One of my more popular Mexican cooking classes was Mexican Sauces. I tried to pick recipes that I was often asked to share. To start with, I wanted to feature a sauce prepared using mostly dried chiles with a few spices. Chile ancho is the most mild of the dried peppers and is the most often used in countless Mexican recipes. The second sauce was inspired by my love of New Mexico and the wonderful flavors of the green chile. And of course you can’t have nachos without a big bowl of warm Queso Blanco. The last two sauces, Easy Enchilada Sauce and Mole Sauce are simplified versions of the traditional Mexican recipes. They both really utilize all those spices in you cupboard that you may not be using as often as you like. Any or all of these sauce can be used for the obvious, which would be enchiladas. But they all, besides the Queso, can really can be used in any recipe that requires a braising sauce to be used. They can be added to soups and stews for a more Tex Mex flavor as well.
Pure Chile Ancho Sauce For Enchiladas and Much More! Click onto picture above to see full recipe on site.
Chile Verde Sauce~ Click onto picture above to see full recipe.
Queso Blanco~Tex Mex. Click onto picture above to see full recipe.
Easy Enchilada Sauce-Tex Mex. Click onto Picture above to see full recipe.
Easy Mole Sauce~ A much simpler version of my traditional mole sauce recipe…..it still has all the rich, deep flavors, all done in alot less time, with alot less ingredients! If you can believe that! Lol!
Ingredients:
8 to 10 dried pasilla peppers or chile ancho
1- 14 ounce can Hunt’s fire roasted garlic tomatoes
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
1 to 2 serrano peppers
½ cup toasted slivered almonds
¼ cup toasted sesame seeds, plus more for garnish
4 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
½ disc of Mexican chocolate, about 2 ounces
1 teaspoon ground oregano
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons chile ancho powder
Pinch of ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Salt and fresh cracked pepper
6 cups chicken broth
~For Chicken Mole: Season 3 pounds of bone in chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Brown and sear for 5 minutes per side in preheated olive oil. Add chicken to simmering mole sauce and continue to cook at a steady simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
1. Remove the stems and seeds from pasilla peppers. Transfer to a glass bowl, cover with water and cook in the microwave for 6 to 7 minutes, stirring once during cooking time. Remove from microwave, cover and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes.
2. Roughly chop the onion, serrano chile, and the garlic, set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil to medium/high heat. Add the onions, serrano and garlic and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Season with a little salt and pepper as you build your layers.
3. Drain all of the liquid from the pasilla peppers, add them to the pan, along with 4 cups of broth and all of the remaining ingredients, minus the Mexican chocolate. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook for 5 to 6 minutes. Remove pan from heat, and transfer the mixture to a blender or high capacity processor. Blend on high until smooth. Be extremely careful when blending hot liquids. Always secure top of blender using a towel, use your hand to hold down lid tightly.
4. Now at this point you can strain the sauce through a wire mesh strainer into a larger bowl, for a really smooth sauce. I have skipped this step a couple of times, but I would say that the strained sauce is my favorite version.
5. In that same pan, heat 3 tablespoons of oil to medium heat. Let it heat for a minute or two. Add the sauce to pan, add the remaining chicken broth, stir well and taste for salt. When it comes to a boil, add the Mexican chocolate and stir until melted. If you like the sauce a little sweeter, you can add a little piloncillo or dark brown sugar to taste. I like mine more on the savory side. Cover, reduce heat and continue cooking and stirring for another 35 to 40 minutes, tasting for salt along the way. Yields up to 10 servings. Serve sauce over pork, chicken, or turkey, garnish with toasted sesame seeds.
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