Title: Mole Rojo (Red Mole Sauce) for Turkey or Chicken
Categories: Amerind Poultry Sauce Mexican Chicken
Yield: 1 Servings

6		Whole dried pasilla chiles
10		Whole dried ancho chiles
8		Whole dried mulato chiles
2	qt	Water
4		Tomatillos (yellow ground
		Cherries in lantern husks)
5		Roma tomatoes
1/2	c	Rasins
1/3	c	Sesame seeds
2		Corn tortillas dried in oven
		And chopped up
6		Cloves garlic, roasted and
		Peeled
2	c	Duck, chicken or turkey
		Stock
2	ts	Cinnamon
1/8	ts	Cloves (ground)
1/2	ts	Ground black pepper
1/2	ts	Ground allspice
1	ts	Salt
5	oz	Squares of unsweetned
		Baker's chocolate
3	tb	Chicken fat or panut cooking
		Oil

The chocolate in this sauce recipe is not sweet. You may not be able to find the right kind of dried chiles, unless you live in the southwest. Ancho chiles are brick red or darker, about 5 inches long and 2 -3 inches wide at the shoulder. It's medium hot, with underlying fuity flavor. Mulato chiles are dried Poblanos, the green form of the ancho, slightly larger, darker than anchos (no longer green when dried). Pasilla is very dark, almost black, wrinkled and tapered, only about 1 inch wide at the shoulder. Quite hot, underlying smoky flavor.

1. Start raisins soaking in warm water (20 minutes). Prepare the chiles: remove stems and seeds. On an ungreased cast-iron frypan (or in a 250 degree oven) dry roast them 5 minute, shake a cuple times, don't blacken them. Add water to a covered pan and simmer the roasted chiles very low for 30 minutes. Strain, cool.

2. Husk tomatillos, wash tomatoes. Blacken in dry skillet or under broiler (or in gas flame on a fork) about 5 minutes. Dry-roast sesame in frypan 5 minutes until they finish popping, don't burn them. Saute almonds in the oil over medium heat until browned. Drain almonds, reserve oil.

3. Puree the prepared tomatoes, tomatillos, sesame seeds, crumbled tortillas, and alonds in a blender to a fine paste. Add chiles, soaked raisins, roast garlic (peeled), stock, spices, puree all together fine. Melt chocolate in a little hot water, add to blender paste. Check the volume. Add enough water to bring it all to 5 cups during the blending process.

4. Put all the oil in a high-sided pan and heat almost smoking hot. Refry the sauce over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring constantly. Don't let it get too thick, add more water or stock if necessary. Strain sauce through a seive. Serve warm, not hot, over chicken or (especially) turkey.

Recipe adapted from Mark Miller's Coyote Cafe Cookbook of 1989 (he brings one out every year during Santa Fe Indian Days festival).

Paula Giese

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