Easy Chicken Mole
Easy Chicken Mole Recipe: A Día de los Muertos Tradition Made Simple
Mole is more than just a dish, it’s a story told through flavor, history, and ritual. Every spoonful carries centuries of tradition, and in Mexico, mole holds a sacred place at the table, especially during Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). A plate of mole with turkey or chicken is often one of the main offerings on an altar, or ofrenda, during this celebration. The belief is that its complex aroma, taste, and texture awaken the senses of departed loved ones, delighting them on their journey back to visit family.
Traditionally, mole can take an entire day (or longer) to prepare, calling for more than 30 ingredients and hours of slow simmering. But if you’ve always wanted to experience the joy of making mole from scratch without dedicating a full weekend, this easy chicken mole recipe is the perfect entry point. It balances tradition with practicality, using readily available grocery store ingredients and less time in the kitchen, while still delivering the iconic flavor profile that makes mole unforgettable.
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This easy chicken mole recipe cuts down on time without sacrificing tradition. Using dried ancho and guajillo chiles, Mexican chocolate, nuts, and raisins, it creates a sauce that is velvety, earthy, slightly sweet, and deeply spiced. Instead of 30 ingredients, you’ll use just a fraction, but the result still captures mole’s signature balance of sweet, spicy, and savory.
The chicken is simmered until tender and then smothered in the rich mole sauce, garnished with sesame seeds for a nutty finish. Beyond pairing with chicken, this sauce can also be served over potatoes, drizzled on eggs, layered in chilaquiles, or used to make enmoladas (mole enchiladas).
Flavor and Texture
Mole is known for its depth and complexity. This version brings together:
- Sweetness from raisins, banana, and Mexican chocolate
- Earthiness from chiles, nuts, and sesame seeds
- Slight bitterness from roasted chiles and chocolate
- Warm spice from garlic, onion, and a touch of sugar
- The texture is smooth and velvety, clinging perfectly to chicken or whatever base you choose. Each bite is layered. Starting sweet, moving into smoky, and finishing with subtle heat.
Ingredient Suggestions
While the recipe works as written, here are some substitutions and additions you can try:
- Chiles: If you can’t find ancho chiles, pasilla is an excellent substitute. For more heat, add a dried chipotle or mulato chile.
- Nuts: Almonds or walnuts can replace pecans. If you have a peanut allergy, sunflower seeds work well.
- Banana: Some traditional recipes use ripe plantain instead of banana for a starchier, slightly different sweetness.
- Chocolate: Mexican chocolate tablets like Abuelita or Ibarra are ideal. If unavailable, use unsweetened cocoa powder with a bit of cinnamon and sugar.
- Protein: Mole pairs beautifully with turkey, pork, or roasted vegetables if you’d like a vegetarian option.
Storage Suggestions
Mole is one of those dishes that gets better with time. The flavors deepen as it sits, making it a perfect make-ahead meal.
- Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Mole sauce freezes exceptionally well. Store in portions in freezer-safe bags or containers for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
- Reheating: Warm gently over low heat, adding a splash of broth or water to loosen the sauce if it has thickened too much.
Serving Suggestions
- For Día de los Muertos, serve mole with steamed rice, fresh corn tortillas, and a side of frijoles de la olla. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds for a touch of crunch. A glass of agua fresca or atole makes the perfect companion.
- Beyond the holiday, mole makes a stunning main course for Sunday dinners, birthdays, or any celebration where you want to impress your guests with a dish that tastes like tradition.
Mole: A Cultural and Historical Symbol
Mole is one of Mexico’s most iconic culinary creations. Its roots stretch back to pre-Hispanic times, when indigenous peoples ground chiles, cacao, and seeds into rich sauces. Over the centuries, Spanish and African influences introduced ingredients like nuts, cinnamon, sugar, and sesame seeds, creating the deeply layered sauce we know today.
Each region of Mexico has its own mole. Puebla is famous for mole poblano, Oaxaca is celebrated for its “seven moles,” and Guerrero has earthy, rustic versions often prepared for weddings and baptisms. Across all of these, mole is more than food, it is a ritual, a centerpiece of family gatherings, and a dish of remembrance and love.
