Pollo en Mole Amarillo con Ejotes y Chayote
El Lenguaje del Mole
When we think of Oaxacan mole, we usually picture the majestic, days-long affair of Mole Negro. But in the home kitchens of the Valles Centrales, there is an everyday language of mole. Mole Amarillo is a light, deeply savory, and vibrant stew, bound by the strict Oaxacan rule of herbs: pork gets cilantro, beef demands pitiona, but chicken requires the peppery, anise-magic of hoja santa. Stripped of the rare chilhuacle pepper and adapted for the American weeknight with humble guajillos, the secret here isn't exotic foraging. It is the absolute necessity of frying your blended chile paste in hot fat until it sings.
Before you start
Mise en place is non-negotiable here.
Have your chiles wiped and deseeded, and your vegetables chopped, before the chicken finishes poaching so you can smoothly transition from boiling the broth to toasting the aromatics.
Ingredients
- low-sodium chicken broth4 1/2 cup
- bone-in skinless chicken thighs1 1/2 lb
- chayote squash1 med
- fresh green beans1/2 lb
- baby waxy potatoes1/2 lb
- dried Guajillo chiles6 med
- dried Ancho chile1 med
- Roma tomatoes3 med
- tomatillos3 med
- white onion1/2 med
- garlic3 small clove
- whole cloves3 whole
- whole allspice berries5 whole
- dried Mexican oregano1/2 tsp
- ground cumin1/4 tsp
- Mexican cinnamon stick1 small
- neutral cooking oil or pork lard2 tbsp
- masa harina1/4 cup
- fresh hoja santa leaves2 large
- kosher saltto taste
Method
- 01
Poach the chicken to build your foundational broth.
In a heavy pot or Dutch oven, bring the chicken broth to a gentle simmer, drop in the chicken pieces, and poach for 20 to 25 minutes until just cooked through, then remove the chicken to a plate.
- 02
Simmer the vegetables in the same liquid gold.
Drop the potatoes and chayote into the bubbling broth for 10 minutes, add the green beans for 5 minutes more until tender-crisp, then remove all the vegetables with a slotted spoon and set them aside with the chicken while reserving the broth.
- 03
Toast and hydrate the dried chiles to unlock their color.
Heat a dry skillet over medium heat, press the guajillo and ancho chiles flat for 10 to 15 seconds per side until fragrant but not burnt, then transfer to a bowl of boiling water and soak for 15 minutes.
- 04
Char the aromatics for a subtle, smoky depth.
In the same dry skillet, roast the tomatoes, tomatillos, onion, and garlic until the skins blister and blacken in spots, making sure to remove the garlic early if it threatens to burn.
- 05
Blend the mole base into a velvety puree.
Transfer the softened chiles, charred vegetables, cloves, allspice, oregano, cumin, and cinnamon to a blender with a half cup of your reserved chicken broth, blending on high until completely smooth.
- 06
Fry the sauce to concentrate and transform the flavor.
Wipe out the heavy pot, heat the oil or lard over medium-high heat until shimmering, and pour in the chile puree to sizzle and fry for 5 to 7 minutes until it thickens into a brick-red paste.
- 07
Whisk in the masa slurry to build the stew.
Pour the remaining reserved chicken broth into the fried paste and bring to a simmer, then whisk the masa harina with a half cup of warm water in a small bowl until completely smooth and stream it into the pot while stirring constantly.
- 08
Steep the hoja santa and reunite the ingredients.
Let the mole simmer for 10 to 15 minutes until it lightly coats the back of a spoon, drop in the torn hoja santa leaves for 3 minutes to release their essential oils, then gently stir the chicken and vegetables back in just to warm through before serving with hot corn tortillas.
Notes
Do not skip the masa harina.
This is not just a thickener; it is a flavor component. The nixtamalized corn in the masa provides an earthy, toasted backbone that cornstarch simply cannot replicate.
Sourcing the holy leaf.
Hoja santa is the defining aromatic signature of chicken mole amarillo. If you absolutely cannot find it at a local Latin market, blend a half cup of fresh cilantro with a tiny pinch of ground fennel to mimic its peppery, anise-like profile.
From Cook Oaxacan in America.