Have you ever had mole (molé) sauce? It’s a rich, dark-colored sauce native to Mexico and one of my favorite dishes to order at any Mexican restaurant. One reason mole is so popular is that, while there are many variations, most of them contain chocolate. Traditional mole varies from town to town in Mexico, containing anywhere from 10 to 50 ingredients. Some recipes call for crushed peanuts, which is all the info I needed to combine my love for Mexican cuisine with peanut butter and create one of the best moles I’ve tasted. I didn’t copy Rachel Ray to create this dish – in fact, I think I came up with the idea first! You may be wondering how difficult it is to make, but I’ve developed methods to make it in a crockpot (slow cooker) or on the stove, with very little effort required. I highly recommend you make this not just because it’s phenomenal, but also because how often do you get to eat chocolate and peanut butter for dinner?

Ingredients:Print

1/2 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup golden raisins
4 cloves garlic, minced
2T toasted sesame seeds
1T chili powder
1t ground cumin
1t ground cinnamon
1/2t ground coriander
1/8t ground nutmeg
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
1/4 cup peanut butter
1T maple syrup
1T brown sugar
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast (4-6 large breasts)

Instructions:

Crockpot / Slow-Cooker: Place all ingredients except for the chicken in a slow cooker. Stir sauce until mixed, taste, and adjust seasonings to taste. Add chicken and stir to cover the chicken. Place lid on the crockpot and cook on low for 4 hours. If desired, remove chicken, and puree the sauce using an immersion blender or food processor. Serve the chicken breasts and drench in sauce.

Stove top: Preheat a large pot on medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add a teaspoon of olive oil and add the chicken. Cook 4-5 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Remove chicken and set aside. Spray the pot with cooking spray and cook the onions until softened, about 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in all the remaining ingredients except the chicken and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. If you like a smooth creamy sauce, you can puree the sauce with an immersion blender or a regular blender. Add chicken to the sauce and cook, covered, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until chicken is very tender and falls apart.

Additional Info:

There are thousands of varieties of mole sauce in Mexico and you’ll never have the same one twice. Along the same lines, you can customize this dish to taste, some like it spicy, others like it sweet. Experiment with the chili powder, chipotle peppers and sugar to adjust to your tastes.

Filed in Gluten Free, Low Carb, Main Course, Mexican, Peanut Butter

42 Responses / Leave a comment »

  1. flutter says:

    this looks disturbingly tasty

  2. daphne says:

    That looks sinful yet hearty!

  3. aforkfulofspaghetti says:

    Heh. Sounds like a sure-fire winner to me. Chocolate and PB in one dish? Mexican? With tortillas? Hell, yeah!

  4. Ari (Baking and Books) says:

    You brought back some good memories with this post. My nana used to make mole on special occasions, and there was nothing I loved more than eating it with a fresh corn tortilla!

  5. Ben says:

    I love mole, but I’ve never had it with peanut butter, though one of the (almost 100) original ingredients must be peanuts, right? Lol I really don’t know but it sounds really interesting. You should try it with Mexican rice and homemade corn tortillas. OOOOh, that is heaven! Hehe

  6. VeggieGirl says:

    Can’t go wrong with peanut butter and Mexican cuisine!

  7. Sagan Morrow says:

    You had me at “chocolate and peanut butter for dinner”.

    I’ve never had chicken mole before but I do love Mexican food, and this recipe looks really great! It has been added to my list of recipes to try:)

  8. Mochachocolata Rita says:

    wow, i pb and choc for dinner! i shall give this a try ;)

  9. Dee says:

    I’ve always wanted to try my hand at Mole, but my man’s eloquently raised eyebrows always got in the way. This looks great, Nick! Very clever of you to sneak in the peanut butter :)

  10. VeggieGirl says:

    So my local Whole Foods just started selling the new Larabar flavors, and one of them is Peanut Butter Cookie – I totally thought of you when I decided to purchase it, haha :0) Have you seen it/tried it yet??

  11. Kevin says:

    Chocolate, peanut butter and chilies! What a great combination!

  12. Jessy and her dog Winnie says:

    That sounds really good. What a combination!

  13. Simply...Gluten-free says:

    I too am a lover of Mexican cusine. This looks so yummy!

  14. ~Madeline~ says:

    This looks so good!

  15. kat says:

    Yum, I just love mole!

  16. Flanboyant Eats says:

    ur so darn inventive…
    i’m getting some fresh mole in mexico when i go in a few weeks.

  17. Nick says:

    Flutter, Such kind words =)

    AForkful, Booyah!

    Ari, I hear ya. My girlfriends Nana’s house always has the best food, so simple yet so good.

    Ben, I have never made Mexican rice but I imagine it goes beautifully. I did find one Mole recipe that called for peanuts which were then ground up so there’s really no difference here! I suggest you try it!

    Veggiegirl, That’s my hope! No I have not tried it yet! I’ll be going this weekend to Whole Foods, I’ll be sure to look for it!

    Sagan, Excellent! But if you’re anything like me, that’s a very long list….

    Rita, Yup, it’s like a little bowl of heaven.

    Dee, Not so much “sneaking” as the soup pot “demanding” it =).

    Bren, Bring me back some!

  18. david says:

    My family makes Peanut Butter Mole with Peter Pan Peanut Butter. Somehow it is better than Jiff but unfortunately, I don’t know how to make Mole but will be trying soon.

    • Nick says:

      Interesting, I wonder how it is with natural pb? Perhaps the difference between the two is the amount of salt or sugar? Either way peanut butter is a definite in mole!

  19. Jeff says:

    I’ve altered your recipe to make it a bit more authentic and to deepen the flavors. Give it a try.

