CrockPot Mole Recipe

Day 358.

Mole is pronounced Mol-AY. That did not stop the "holy moly" jokes.

You can use any meat you'd like: chicken, beef, or pork. I followed this recipe and Jim has even tried tofu.

The Ingredients.
adapted from Jim, who adapted from Sunset Crockery Cookbook 2 pounds meat (I used frozen tri-tip)
1/4 cup raw sesame seeds (I used sunflower seeds)
1/2 cup raw slivered almonds
1 dry California chili pod
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup raisins
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon anise seeds
1 cinnamon stick
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes (and juice)
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
1/4 cup tequilla (or white wine, or apple juice)
1-2 ounce unsweetened chocolate (I used 2 and liked it, but some commenters found it too bitter)
1 cup water
salt to taste

The Directions.

Use a 5-6 quart crockpot. In a small pan, brown the raw sesame seeds and almonds on the stove. You could also toast them in the toaster oven (we need one of those). Set aside to cool.

Put the meat your going to use into the crockpot. Cover with everything else. I threw the entire dry chili pod into the pot; I didn't soak it in water first. I also just threw in the 2 squares of baking chocolate (after unwrapping!)--no need to melt it first.

Add the toasted nuts and seeds, and cover up. Cook on low for about 8 hours. Shred meat with forks, and serve over rice and with corn tortillas. Salt to taste.

The meat I had was half-frozen, and it took 6 hours on low, then I cut the meat up and added it back in for another 2 hours on high. It was fully shredded by then.

The Verdict.

This is such a satisfying meal. The kids weren't interested in trying the "chocolate meat" and mostly ate corn tortillas and butter. I will make this again. Soon. I need to serve this to company---the flavor is so rich and full-bodied---you get a bit of a crunch from a nut here, and a sweet burst from a raisin there.

It's incredible.

This is one of the dishes that the slow cooker was invented for ~~ the meat really needs to stew slowly and for a very very long time to soak up all of the flavors, and to allow the spices to break down and mingle. There are a lot of ingredients; I know. Turn on some good music, throw the kids outside or in front of a movie, and just go down the list. I promise you'll really like the end result!