Doña Coyo's Mole Poblano

I’ve alluded at various times to the great variety of chiles grown here in Mexico and how each has its own culinary purpose or niche. I’ve been quite remiss in providing some examples of dishes that incorporate the two major dried chile varieties that are grown in the state of Aguascalientes. I will attempt to remedy that now, with 2 posts on traditional dishes that are made with the dried peppers from this region. Today: a very traditional dish made with the Pasilla pepper...Later this week: a popular dish eaten during Lent made with the Gaujillo pepper.

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The Pasilla chile is so named for the superficial qualities shared with the pasa, or raisin. When the Pasilla chile is dried, it wrinkles and darkens, resembling a black raisin. This chile is quite popular for use in sauces, especially in Puebla, where it forms the base of the dish Mole Poblano. Mole is a great example of how a “typical” Mexican dish, actually is an amalgam of ingredients, techniques and traditions that blend the pre-hispanic Mexico with the post-colonial version. There are as many different moles as there are chiles – perhaps even more so, as each mole carries its own distinctive combination of chiles.

This recipe comes from Doña Coyo – mother-in-law of my good friend and collaborator, Mario Perez. Doña Coyo learned this recipe from her husband’s childhood nanny...that means that the recipe is AT LEAST 100 years old.

Doña Coyo’s Mole Poblano
This takes 2 to 3 hrs to make and yields ~ 5 liters of sauce. You will need a powerful blender to make sure that all the ingredients are liquefied for the proper consistency.

Ingredients:

• 15 dried Ancho chiles
• 15 dried Mulato chiles
• 12-15 dried Pasilla chiles (*use less for less heat)
• 250g blanched almonds
• 2 bolillos – small French style dinner rolls...could substitute half a baguette if needed
• 4 corn tortillas
• 3 “rounds” of Mexican chocolate (i.e., Ibarra)
• 250g of manteca de puerco - pork lard
• 200g of raisins
• 2-3 tablespoons sugar
• ~2 L (about 8 cups) of chicken stock (we made our own stock with onions, garlic, salt and pepper, but you could use store bought to save time)
  
• 4 cups of water
  

1. Prepare the chiles by removing all the seeds and the stem. Thoroughly rinse the prepped chiles under running water.

Doña Coyo opens and prepares the dried chiles.

2. Lightly (!) brown the chiles, almonds, bread rolls (in pieces), tortillas and raisins in lard, working in batches. Set all the browned ingredients aside and allow to cool.

A really quick dip in some hot oil for the chiles

All the ingredients ready for the blender

3. Using the blender and working in batches, blend together the toasted chiles, browned bread, fried tortillas, almonds, raisins, chocolate and chicken stock. You may need to keep adding chicken stock to reach the right consistency. When the stock runs out, use the water that was set aside. . Blend until pieces of chile are no longer distinguishable and the consistency is that of a medium-thick milkshake.

Keep adding stock until all the ingredients all thoroughly blended

4. Pour into a large stockpot with a small amount of lard (keep on low heat). Taste the sauce and add sugar as desired. Dried chiles can sometimes impart a bitter aftertaste and the sugar mellows this out.
5. Simmer the mole for 30-45 minutes, carefully stirring to avoid burning the sauce at the bottom. The mole will thicken and darken in color. It's ready when the oil starts to rise to the surface of the sauce. Take the mole off of the heat and let cool. Once cooled, you can portion the sauce into containers and freeze them for later use (should keep if stored frozen for 2+ years).

On the stovetop to simmer

This mole is often served over roast chicken or pork, accompanied by a side of rice. Srpinkle lightly toasted sesame seeds over top and/or a few toasted raisins. For those in love with the flavors, true Poblanos take his/her mole any way they can get it – try it on top of a fried egg for breakfast or over beans.

¡Provecho!

Birria for breakfast?

While the chile chase is in transition mode (and currently compiling a retrospective), I wanted to take this time to share with you some of the more interesting and tasty regional fare that can be found here in Aguascalientes. While the cuisine here (and more broadly speaking in Northern Mexico) pales in comparison to the more tropical flavors found in the South, there are some dishes that merit attention. Given the region's history as the pastures of Mexico most of these prominent foods focus on meat, often with little to no vegetables as an accompaniment.

One of my favorites is birria - a slowly roasted meat (goat, rabbit, cow, sheep) that is then shredded and served with a slightly piquant sauce. This is served with more salsas and tons of freshly made corn tortillas.

