Not to be confused with Mole de olla. Generally, a mole sauce contains fruits, nuts, chili pollo ranchero, and spices like black pepper, cinnamon, or cumin.
While not moles in the classic sense, there are some dishes that use the term in their name. Mole de olla is a stew made from beef and vegetables, which contains guajillo and ancho chili, as well as a number of other ingredients found in moles. Two states in Mexico claim to be the origin of mole: Puebla and Oaxaca. The best-known moles are native to these two states, but other regions in Mexico also make various types of mole sauces. Moles come in various flavors and ingredients, with chili peppers as the common ingredient. The classic mole version is the variety called mole poblano, which is a dark red or brown sauce served over meat.
The dish has become a culinary symbol of Mexico’s mestizaje, or mixed indigenous and European heritage, both for the types of ingredients it contains and because of the legends surrounding its origin. A common legend of its creation takes place at the Convent of Santa Clara in Puebla early in the colonial period. Upon hearing that the archbishop was going to visit, the convent nuns panicked because they were poor and had almost nothing to prepare. The nuns prayed and brought together the little bits of what they did have, including nuts, chili peppers, spices, day-old bread and a little chocolate. A similar version of the story says that monk Fray Pascual invented the dish, again to serve the archbishop of Puebla. In this version, spice were knocked over or blown over into pots in which chicken were cooking. Modern mole is a mixture of ingredients from North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia making it one of the first intercontinental dishes created in the Americas.
In the book General History of the Things of New Spain, Bernardino de Sahagún says that mollis were used in a number of dishes, including those for fish, game and vegetables. While a vast myriad of mole existed throughout prehispanic Mesoamerica, the Mexica primarily reserved the use of chocolate for beverages. In the writings of Sahagún, there is no mention of it being used to flavor dishes. This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. All mole preparations begin with one or more types of chili pepper. The classic moles of Central Mexico and Oaxaca, such as mole poblano and mole negro, include two or more of the following types of chili pepper: ancho, pasilla, mulato and chipotle.
The ingredients are roasted and ground into a fine powder or paste. This roasting and grinding process is extremely laborious and takes at least a day to accomplish by hand. Traditionally, this work was shared by several generations of women in the family, but after the arrival of electric mills, it became more common to take the ingredients to be ground. The resulting powder or paste is mixed with water, or more often broth, and simmered until it is pungent and very thick. The thickness of the sauce has prompted some, such as Mexican-food authority Patricia Quintana, to claim it is too substantial to be called a sauce. However, like a sauce, it is always served over something and never eaten alone.
A number of mole powders and pastes can be prepared ahead of time and sold, such as mole poblano, mole negro, and mole colorado. Many markets in Mexico, as well as grocery stores, supermarkets, and online retailers internationally, sell mole pastes and powders in packages or by the kilogram. Prepared mole sauce will keep for about three days in the refrigerator and it freezes well. The paste will keep six months in the refrigerator and about a year in the freezer. A rich “Green mole” with red rice. Oaxaca has been called “the land of the seven moles”.
Its large size, mountainous terrain, variety of indigenous peoples, and many microclimates make for numerous regional variations in its food. Mole colorado is also popular, often simplified and sold as an enchilada sauce. The best known of Oaxaca’s moles is mole negro, which is darker than mole poblano and also includes chocolate, chili peppers, onions, garlic, and more. Its distinguishing ingredient is the leaf of the hoja santa. It is the most complex and difficult to make of the sauces.