Mole Poblano

Prepare a double batch of mole, serving a portion and keeping the rest to freeze. Mole will keep frozen for up to a month. Simply thaw and reheat. If the texture is grainy after reheating, simply reblend the sauce.

Chunks of boneless, skinless chicken can be used. The recipe calls for parboiling, but you can prepare the chicken in any number of ways - Baked, roasted, or grilled, or even a purchased rotisserie chicken. Duck, quail, turkey, or any kind of poultry can be substituted for the chicken.

Serve with brown rice, and a salad with jicama and avocado slices with a light citrus (orange, lemon or lime) dressing.

Ingredients:
4 lbs. chicken pieces, skin on
sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 T sesame seeds, toasted, for garnish

For the Mole Poblano:
9 mulato chiles*
7 pasilla chiles*
6 ancho chiles*
1 cup plus 9 T vegetable oil or lard, and additional as needed
4-5 tomatillos**, husked and cooked until soft
5 whole cloves
20 whole black peppercorns
1-inch piece of a Mexican cinnamon stick***
1 T seeds from the chiles, toasted
1/2 teaspoon anise seeds, toasted
1/4 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted
8 T sesame seeds, toasted
4 garlic cloves, roasted
3 T raisins
20 whole almonds, blanched
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds****
2 corn tortillas, torn into pieces
3 stale French rolls, cut into 1-inch slices
6-7 cups reserved chicken broth as needed
1 1/2 ounces Mexican chocolate, chopped

*Mulato, pasilla, and ancho chiles are three varieties of dried chiles often used in Mexican cooking. The ancho chile (a poblano that has ripened to a dark red color and dried) is rust-colored, broad at the stem and narrowing to a triangular tip. The mulato, a relative to the poblano, is dark brown and triangular. The shiny black pasilla chile, a dried chilaca chile, is narrow and five to six inches long. Good quality chiles should be fragrant and pliable. Wipe them carefully with a damp cloth or a paper towel to remove any dust. To seed dried chiles, use a sharp paring knife to make a slit down the side and carefully scrape out the seeds. Wear gloves when handling chiles You can vary the number of each chile you use, so long as the total number equals 22, but only use pasilla, mulato, or ancho chiles. Do not substitute another type.

**Tomatillos are often referred to as "green tomatoes," but are members of the gooseberry family. To prepare tomatillos for the salsa, remove their papery husks and rinse away their sticky outer coating. Or, canned whole tomatillos are available under the San Marcos brand.

***Mexican cinnamon, known as canela, is the bark of the true cinnamon tree, native to Sri Lanka. It is sold in very thin and somewhat flaky curled sticks and is much softer than the more common variant of cinnamon, which comes from the bark of the cassia tree.

****Also known as pepitas, the pumpkin seeds used in Mexican cooking are hulled. When frying or toasting pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet, keep a cover handy, as they will pop like popcorn.

Preparation:
In a large stock pot, parboil the chicken in water seasoned with salt and pepper to taste. Drain, reserving cooking broth, and refrigerate until ready to assemble the dish.

Mole Poblano Sauce:
Clean the chiles by removing stems, veins and seeds; reserve 1 tablespoon of the seeds. Heat 1/2 cup oil in a heavy skillet until it shimmers. Fry chiles until crisp, about 10 to 15 seconds, turning once; make sure they do not burn. Drain on paper towels. Put chiles in a nonreactive bowl, cover with hot water, and set aside for 30 minutes. Drain chiles, reserving the soaking water. Puree the chiles in a blender with enough of the soaking water to make a smooth paste. It may be necessary to scrape down the sides and blend several times to obtain a smooth paste. In a heavy Dutch oven heat and additional 1/2 cup oil over medium heat and add chile puree (be careful it will splatter). Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and set aside.

Puree tomatillos in a blender. In a coffee or spice grinder, grind the cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, and toasted seeds. Add seed mixture and garlic to the pureed tomatillos and blend until smooth. Set aside.

Heat 6 tablespoons of the oil in a heavy frying pan. Fry each of the following ingredients and then remove with a slotted spoon: the raisins until they puff up; the almonds to a golden brown; the pumpkin seeds until they pop. If necessary, add enough oil to make 4 tablespoons and fry the tortilla pieces and bread slices until golden brown, about 15 seconds per side; remove from the skillet with a slotted spoon. Add raisins, almonds, pumpkins seeds, tortillas, and bread to the tomatillo puree and blend, using 1 to 2 cups reserved chicken broth, as needed, to make a smooth sauce. This may have to be done in batches. In a heavy Dutch oven, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium heat. Add chile puree, tomatillo puree and Mexican chocolate(it will splatter) Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring often. Add remaining 5 cups chicken broth, cook over low heat for an additional 45 minutes, stirring often enough to prevent the mixture from scorching on bottom. During last 15 minutes, add parboiled chicken and heat through. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds.

Serves 8