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These chicken mole enchiladas are a unique take on a traditional Mexican dish, where the sauce is the star but you can make in it in under 2 hours.
I never need an excuse to eat some tasty Mexican food - from chicken fajita quesadillas to chicken nachos to chicken mole tacos. One of my favorite's and my wife's is chicken mole enchiladas.
No it isn't traditional mole sauce as it doesn't have nuts, but it's much quicker and still does have chocolate in it which gives a great depth of flavor. You can see my easy mole sauce in another post.
What is great about these mole enchiladas is you can easily control the spice level based off how much chili powder you like compared to how much chocolate is put in.
My wife and I can't handle too much heat so we definitely like it on the milder side compared to some people. However it still tastes great.
This dish is easily in my top 5 for recipes I've made the most times. It's inspired by an epicurious recipe my dad made a few years ago and I instantly was hooked. So hopefully you enjoy these chicken mole enchiladas as much as us!
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Ingredient Notes
- Rotisserie chicken - don't have to waste time cooking the chicken.
- Veggies - the base for the mole sauce. You can omit the poblano peppers if you want a milder sauce.
- Spices - instead of using dried chilis, this is a shortcut and where most of the flavor comes from for the sauce.
- Chocolate - dark chocolate is what I use. You need it to offset the spice.
- Almond butter - the biggest shortcut to this recipe. Instead of taking the time to blanch, toast and puree some nuts, you just add some almond butter, which adds a slight nutty flavor.
- Corn tortillas - what encases the yummy filling and soaks up the sauce.
- Cheese - can't have enchiladas without some cheese on top which creates that gooey factor.
Ingredient Swaps
As with any recipe, you can mix and match your ingredients. Some variations include:
- If you don’t have rotisserie chicken, you can cook 1.5 lbs fresh boneless chicken. Just heat some oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and sauté for 4 minutes per side or until the chicken is cooked through.
- I like the flavor of poblano peppers, but if you want a spicier pepper, jalapeños are a good substitute.
- Chicken stock is my go-to for sauce bases, but if you want it to be vegetarian, just sub vegetable stock.
- Dark chocolate is what I use in this recipe, but semi-sweet or Mexican chocolate works too. 1-2 tablespoon of cocoa powder also works.
- I personally like the flavor of almond butter, but peanut butter is a great substitute. Or if you have nut allergies, try sunflower seed butter.
- I like the flavor of corn tortillas, but flour tortillas work just fine.
- While I use Monterey jack cheese for most Mexican dishes, pepper jack or even cheddar are good substitutes.
Step-by-Step Photos
Heat olive oil in large saucepan over medium heat and add the onion, pepper, oregano, cumin and cinnamon. Cook for 10 minutes then add the garlic, cooking for another minute. Stir in the chili powder and flour and cook for another couple minutes.
Gradually add the chicken stock and scrape up the bottom of the pan. Bring to boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Use an immersion blender to puree and then stir in the chocolate, almond butter, tomato paste and salt. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Mix about 1 cup of the sauce with the chicken in a bowl and set aside. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat and add 1 tortilla. Cook until pliable, about 30 seconds per side. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.
Spread ⅓ cup of the sauce to two 13x9 baking dishes. Spoon ¼ cup chicken, 1 tablespoon onion and 2 tablespoon cheese in each tortilla and place seam side down. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.
Top enchiladas with remaining sauce and cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 375°F for 20 minutes. Remove foil and turn broiler on. Broil for 2 minutes or until cheese is browned.
FAQs
Mole sauce originated in Mexico and comes in several variations of rich sauces that come in colors like yellow, red, black and even green. However, in general, they contain a combination of nuts, fruits, chilis and chocolate.
A properly done mole takes hours, sometimes even days to make. As I mentioned earlier, this mole isn't "traditional" per se, but is packed with flavor.
Chocolate is meant to counteract the heat of the spices and peppers in the mole sauce recipe. It also helps reinforce the dark, rich color of the sauce.
Corn tortillas are more traditional for enchiladas, but flour tortillas will work as well. Choose 7-8" flour tortillas or 6" corn tortillas as they fit best in most pans.
