Dateline: March 14, 2021 Bill's Excellent Adventure - Mole Chicken Breast Sheet Pan Dinner

Knock me over with a feather, Bill offered to make a sheet pan dinner!  Alan, keep up the pressure!

I had been making mole earlier in the afternoon, and we decided that chicken breast on a bed of veg topped with Mole sauce would be an excellent dinner option.

Bill chopped up the veg:  potatoes, carrots, brussel sprouts, onions, broccoli, and cherry tomatoes.  He marinated the bunch in olive oil, garlic, pinto beans, salt, and pepper.  Topped with the chicken breasts and into the oven they went (after putting oil on the chicken, along with salt and pepper).  In the pan I added some chicken stock and white wine, hoping to hurry the veggies along.

After 30 minutes, I slathered on the mole sauce and returned them to the oven to finish cooking through to 160°F (minimum).  Bill's back was bothering him so he was resting while I did this.

20 minutes later, out of the oven it came and we ate.  

The veg under cooked and the breasts were a little dry at the thin end.  But the flavors were very good.  I think next time, veggies in first, then top with breasts. and finish cooking until everything is crispy and cooked through.  The pinto beans got a little crispy crunchy, and extra starchy, I think that they belong on the bottom with everything else protecting them from the oven's drying heat.

Repurposing everything for the next day, I chopped up the remaining chicken added more mole sauce, chicken stock, and a can of chick peas.  Brought to a boil and let simmer until veggies were cooked through and soft.  Delicious.

Dateline: June 19, 2020. Mole Concentrate to share with friends

We had some chicken that needed to be cooked, so I decided to make a big batch of mole concentrate  and share with friends.

Ingredients

3 medium to large onions, cut into eighths, no need to peel, but do cut off stem and root ends a bit

6-10 garlic cloves, depending on their size, again no need to peel

24-30 dried peppers, a mixture of guajillo, ancho, pasilla, chipotle, etc.  What ever you can find and/or have on hand, stemmed and seeded as best you can.

2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, depending on size

2 T adobo sauce

1-2 c white wine, preferably a semi sweet one, I used a riesling

1 T cumin seeds

1 T coriander seeds

2 small sticks cinnamon

3-4 allspice berries

1 T chili powder

1/2 package of Baker's bittersweet chocolate, chopped

2-3 heaping T of cocoa powder

1 T salt

2 t Mexican oregano

agave syrup

Additional salt and pepper to taste

Avocado oil

Method

1.  In a spice grinder, add cumin, coriander, cinnamon sticks, allspice berries, and 1 T salt.  Grind to a fine powder.

2.  Heat a cast iron griddle or pan until very hot.  This can also be done outdoors on a grill.  When pan is hot, put the onions cut side down along with the garlic cloves.  Sear the onions on both cut sides as well as its back.  Flip the garlic cloves over and brown on both sides.  Remove from heat.  

3.  Put the peppers on the pan.  Heat them until they are pliable and have changed color a bit.  Most of the peppers will go from a dark red or brown to a brighter red.  Turn them over the soften on both sides.  Remove from the heat.

4.  Put peppers into a bowl and cover with warm water.  You may need to weigh them down with a plate.  They should soak until the peppers are very pliable and fully saturated, this could be 10-20 minutes.

5.  Put onions into a blender jar.  (The more powerful the blender, the less straining will be necessary.  I used a Vitamix).  Peel the garlic cloves and add them to the blender.  Add the chipotle peppers and white wine to the blender and grind to a fine paste.  You may been to add more liquid in order to get the blender to grind properly.  

6.  Heat a pot up and film with avocado oil.  Add contents of blender and stir fry.  It will splatter, stand back!  Reduce heat.

7.  Take soaked peppers leaving the soaking liquid and add to the blender.  You will need to add some more white wine or some soaking liquid to allow the blender to do its job.  Grind to a fine paste and add to the onion garlic chipotle mixture in the pot.

