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This easy mole sauce recipe takes a few shortcuts like using chili powder and almond butter, but tastes like you've been cooking it all day.
Mole sauce is one of those recipes where you look at the ingredients and wonder how it works! Well it does and it works great for anything from tacos, burritos or enchiladas.
Traditional mole sauce is super labor intensive. It involves dried chilis, fruit, nuts and chocolate. Yes it is a weird combination of flavors, but the main problem is you are expected to cook it for hours upon hours.
Most people, including myself, just don't have that time. So enter this easy mole sauce recipe which can be prepared in 30 minutes. Yes that is right! 30 minutes! The key is using ground spices instead of dried chilis.
And the almond butter is already packed with flavor so you don't have to cook down anything.
While it may not be authentic, your friends and family won't notice the difference and think you've been cooking it for hours. Trust me!
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Ingredient Notes
- 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.
Ingredient Swaps
As with any recipe, you can mix and match your ingredients. Some variations include:
- 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 tbsp 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.
Step-by-Step Photos
Cook the onion, peppers, cumin, oregano and cinnamon in a large saucepan for 10 minutes before adding garlic and cooking another minute.
Mix in the chili powder and flour and cook for another 2 minutes. Then slowly add in the chicken stock and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to puree until smooth. Then return to heat and add in the chocolate, almond butter, tomato paste and salt, simmering for 5 minutes or until thickened.
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.
The sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for 3 months.
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 tbsp 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 tbsp honey.
What to Use With
This sauce is pretty versatile and can be used with a variety of recipes, including:
- Burritos, enchiladas, nachos and tacos - these are the most common uses.
- Vegetables - just drizzle some on top.
- Proteins - adds a ton of flavor to chicken, pork, steak, etc...
- Dips - stir a tbsp or two in some guacamole, queso or salsa.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Check your spices and make sure they aren't expired. In order to have great flavor, you want to make sure your spices aren't too old.
- Use quality dark chocolate for the sauce. If you can find Mexican chocolate, even better.
- If using a blender, blend the sauce in batches and cover the top with a towel so it doesn't go everywhere.
Other Sauce Recipes
If you’ve tried this easy mole sauce 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.
Easy Mole Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup white onion, chopped
- ½ poblano pepper, diced
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 ½ tbsp chili powder
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ cups low-sodium chicken stock
- ¼ cup dark chocolate chips
- 3 tbsp almond butter
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- ½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Heat 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. Serve warm.
Notes
- Check your spices and make sure they aren't expired. In order to have great flavor, you want to make sure your spices aren't too old.
- Use quality dark chocolate for the sauce. If you can find Mexican chocolate, even better.
- If using a blender, blend the sauce in batches and cover the top with a towel so it doesn't go everywhere.
- The sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for 3 months.
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