Mole Poblano

Chillies and chicken

• chicken1.8 kg
• dried ancho chillies6
• dried pasilla chillies4
• dried mulato chillies4
• onions1
• garlic cloves6

The rest of the mole

• almonds60 g
• raisins60 g
• sesame seeds40 g
• tomatoes2
• white bread1 slice
• corn tortillas1
• dark chocolate40 g
• ground cinnamon1 tsp
• cloves4
• black peppercorns6
• ground cumin1 tsp
• lard5 tbsp
• caster sugar1 tbsp
• salt

Chicken and chillies

1. 01

   Joint the chicken into 8 pieces and quarter the onion. Poach the chicken with the onion and half the garlic in water to cover for 40 minutes, until cooked through with no pink at the bone. Keep 1.5 litres of the broth. Cool the chicken and the broth, then keep them in the fridge until the mole is ready.

2. 02

   Wipe the dried ancho, pasilla and mulato chillies, pull off the stems and shake out the seeds and veins. Toast them flat in a dry pan for 20 to 30 seconds a side, until they puff and smell nutty. Burnt chillies make a bitter mole that cannot be saved.

3. 03

   Soak them in hot water for 30 minutes.

Frying and grinding

4. 04

   Fry each of the following separately in 3 tbsp of the lard, adding it a little at a time, removing each as it is done: the almonds until golden, the sesame seeds until they pop (keep 1 tbsp of them aside for serving), the raisins until they swell, the bread and tortilla until browned, the tomatoes and remaining garlic until blackened in patches. Frying them separately matters: each needs a different time, and together some burn while others stay raw.

5. 05

   Blend the fried ingredients with the drained chillies, the cloves, black peppercorns, ground cinnamon and ground cumin and enough broth to move the blades, in batches, until completely smooth. Pass it through a sieve.

Cooking down

6. 06

   Heat the remaining 2 tbsp of lard in a heavy pot until nearly smoking and pour the purée in all at once. It will spit violently — stand back.

7. 07

   Fry the purée, stirring, for 10 minutes until it darkens and thickens.

8. 08

   Add the rest of the broth and simmer very gently for 1 hour, stirring often, until it coats a spoon and a slick of oil rises.

9. 09

   Stir in the chocolate, sugar and plenty of salt. The chocolate is a background bitterness, not a sweetener.

10. 10

    Add the chicken and heat it until piping hot, then serve scattered with the reserved sesame seeds.