Sunday, May 29, 2011

Making mole (pronounced moe-lay!) sauce gets much faster thanks to delicious recipe

I wanted immediately to try Chicken with Quick Mole Sauce (click for the recipe) from Eating Well magazine when I saw the sauce called for chocolate chips and almond butter.
   These two ingredients help provide a major shortcut to the job of preparing mole sauce (pronounced moe-lay), which, according to a Wikipedia article, can normally take hours to make.
   Chili powder is also a shortcut ingredient in this recipe, as all types of mole sauces begin with roasting and grinding one or more types of chili pepper, such as ancho or poblano.
   The recipe resulted in juicy chicken bathed in a rich, dark red sauce that had an excellent flavor highlighted by cinnamon and almonds.
   The sauce is not spicy, and I think this dish could be served to children ages 12 and over.
   One tip I offer is to serve the dish with rice. The recipe produces plenty of sauce, which could be spooned over rice as well.
   Chicken with Quick Mole Sauce is very easy to make.
   Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are cooked in a skillet, then transferred to a plate.
   Canola oil, garlic, chili powder, cumin and cinnamon are added to the skillet and cooked briefly, then tomato sauce, chicken broth, mini semisweet chocolate chips and almond or natural peanut butter added and the sauce brought to a simmer.
   The chicken is returned to the skillet and the mixture is simmered until the chicken is cooked through, about five minutes more.
   The chicken and sauce is served sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.

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