Mole Sauce

If you have ever ordered authentic mole sauce at a Mexican restaurant, you understand that this velvety sauce is typically served over burritos, enchiladas, and proteins like chicken and that it gives them all the appearance of having been smothered in melted milk chocolate.

This is, in part, due to its signature ingredient: chocolate.

But the sauce is much more than that. It is a robust and complex blend of flavors, spices, and seasonings, including a small amount of dark or bittersweet chocolate.

Authentic mole (also called mole poblano) uses several types of dried chiles, whole toasted spices, several types of bread for thickening, lard, and a lot of time. While still a more time-consuming sauce recipe than we usually share, this mole sauce is simplified and also made in a large batch — perfect for freezing.

Why Make THIS Mole Sauce Recipe?

There are tons of recipes for mole sauce out there, but here’s what makes our recipe different.

• Dried Chiles – Traditional mole sauces use dried and reconstituted chipotle peppers, guajillo, ancho chiles, or even pasilla peppers. While these offer a blend of unique heat, they are also pricy and these ingredients aren’t used in many other recipes (at least the ones I make), so instead we’ve simplified this to just red New Mexico chiles. They are readily available in the Latin section of most grocery stores. But we did supplement them with dried and ground versions of these smoky and spicy flavors.
• Whole vs Ground Spices – I do admit that whole toasted spices like cumin seeds, allspice berries, or coriander seeds are going to provide more full-bodied flavor than pre-ground, but I also know that I won’t use them as much and might spend close to $100 just purchasing them, so I opted for the ground version of these warm spices that I already had in the pantry.
• No Lard – Lard is lovely. It’s exceptional, actually. But it isn’t something I keep in my home kitchen. Instead, we used butter and oil, which are still forms of flavorful fat.

Ingredients

To achieve the complex flavor profile of mole sauce, you’ll need more than a few ingredients. But trust me — it’s worth it to create this incredible sauce. Plus, I’ve purposefully designed this recipe so that most of the ingredients are easy to grab at most grocery stores. 

• Dried New Mexico Chiles – These chiles are fairly mild, clocking in at about half the Scoville units of a jalapeno, but you still may want to wear gloves when working with them. Be sure to remove the stem and seed the chiles before slicing.
• Chicken Broth – Using chicken broth helps the process of reconstituting the chiles. Be sure to warm the broth before adding it to the bowl with the chiles.  
• White Bread – Bread acts as a thickener in the mole sauce. Tearing it into pieces will help it to be more easily incorporated.
• Tomatillos and Beefsteak Tomatoes – Beefsteak tomatoes add hearty texture and their signature bright flavor to the sauce. Tomatillos add depth to the sauce with their tartness.
• Butter and Vegetable Oil – These fats combine to give the sauce its luxuriously smooth, silky texture. 
• White Onion and Garlic – These two aromatics help to build the robustness of the sauce. 
• Unsalted Dry Roasted Peanuts – While the peanuts add a slightly nutty flavor, they also act as a thickener. 
• Raisins – Raisins help to create a thicker sauce and contribute just a touch of sweetness.
• Spices – Allspice, cinnamon, and cloves give the sauce warmth while thyme imparts herbaceousness. Additionally, ancho chile powder and chipotle chile powder contribute to the sauce’s signature spiciness. 
• Dark Chocolate – Chocolate is a key ingredient in mole, giving the sauce its dark color and slight bitterness while also offsetting the heat of the peppers. 
• Sugar – Granulated sugar gives the sauce a subtle layer of sweet flavor. 
• Coarse Kosher Salt – Salt enhances the flavors of all of the other ingredients from the dark chocolate and raisins to spices and tomatoes.
• Fresh Lime Juice – Lime juice adds a burst of fresh, citrusy flavor. 

What To Serve With Mole Sauce

Mole sauce is a great way to liven up proteins like chicken thighs, pork, or turkey. It also adds depth to rice dishes and jazzes up veggies like broccolini and root vegetables. You can spoon it over beans, too — try it on pinto beans, black beans, kidney beans, or cannellini beans.  

Mexican dishes are, of course, a perfect pairing as well. Try serving it with quesadillas, tamales, tacos, burritos, or enchiladas. Pair it with our Mexican Crema recipe– mole heats up while crema cools it down.

How to Make Mole Sauce

The phrase “good things come to those who wait” rings true when it comes to making this sauce. It’s not a speedy recipe but you’ll be grateful you invested the time once it all comes together. 

1. Toast chiles. Add the dried chiles to a large ungreased skillet and toast until fragrant. 
2. Blend chiles with broth. Place the toasted chiles in the bowl of a food processor or in a high-powered blender with warmed chicken broth. 
3. Add bread. Top the chiles with the torn bread. 
4. Brown tomatillos and tomatoes. Then, brown the tomatillos and tomatoes in the skillet. Once charred, place those into the blender or food processor as well.
5. Sauté peanuts, raisins and spices. Add the butter and vegetable oil to the skillet and warm until the butter melts. Add the peanuts and raisins to the skillet along with all of the spices and aromatics. Sauté the mixture briefly before also transferring it to the blender. 
6. Pulse mixture in food processor. Pulse the mixture until it is smooth and thick. Pour the puree into a large saucepan and allow it to simmer. 
7. Heat in saucepan with chocolate, sugar and salt. Stir in the rest of the broth as well as the dark chocolate, sugar, and salt. 
8. Continue to heat on low. Once all of the chocolate has melted, allow the sauce to remain on the stove on low.
9. Add lime and serve. Just before serving, add the lime juice. Serve or allow the sauce to come to room temperature before storing. 

