Authentic Mole Recipe

If you're looking for a way to seriously up your dinner game when it comes to everyone's favorite Mexican dishes, we've got you covered with this mole recipe from Bake it With Love's Angela Latimer.

First, the basics. What exactly is mole? (And that's pronounced moh-lay, incidentally.) It's a sauce that's as traditional as traditional can possibly get, with roots that go all the way back to the Aztec and other pre-Columbian groups living in South America. There's a few different versions of how mole came about, so that's really as close as we can get, but we do know what makes a mole, mole.

While there's a lot more that goes into it, a mole is — on a most basic level — the combination of Mexican chocolate and a variety of chili peppers into a sauce. Latimer says, "'Authentic' these days really varies depending on who's making it, but I did a lot of digging, and asked for family recipes from friends. This is my favorite version, including all of the wonderful things that would contribute to an 'authentic' flavor."

While some versions of a mole can take dozens upon dozens of ingredients and even a day or more to cook, Latimer has streamlined the process to give us this brilliant, delicious sauce that's a must-have addition for the next time you make your favorite enchiladas.

Some of your ingredients are going to need a little extra prep work, so let's talk about that now.

Take a look at those dried chile peppers, and here's where a decision needs to be made. Does your family like things hot and spicy, or a little more mellow but still flavorful? Latimer says that if you like, remove the seeds and hand-tear the peppers. She explains, "[Mole] is not necessarily hot, as long as the chile seeds were removed. [On the other hand, they] can make it spicier for those that like a little heat."

You can also go ahead and chop your chocolate, too. If you're wondering why Latimer uses Mexican chocolate and what the difference is, it's got a little extra spice. Mexican chocolate is typically infused with things like cinnamon, nutmeg, or allspice, and while it definitely adds an extra kick, she says you can use dark chocolate as an alternative.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the pepitas, crushed almonds, and garlic (peeled and crushed). Continue to sauté, stirring frequently, for an additional 1 to 2 minutes, or until the garlic is fragrant.

It's important to keep an eye on things here. Burning garlic is incredibly easy to do, and it will absolutely ruin your final product. That, in fact, is why garlic isn't added earlier: when you add garlic a bit later with other ingredients, it's going to be easier to avoid burning.

Now it's time to add the seasonings — and that's the cumin, coriander, oregano, thyme, anise seeds, cloves, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick.

Also, add the chicken broth, chiles in adobo sauce, and raisins. Stir to combine thoroughly, and bring to a low boil.

Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for a minimum of 30 to 35 minutes. Latimer says that if you can simmer this for longer, do so: "Let your chiles cook longer, in order to better infuse the flavor." If you're going to go that route, you'll need to add an extra cup of broth to keep the sauce from drying out, but it's the only change you'll need to make.

Blending your mole is the final step that guarantees it's going to come out rich, thick, and perfectly combined, without any remaining chunks of peppers. To blend your mole sauce, you will need to work in batches. But first, make sure you remove the bay leaves and the cinnamon stick. 

Add approximately ⅓ of the sauce to your blender at a time, then puree until smooth. Transfer the pureed sauce to a clean pot and finish the rest of the sauce. Stir all of the batches together, and here's where you can season to taste with salt and pepper when you're finished blending and mixing all of the mole.