8.  Stir to combine ingredients in pot.  Add oregano.   Taste, remember, this is uncooked at this point.  It will be a bit bitter and raw tasting.  Add 1 t of agave syrup to calm the bitterness.  Bring to a low simmer.

9.  Add bittersweet chocolate and cocoa powder and stir to combine well.  Do not walk away from the pot, the chocolate has a tendency to burn if left unattended.  Taste again, you may need more agave and salt again.

10.  Cook down until the mole starts to thicken.  This should make 3-4 pints.  Package up and distribute to friends.

How to Use the Mole

To use the mole concentrate, saute up the protein of choice, chicken or turkey goes well with this mole, as would tofu or tempeh.  When meat is almost cooked through, add 1 cup of the mole sauce.  Scrape up any crusty bits on the bottom of the pan.  Thin the mole with 1 cup of chicken stock and cook until slightly thickened.  Taste, and adjust seasonings.  If bitter, add agave syrup, if bland, add salt with additional chili powder, if too spicy, add agave syrup.  Mix well and serve with the tortillas of your choice.  This will also make fantastic mole enchiladas.

Dateline: June 9, 2020 Holy Mole!

I had some turkey tenderloins in the freezer and decided to try to do something with them that was 

1) different than usual

2) tasty

3) quick and easy

I began my search with NYTCooking app and found inspiration with a turkey mole recipe. 

Ingredients

5 dried guajillo peppers

5 dried pasilla peppers

1 dried ancho pepper

1 large onion, quartered, but not peeled

4 cloves of garlic, not peeled

water

1.5 lbs turkey tenderloin, boneless breast, boneless thigh, whatever you have, cut up into chunks

salt and pepper

1 t ground coriander seed

1 t ground cumin seed

1/2 t Mexican oregano

1 c chicken stock

1 T unsweetened cocoa powder

2 t turbinado sugar

Method

1.  Stem and seed all the dried peppers.  Wear gloves if your hands are raw from sanitizer!

2.  In a cast iron skillet, toast the peppers on both sides over medium heat, but do not burn!

3.  Place in a bowl and cover with water and allow to soak until pliable

4.  In same cast iron skillet, put in onion quarters cut side down, and garlic cloves.  Toast until slightly blackened on all sides.

5.  Remove to a blender and pull the peppers from the water and add them to the blender.  Add about 1/2 cup soaking liquid to help get the blender going.  Reserve the remainder of the soaking liquid in case the dish needs thinning later on.  Blend until very smooth.

6.  Strain the contents of the blender through a fine sieve into the bowl where you soaked the peppers.  Make sure to scrape down the outside of the sieve and to try to extract as much pulp from what is inside the sieve.  Hold aside until step 8.

7.  Salt and pepper all sides of the turkey chunks.  Heat the same cast iron skill over medium heat, add neutral oil, and gently sear the turkey chunks until a light golden brown.  They will not be cooked all the way through.  Remove them to a clean plate.

8.  In the cast iron skillet cook the strained sauce.  As it bubbles up, add the chicken stock, coriander, cumin, oregano, cocoa and sugar.  Stir to combine all ingredients well.  Taste, adjust salt and pepper or sugar, etc.  Reduce slightly and add in the turkey chunks and any accumulated juices from the plate.  Rotate and spoon sauce all over the pieces.  Cover pan with foil or lid and reduce heat to a simmer.

9.  Check on the skillet every once in a while to be sure that nothing is sticking to the bottom.

10.  Serve with rice, quinoa, or other side dish of your choice and a salad.

From the tasting that I have been doing of the sauce, it has a bit of a bitter edge, (dried peppers) and the cocoa and sugar really balance that out.  Additional salt and pepper was needed as there was zero in the sauce until then.  I am looking forward to this, sorry I don't have tortillas as a go with.

This was outstanding.  The mole was wonderful, so wonderful, I may make a huge batch to give away and freeze!