I highly recommend it as it makes them more pliable when adding the filling and rolling. There are a few different ways you can accomplish this:
• Heat individual tortillas in skillet for 20 to 30 seconds per side
• Wrap a stack of tortillas in foil and place in 325°F oven until warm
• Moisten a paper towel and wrap stack of tortillas and place in microwave for 30 seconds or until warm
Yes. You can prepare all of the way up to baking the enchiladas and place in the fridge for up to 2 days. Just bake for 30 minutes instead.
You can also place in the freezer for 3 months and place the frozen enchiladas in the oven. You'll need to bake for an hour to cook through.
These chicken mole enchiladas can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days or in the freezer for 3 months.
Mole Sauce Variations
With any sauce, you can vary the taste by the amount of ingredients you use. Some ways to change up the mole sauce recipe include:
- Spicier - add another tablespoon of chili powder.
- Milder - remove the poblano pepper. Also the more chocolate you add, the milder the sauce becomes.
- Smokier - sub half the chili powder with chipotle powder.
- Sweeter - add 1-2 tablespoon honey.
Serving Suggestions
These chicken mole enchiladas are great on their own, but you can always add some delicious toppings or sides. Some options include:
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Heat corn tortillas in small skillet for 20 seconds per side so they are pliable. If you skip this step, the tortillas will break apart is you roll them up.
- Don’t use pre-shredded cheese. It doesn’t taste as good and also has addition ingredients that you don’t need. Just buy blocks of cheese and grate yourself.
- Use quality dark chocolate for the sauce. If you can find Mexican chocolate, even better.
- Add some fresh avocado to give the dish some healthy fat.
Similar Mexican Recipes
If you’ve tried this chicken mole enchiladas recipe or any other recipe on Chisel & Fork, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube to see more tasty meals and anything else I'm up to.
Chicken Mole Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 rotisserie chicken, skin removed and shredded
- 3 tablespoon olive oil + more for tortillas
- 2 cups white onion, chopped
- 1 poblano pepper, diced
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 5 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 5 tablespoon chili powder
- 3 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 5 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips
- 6 tablespoon almond butter
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 16 (6 inch) Corn tortillas
- 1 lb monterey jack cheese, shredded
- fresh cilantro and avocado for serving
Instructions
- Heat 3 tablespoon olive oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, poblano pepper, oregano, cumin and cinnamon and cook for about 10 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring occasionally.
- With about 1 minute left, add garlic and combine. Mix in chili powder and flour and stir for about 2 minutes until combined. Gradually add chicken stock, whisking constantly and scraping up bits on bottom of pan. Bring to boil and simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and use immersion blender to puree until smooth. Return saucepan to medium-high heat and stir in the chocolate, almond butter, tomato paste and salt. Simmer for 5 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Adjust for salt if needed.
- Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tortilla and cook until just pliable, about 30 seconds per side. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining tortillas, adding oil as needed.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Mix 1 cup mole sauce with shredded chicken in medium bowl. Add ⅓ cup mole sauce each to two 13x9 baking dishes. Arrange 8 tortillas on work surface and spoon ¼ cup chicken, 1 tablespoon onion, and 2 tablespoon cheese in each. Roll up tortillas and arrange seam side down in on prepared dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas in other dish.
- Top enchiladas with remaining mole sauce and cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes (30 if chilled). Remove foil and turn oven to broil. Broil for 2 minutes until cheese is bubbling and brown. Let cool for 5 minutes.
Notes
- Heat corn tortillas in small skillet for 20 seconds per side so they are pliable. If you skip this step, the tortillas will break apart is you roll them up.
- Don’t use pre-shredded cheese. It doesn’t taste as good and also has addition ingredients that you don’t need. Just buy blocks of cheese and grate yourself.
- If you don’t have rotisserie chicken, you can cook 1.5 lbs fresh boneless chicken. Just heat some oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and sauté for 4 minutes per side or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Use quality dark chocolate for the sauce. If you can find Mexican chocolate, even better.
- Add some fresh avocado to give the dish some healthy fat. You can also make your own guacamole.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Maggie Kuhn says
Incredible! Everyone had seconds at our family table.
Ryan says
Great to hear!