During Día de los Muertos, mole symbolizes the warmth of home. Just as pan de muerto and calaveras de azúcar represent sweetness and celebration, mole represents the care and patience families pour into cooking for their loved ones. Its fragrance fills the home, inviting both the living and the dead to share in the feast.
FAQs
Yes! In fact, mole tastes even better the next day as the flavors meld. Make the sauce up to 2 days ahead and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Bone-in chicken legs, thighs, and breasts develop the richest flavor when simmered for broth. You can also use rotisserie chicken if you’re pressed for time. Just prepare the sauce and pour it over shredded chicken.
This recipe leans more sweet and earthy than fiery. Ancho and guajillo chiles are mild, with just a touch of warmth. If you want more heat, add a dried chipotle or arbol chile.
Absolutely. Omit the chicken and use vegetable broth instead. Serve the mole over roasted vegetables, sweet potatoes, or even hearty grains like quinoa.
Mole is versatile! Try it over roasted potatoes, as a topping for enchiladas (enmoladas), on eggs for breakfast, or even drizzled on tamales.
Toasted sesame seeds add nuttiness and visual appeal. They also honor mole’s indigenous roots, as seeds and nuts were often ground into sauces to add body and flavor.
Mole isn’t just food, it’s memory, celebration, and identity on a plate. Whether you prepare it for Día de los Muertos to honor loved ones who have passed, or serve it at a family gathering just to share something special, it connects you to centuries of tradition.
This simplified chicken mole recipe respects that legacy while making it approachable for home cooks today. It’s a dish that proves cooking can be both practical and sacred—a way to nourish body and spirit, and perhaps even invite the presence of those we miss most to join us at the table.
So this season, light a candle, set the altar, and prepare a pot of mole. In every bite, you’ll taste not just Mexico’s culinary artistry, but also the love and remembrance that makes Día de los Muertos one of the most meaningful celebrations of the year.
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Easy Chicken Mole
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours, 25 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 55 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6-8 1x
Description
A plate of mole with turkey or chicken is one of the main offerings on a Día de Muertos altar. Because this special dish stimulates all the senses, it is intended to delight the souls that are remembered on that special day.
The traditional Mexican mole takes approximately 30 ingredients to prepare and many hours to cook. The combination of sweet and spicy flavors slowly combine to create one of the most popular dishes in Mexico. Many home cooks can purchase jarred moles at the grocery store but if you’ve always wanted to make mole sauce from scratch and never had the time, this is the perfect recipe to begin with. All the ingredients listed here are readily available at the grocery store. The cooking time is also significantly less than what a traditional mole preparation takes.
This mole sauce can also be served with potatoes, on eggs, on chilaquiles and enmoladas.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds chicken (2 legs and 1 large breast), bone-in
- 12 cups water
- 1/2 white onion, divided
- 4 garlic cloves, divided
- 2 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- 8 dried ancho (or pasilla) chiles, seeds and stems removed
- 4 dried guajillo chiles, seeds and stems removed
- 1 (3.1-ounce) tablet Mexican chocolate
- 1/2 cup raw peanuts
- 1/2 cup pecans halves
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 Roma tomato, halved
- 1 banana, sliced
- 1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds plus more for garnish
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Instructions
- Combine chicken, water, 1/4 onion, 2 garlic cloves and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a large pot. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large pan over medium heat. Fry dry chile skins in batches; about 3 minutes or until skins are soft. Do not burn. Transfer to a large bowl and add 7 1/2 cups of broth from the boiled chicken. Add the chocolate tablet and remaining 1 teaspoon salt.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat in large frying pan previously used to fry chile skins. Add remaining 1/4 onion, remaining garlic cloves, peanuts, pecans, raisins, tomato halves and banana to frying pan. Fry for 20 minutes stirring frequently; Do not burn. Transfer all fried ingredients and toasted sesame seeds to the large bowl where chile skins are soaking. Soak all ingredients for 40 minutes more or until chile skins are very soft and chocolate tablet has completely dissolved.
- Transfer all soaked ingredients to blender container, blend until smooth. Heat remaining tablespoon of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Pour in sauce and stir in sugar. Continue stirring until sauce comes to a simmer; about 15 minutes. Turn off heat, cover and keep warm.
- Chop chicken into large pieces and add to sauce. Serve. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds.