In Aguascalientes, birria is a breakfast (!) item. You can find it on the weekends at many comedores, or in birria specific locales, called Birrierias. The one that I have been frequenting - it is on the way to the School of Agriculture - is only open from 8 to 3, or when they run out, whichever comes first. It is usually the latter.

The birria at this joint is made from sheep (borrego in Spanish) which has been roasted for over 5 hours in a brick oven. In the last picture, this is a medium size plate, served with (from L to R), a red salsa, dried chile de arbol, fresh jalapeños, dried oregano and limes. Just out of sight is the pile of freshly made corn tortillas. All of this for just 37 pesos, or about $3.41.

the chile chase at “home”

After 11 weeks on the road - through 25 states, 4 in the US and 21 in Mexico - the chile chase has landed in its’ temporary headquarters of Aguascalientes. Here Kraig will be working with faculty and students at the Universidad Autonoma de Aguascalientes (UAA) on the next phase of his dissertation research. This involves 1) analyzing genetic data obtained from chile samples from last year’s chile chase...

K hard at work, analyzing data from home

...and, switching gears, 2) working with chile pepper producers from the region to understand seed selection and maintenance of commercial pepper varieties (more on this in an upcoming post). I am aprovechando the opportunity to check out the departments of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health at the UAA and see about collaborating on a zoonotic disease “literacy” project with both ag and health extension agents (more on that soon too!).

As temporary “Hidrocalidos,” we’ve found a small apartment in the Primo Verdad neighborhood in a conveniently located area of the city. The apartment is part of a complex of buildings that were originally constructed as housing for federal government workers in the 1980's following a move to decentralize government agencies after a disastrous earthquake in Mexico City. They've since been sold and rented at VERY reasonable prices to non-government employees.


Here's a quick photo-tour of our semi-furnished home:

El saloncito: 2 folding beach chairs, a few pareos, our "library" and a Yucatecan hammoc to decorate the wall...


...cocina, complete with minifridge, stove, sink and the basics of cookware...


...comedor AND oficina: our first homemade meal in a long while: vegetable soup, dark bread and Mexican wine (from Baja)...


...our new water heater...


...and laundry facilities.

We've made a few modifications over this last week as well...


the apartment came with the bare minimum! A wire hanger, scotch tape and some crape paper later...


...the best we could do for a menorah on short notice...


...a PVC+scarf shelving system...


...an ironic touch (from Chiapas)...

Of course, friends and family is what makes “home” home for us, so we’ve been lucky enough to have been adopted by several wonderful families that we’ve met through the university. We’ve been invited to share meals...

pozole with all the fixins

...watch the finals of the Mexican national fútbol league, partake in the Christmas tradition of posada...


Singing during La Posada: Here's the reenactment of José and Maria looking for a place to have their baby. Half of those gathered stay inside and half outside, asking for entrance (the song is a call and response). Sparklers are lit and toasts and hugs all around when the pilgrims are finally let in!


Posada piñatas: H taking aim at Santa.

...and head out on the town with our friends, and their extended families, almost every day since we’ve been here.

We watched the Cancun team Atlante play the local favorite, Guadalajara's Chivas in a semi-final game at the bar/restaurant Merenderos San Marcos (all lit up for Christmas...taco stands out front).


Templo San Marcos in Aguascalientes' Jardin de San Marcos neighborhood.

A Saturday in Monterrey

Last Saturday, after a successful day in Linares - the local professor here shared with us the seed from 72 different populations of wild chile from Nuevo Leon and Tamulipas - Jose and I took the day off to see what Monterrey had to offer.

We ate the local speciality, cabrito. It is a young goat, taken at 40 days or younger. It is then slowly roasted over indirect heat on angled spits for up to 6 hours. When you order, you specify which part of the kid you would like - shoulder, leg, rib/chest, or the lower back, which has all the kidney fat attached to it. We tried the shoulder and the lower back. Here is a gratuitous close up of our platter. The fatty back piece is closest to you here, with the kidney hidden in the bulge of fat.


While the meat was really quite tasty and tender, there was a definite lack of vegetables available. We walked off the meal and headed to another cultural event, un partido de futbol. Los Tigres de Monterrey v. Los Jaguares de Chiapas. The game ended 1 - 1 with the tying goal for the Jaguares coming in the last minutes of the second half.