetarian versions, use tempeh for the protein.)

Serve: Add mole preparation to a serving bowl and sprinkle remaining sesame seeds on top as desired. Serve with Mexican-style rice, warmed corn tortillas, and a salad.

Save: Freeze what's left in serving-sized portions or save to use for another purpose within the next week.

--Photos by Caleb Chancey

This story appears in Birmingham magazine's November 2017 issue. Subscribe today!

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