Photo by Michael Sofronski
Mole Verde (Green Mole)
For those who attended my class at the Gourmet Latino Festival, here is the recipe for mole verde. We will be serving it this week along with 6 other moles from the state of Oaxaca. Thank you for your enthusiastic response. I so enjoyed myself and thank you for taking me into account.Mole verde, or just "verde" for short, is the lightest and freshest-tasting of Oaxaca's "seven moles." Fresh herbs rather than spice accents are what distinguish a mole verde. A purée of green herbs has to be added at the last minute.
Ingredients
- 8 cloves or ¼ teaspoon ground
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 3 jalapeño chiles
- 6 large tomatillos husks removed
- 1 small white onion peeled and cut into chunks
- 5 cloves garlic peeled
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 sprigs fresh marjoram
- 6 cups chicken or pork stock
- 1 cup masa either fresh or reconstituted by mixing 6 tablespoons masa harina to a smooth paste with 1 cup water
- 1 medium-size bunch Italian parsley
- 8 6-inch sprigs fresh epazote or ¼ cup dried crumbled
- 3 large fresh hoja santa leaves or 5 medium-size fresh leaves, or 5 dried leaves
Instructions
- Grind the cloves and cumin together in an electric coffee or spice grinder, or with a mortar and pestle. Place the ground spices in a blender with the chiles, tomatillos, onion, garlic, thyme, marjoram, and ½ cup of the strained stock. Process until smoothly puréed (about 2 minutes on high).
- Place the remaining stock in a large saucepan pan; bring to a boil, and adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Add the puréed mixture to the hot stock and cook, uncovered, for 3 minutes.
- Thin the masa by mixing with 1 cup water. Whisk the thinned masa into the stock mixture, whisking constantly, let the sauce return to the simmer. Cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes over low heat, whisking occasionally. If lumps form, pass the mixture through a medium-mesh sieve (pushing with a spoon to force through the lumpy bits) and return to the heat. The mixture should thicken to the consistency of whipping cream; if necessary, raise the heat slightly to reduce and thicken it.
- Place the parsley, epazote, and hoja santa in a blender or food processor. If using a blender, add a few tablespoons water to facilitate blending. Process to a smooth purée. Add the puréed herbs to the stock and bring back to a simmer. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Calories: 280kcalCarbohydrates: 44gProtein: 14gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 530mgPotassium: 788mgFiber: 4gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 1495IUVitamin C: 45mgCalcium: 103mgIron: 5mg