    Peanut Butter Mole

    1 pound Chicken Tenders or Chicken Breast, or Pork Tenderloin
    2 T Olive Oil
    1 medium onion, chopped
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    1 can chicken broth
    1 can diced tomatoes
    2 jalapenos
    1/4 cup creamy natural peanut butter w/ salt
    2 dried ancho chilies, stemmed and seeded
    2 dried anaheim chilies, stemmed and seeded
    1 tablespoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
    4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
    1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
    1/4 cup sesame seeds
    1/4 cup golden raisins
    1/4 cup whole peanuts
    1 cinnamon stick broken in pieces
    2 ounces Mexican chocolate
    1T honey

    Instructions:
    Tear the ancho and anaheim peppers into large pieces and toast them in a dry skillet over medium heat until they change color a bit, about 2 minutes. Put them into a bowl with the raisins and cover them with hot water. Soak until softened, about 30 minutes. In the same skillet over medium heat, add the peanuts, sesame seeds, peppercorns, cinnamon stick, oregano, and thyme. Toast for 2 minutes, grind in a spice grinder, and add the powder to a blender. In the same skillet over medium-high heat add the olive oil, onions, garlic, and jalapenos. Cook until lightly browned, then add the tomatoes. Cook until vegetables are softened, about 10 to 15 minutes, then add to the blender. Add the peanut butter, chocolate, honey, and soaked chiles and raisins to the blender along with some of the chicken broth. Puree, adding more broth as needed, to make a smooth sauce.

    Pour 2 cups of the mole into the already oiled pan and simmer for about 5 minutes. Pour the mole into a baking dish. Brown the meat on all sides. Add the chicken breasts or tenders to the mole. If using pork, cut the pork into medallions and add them to the mole. Bake for about 20 minutes at 350.
    The unused portion can be frozen for later use.

    • Nick says:

      This is great actually, next time I make it I’ll incorporate some of these changes for sure. I’m always looking to go more authentic as long as it’s not too involved!

  20. Abbs says:

    Yum yum yum!! :)
    I had been eyeing this recipe for a while. I even put it in my ‘YummySoup’ application (an app for Mac users to store recipes, I highly recommend it), where I keep all my favorite, plan-to-make blog recipes. Finally, made it tonight for my mom, dad, and sister (who complained before it was made that she doesn’t like Mole). They all loved and raved about it. :) Even my sister began picking at the leftovers claiming it was too good to stop. It has a great little burn-your-lips heat to it.

    Thanks a lot for the recipe.

    • Nick says:

      I’ll have to check out that app, I’ve never heard of it! I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it, I actually impressed myself the first time I made it (not to brag of course) because it turned out so well. Thanks for re-living this recipe for me, I’ll be adding it to my “remake list” now!

  21. michell says:

    The first time I tried Mole I was in Monterrey, Mexico and some of the ladies from the church I was at made us mole for lunch with peanut butter, but I did not know the name of the chicken with peanut butter dish. So, I have been looking for a recipe so that I could have it again. I tried it recently at a Mexican restaurant but it was nowhere near the recipe these ladies made for us f(it was way too spicy and could not taste the peanut butter). Thank you for sharing…I will try your recipe.

    • Nick says:

      Ah, you came to the right place Michell =). However, I have since modified this recipe (to be a slow cooker recipe) and I think it came out better, so if I don’t get around to posting the new recipe soon, contact me first for the updated recipe before you make it!

  22. Debbie says:

    Nick –

    You are sooooo creative!!! I’m going to have the pleasure of telling people down the road that I knew you before you got your own cooking show!

  23. g-man says:

    This recipe is great. I made the sauce without the meat, and poured it over left-over rotisserie chicken. Thanks for the recipe.

  24. Bren says:

    mole is always, though easy to mess up! ;) Nice looking version.

  25. Marianne says:

    Mole is something I love and have always wanted to make, but knowing it’s somewhat complex, I’ve always shied away from it. This doesn’t seem too imposing though…I may just have to give it a go. Mmmm, mole.

    • Nick says:

      I was in the same boat. This isn’t imposing at all! The commenter up there quickly whipped up a batch of just the sauce to pour over leftover roasted chicken. It’s easy!

  26. Mary says:

    Hi Nick, this mole recipe sounds really good and I want to make it. But… I saw that you said you updated the recipe for slow cooker and it was even better. Could I have that recipe? thanks! Mary

  27. Mary says:

    oh gosh am I embarrassed now….never mind

    I’m blushing terribly

  28. Vonner says:

    Mole made with peanut butter…? That is nothing new … My aunt used a heaping table spoon or two in mole since I can remember…I am 45 years old so you can do the math. I use peantnut butter and finely chopped roast peanuts in my mole recipe .. I cheat tho I purchase a pre made version in a jar and add chicken broth for liquid and then add the peanut butter and peanuts plus a table spoon of coco for a nice taste freshly chopped garlic,bay leaves ,cumin are Added to the broth and brought to a boil for 2-5 minutes prior to added to the mole … Anyhow eat mole if you get a chance you will be very surprised,…. My wife is German and introduced it to her family ..and it is a dish made at family gatherings .. Sister in laws always trying to out do each other

    • Nick says:

      That is what’s so great about mole, everyone does it differently. And since I’ve begun using peanut butter there is just no turning back, especially with some finely chopped peanuts for the sauce and/or to garnish.

  29. Elizabeth says:

    I’m making it for Christmas it’s been on slow cooking for three and a half hours and doesnt seem like 4 hours doesn’t seem long enough , but I assembled it last night and refrigerated it overnight I hope it tastes wonderful

    • Nick says:

      How did it come out?? Did everyone enjoy?

      4 hours is so the chicken doesn’t fall apart into shreds, you want somewhat-substantial pieces of chicken so it’s not like a stew.

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