Crockpot Chicken Mole
Chocolaty and aromatic Mexican Chicken Mole, all prepared in slow cooker. Served with side of amazing Spanish tomato rice!
Posted By Savita
Hole-mole, Slow Cooker Chicken Mole!! :)
When you think Mole Chicken, do you think, easy dinner cook at home? If not, then this recipe will change your idea for good! Today, I'm taking "complex" out of Mole Chicken with this easy and flavorful Crockpot Mole Chicken that needs three simple steps - blend, cook, strain!!
Oh, and fourth "serve" if you really insist. ;-)
Today, I decided to make chicken mole again. But instead of traditional simmering in pot, I dusted my trusty slow cooker.. and made an easy crockpot chicken mole!
Last time, when I made Mole Chicken Enchiladas, I saved a batch of sauce which we enjoyed for some mole tacos, another round of enchiladas and more! I wanted to cook same mole sauce with chicken in slow cooker since long... but I finally get chance last weekend.
BTW! How was your long weekend and turkey feast?!
Ask me! I was crazy busy!
So busy that I did not even look at blog for 3 days! Thanksgiving is not our official holiday but I was busy hosting friends-giving! Made lots of Indian/American food and ate lots of pie! :) Holidays started with a warm sunny day in California. But by Friday, it was raining heavily. (finally!)
So, I was looking at my recipe repertoire to pick an easy yet comforting dinner for cold Friday night... when mole chicken came in front of me. Chicken with mole sauce in slow cooker!! Just a thought of this and I was in kitchen.. gathering ingredients!
So, friends! Let's get started to make some Mole Chicken and Rice Dinner!
Cooking mole chicken in slow cooker has one more benefit - chicken and mole help each other get more flavorful! Since chicken cooks in mole sauce.. It enhances the flavor of mole and at the same time chicken also picks up flavor from the mole sauce. If you make mole in pot, it has to be cooked down for 20-30 minutes to develop flavor. In slow cooker, by the time chicken is ready, mole sauce also develops complex flavor. And I adore the fact I don't have to use two pots to cook them separately.
I like to dry toast the ancho chilies for a minute to bring out their aroma. In same skillet, then I toast sesame seeds to get the rich nutty flavored mole sauce.
After these small prep steps, I grind all ingredients in mixer, add to crockpot with chicken and seasonings... And then forget about it for 3-4 hours. In this time, slow cooker does it's magic of making chicken bone tender, juicy and flavorful... and adding ton of flavor to nutty chocolaty mole sauce. pure yumm!
After chicken is ready, I strain the sauce to get rid of any solids/seeds/chili skins. Then, put it back in slow cooker with chicken and heat it up for 20 minutes. If you are short of time, this step can also be completed in a saute pan in 5 minutes.
Honestly, warm nature of mole sauce with ease of slow cooker and Spanish rice on the side.. It felt like Mexican-restaurant on the plate... only without need to pay for a check :-)
This post is about Slow Cooker Mole Chicken but plate of mole chicken looks incomplete without a side of Spanish tomato rice. I have shared Spanish tomato rice and cilantro rice recipes on blog. Please feel free to make some to serve on the side.
1. Cilantro Rice
2. Spanish Tomato Rice
Note: If making Spanish tomato Rice recipe from my blog. Don't add in chipotle as suggested in recipe because mole chicken also uses chilies as base.
Crockpot Mole Chicken not just provided me a much needed break from standing in kitchen but also helped me serve a comforting and flavorful Mexican-style homemade meal to my family.
Oh, and if you are still looking new ways to use leftover Thanksgiving turkey, then look no further! Make a batch of mole sauce without chicken and serve Turkey Mole Tacos for taco night!
Enjoy!
-Savita
Few more flavorful Chicken Dinner ideas from my kitchen:
Ingredients
- Chicken Mole
- 1.5 lbs Chicken
- 2 tablet Chocolate (2.7 ounce of semi-sweet Mexican Choclate)
- 1/4 Cup Sesame Seeds
- 1 Cup Tomato Sauce
- 1 tsp Oregano
- 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
- 2-3 Cloves (ground)
- 8-10 Tortilla Chips (crushed)
- 10 Almonds (blanched, or silvered)
- 1 Chipotle in Adobo
- 2 Cup Chicken Stock
- Salt and Black Pepper
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 3 tbsp Raisins
- 2 Ancho Chili
Directions
- 1. Remove seeds from ancho chilies, toast in dry heated skillet, then soak in hot water and set aside.
- 2. In same pan, add sesame seeds and toast until brown and aromatic. Add to blender jar with tomato sauce, crushed tortilla chips, ancho chili (drain water and reserve), almonds, chipotle, raisins, spices, and oregano. Add drained chili water 1-2 tbsp to facilitate blending of all ingredients.
- 3. In slow cooker pot, add sauce, sugar, chopped mexican chocolate, top with chicken and 1 cup chicken stock. Season with generous pinch or two of salt. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or on high for 2.5 hours.
-
4.
Once cooked, remove chicken from sauce. Strain the sauce through fine mesh to get rid of solids (any kind of seeds/spices). Return sauce back to slow cooker with 1/2 cup more chicken stock. (add stock more or less as per consistency of sauce you want.) Mix well and heat on high 20-25 minutes.
Additional Notes:
You can also heat the final sauce in saute pan, on stove, in 5 minutes. - 5. Before serving taste and adjust salt. For serving, plate rice, salsa, with mole chicken on side. Drizzle some sauce over top and garnish with sesame seeds. Enjoy!
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