Variations

With such a wide variety of ingredients in this recipe, there are plenty of ways to adjust the flavor of this sauce. 

• Raisins – Instead of raisins use dried prunes instead. Also, for more flavor, you can soak the raisins in chile juice prior to adding them to the other ingredients. 
• Sugar – Adjust the sugar to taste for either a sweeter or less sweet sauce. 
• Chile Powder – For more sensitive palates, reduce the chile powders. Or, for adventurous eaters, add more to make it even more spicy. 
• Chocolate – Substitute 60% bittersweet chocolate for the dark chocolate. 
• Peanuts – Tahini and sunflower seed butter are both adequate substitutes for peanuts. 
• Bread – You can omit bread from the recipe if needed. To make it thicker, simmer it longer so that it reduces more, or use almonds, sunflower seeds, or more peanuts. 
• Garnish – For a bit of texture and nutty flavor, try garnishing any dish you serve with mole sauce with a sprinkle of sesame seeds over top.
• Other Spices – Transform the flavor profile with the addition of other spices that are sometimes used in mole like anise or oregano.

Storage and Freezing

Since mole stores well, it’s great for meal prep. Just make it on the weekend and add it to dishes all throughout the week. 

Can I Make Mole Sauce Ahead of Time?

You can make the whole sauce ahead of time and then refrigerate or freeze it until you need it. 

How to Store Mole Sauce

Store mole sauce in the fridge for up to 1 week in an airtight container. 

How to Freeze

Freeze mole sauce for up to 4 months in a freezer-safe container or resealable freezer bag. 

Common Questions About Mole Sauce

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Simple Mole Sauce Recipe

This simplified EASY Mole Sauce recipe packs in the flavor of a traditional mole sauce with simple ingredients that are easy to find!

5 from 8 votes

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Course: Sauce

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: mole sauce

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 6 cups

Calories: 339kcal

Equipment

• Blender
• Heavy Bottom Sauce Pan
• Large skillet

Ingredients

• 6 dried New Mexico chiles stemmed and seeded, cut into thirds
• 3 cups low sodium chicken broth divided and warm
• 2 slices white bread torn into 1-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 cups tomatillos* cut in half
• 2 beefsteak tomatoes stemed and cut in half
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 white onion sliced
• 5 cloves garlic thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup unsalted dry roasted peanuts
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon thyme leaves
• 1 tablespoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground ancho chile powder
• 1 teaspoon ground chipotle chile powder
• 3 ounces dark chocolate* finely chopped
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice

Instructions

• In a dry large skillet, toast the dried chiles over medium heat, approximately 2 minutes on each side. They will be fragrant. Transfer them to a large, high-powered blender or food processor.
• Add 2 cups of the warmed chicken broth. The broth being warmed aids in reconstituting them and will speed up the process compared to cold broth.
• Place the torn bread on top of the chiles to help plunge them fully into the broth.
• Meanwhile, in the same dry skillet over medium heat, browned the tomatillos and tomatoes, cut side first and then flipping until nicely charred, approximately 3 minutes on each side. Transfer to the blender.
• If the skillet has some burned bits from the tomatoes, wipe them out carefully and then return to medium heat along with the butter and vegetable oil.
• When the butter has melted, add the onion, garlic, peanuts, raisins, cumin, thyme, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, ancho chile powder and chipotle chile powder. Saute until onions are soft and the whole mixture it very fragrant. Using a spatula, transfer this all to the blend. If the blend is too full, work in batches.
• Make sure the lid is securely on the blender and then blend for 60-90 seconds, or until the whole mixture is pureed and thick.
• Transfer to a large saucepan over medium heat, brining to a low simmer and then reducing the heat. Whisk in the remaining chicken broth.
• Whisk in the dark chocolate, sugar and salt, stirring continuously until fully melted. Continue to heat for 10-15 minutes.
• When ready to serve, whisk in the lime juice.
• Serve over your favorite burritos, stewed meats, enchiladas and more.
• If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or star ratings.

Notes

Tomatillos can vary greatly in size- I’ve had beefsteak tomato sized and cherry tomato sized, so I opted to make this measurement in cups instead of number of fruit. I used 6 small for this batch.

60% bittersweet chocolate can be used as well.

Nutrition

Calories: 339kcal, Carbohydrates: 39g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 19g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 15mg, Sodium: 948mg, Potassium: 772mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugar: 18g, Vitamin A: 1573IU, Vitamin C: 27mg, Calcium: 93mg, Iron: 4mg