One of this year's goals is: make mole sauce and related foods. So, I finally made a dish I have been looking at for ages in a cookbook called Starting with Ingredients that was a gift. (It is by Aliza Green. It is a cookbook that I like a lot, though there are too many errors in the recipes themselves -- e.g., listing an ingredient in the list of ingredients and then. . . it appears absolutely nowhere in the directions for making it. Even so, a great book.)
What did I make? Turkey Mole. With turkey thighs. The recipe appears in the cookbook under the category of chocolate, but it only calls for 2 ounces of chocolate (if you make the full 8 chicken thighs; I made two and used 1/2 of the ingredients for sauce and etc because. . . . well, I wanted to). In the end, the turkey was so soft and thoroughly cooked as to be falling off the bone wonderful -- and the combination of tastes was delightful. I served the turkey mole with a) white hominey warmed in the over with some chopped white onion and jalapeno and b) some refried beans. And, oh, I almost forgot, some home made salsa which involved chopping tomatillos, lime juice, jalapeno, onion, and salt. It was a delightful meal. And the leftovers (one whole turkey thigh since I was only serving two people) were even better. I think this is all due to the fact that a) first you put the thighs into some chicken broth and cook away for an hour or more; and then b) you cook the thighs for another hour and a half in teh oven (at 325 degrees) covered with the mole sauce (which involves nuts of various sorts, chilis, spices, tomatoes, chocolate. . . .and more).
What can I say about mole? Well, there are varieties of mole and I associate it with varieties of Mexican food. . And the version I am thinking of (and riting about) really requires an accent on the e which I cannot figure out how to accomplish. Do not confuse this mole (the sauce; for more on this try here), with this one (the animal) or this one (the unit of measure) or this one (the dermatological phenomenon). Who knew there could be that many meanings of a simple four letter word. There are probably more.
I recommend the book and the recipe. I am resisting putting the recipe in -- I should, I know. But then, what would Aliza Green do for you?
