4 ideas to use mole powders and pastes, and one recipe to make mole from scratch / 4 ideas para usar polvos y pastas de mole, y una receta para hacer mole desde cero.
ATOLE CASERO is a section of ATOLE NEWSLETTER where I share what I cook at home, for family and friends, and for work. / ATOLE CASERO es una sección de ATOLE NEWSLETTER donde comparto lo que cocino en casa, para familia y amigos, y para el trabajo.
*Texto en español, abajo.
Amarillito is one of my favorite moles, not only because it is from Oaxaca, which is father's hometown, and a state whose cuisine —consequently— I consider fundamental in my culinary upbringing, but also because of its depth of flavor, despite, its simplicity. This quality marked a before and after in my conception of mole, in general.
I owe this watershed to an amarillito empanada I ate while traveling along the Costa Chica, right before crossing the border from Oaxaca to Guerrero, in one of the most incredible markets I know, the Pinotepa Nacional market. We arrived there looking for a place to eat —anything— since we were starving. After crossing through a foggy aisle of smoked and salted fish and seafood, Eric, my brother-in-law (who, by the way, has a very nice and tasty place in Roma neighborhood, with friendly prices and cool atmosphere, called Bacal; if you haven’t been there, you should) , and I —who were walking ahead of the group, like a pair of dogs sniffing a piece of chorizo— managed to see, a few meters ahead, a lady heating tortillas on a comal, behind a small bar with a few stools; and, with a mixture out of desperation and momentary intuitive clarity, we looked at each other and said: there.
When the rest of our party arrived, I had already sank my teeth into heaven the earth, that, without asking, that magnificent cocinera placed in my hands: a freshly made tortilla, tlayuda size, folded, stuffed with mushrooms, and a yellow, thick, orange, bright, deep spread of mole with a piece of fresh yerba santa in the middle. I don't know if it was due to how much I was starving, but I felt like my feet left the ground for a moment. I asked the lady what she used for her mole, and she said that she used dried chiles, yerba santa, masa, and salt. I asked her: just that? and she answered with a resounding: yes.
It was then, that my mind made the connection between indigenous and the post-Columbian moles, I was able to see the link that I was missing between them. I, finally, understood that mole is not a recipe with a certain number of ingredients and steps, but rather, it is a progression of flavors in space and time, whose only non-changing element is ground chili —and, preferably, between two stones.
Amarillo mole is also —perhaps together with huaxmoles and moles de olla— one of the few moles that can be prepared at home with relative success, without the need for a metate or a mill. I have seen various Oaxacan cooks prepare this mole with a number of variations. The first is regarding the chiles; originally the ones that are used are yellow chiles —hence the name “amarillo”— but, nowadays, it is common that they be replaced by similar more accesible chiles, like costeños, or, in most cases, by the guajillos.
The second variation is in relation to herbs; I have seen one or a mixture of the following being used: epazote, yerba santa, avocado leaf, hierba de conejo, and pitiona. The herbs are not only used to flavor the broths, where the ground chili and masa are later diluted, but also, some of these are usually left whole to eat along with the mole —which adds a very nice minty tone to it. There are still recipes for mole amarillo that stop at this point (such as that of the cook from Pinotepa); that is to say, that they are prepared just as they were prepared before the conquest, with only endemic ingredients; however, more current recipes also add other spices, usually garlic, cumin, pepper, and sometimes, cloves. I have only seen onion being used in this mole to flavor the broths. And, tomatoes —although of pre-Hispanic origin as well— are not included in this mole.
AMARILLITO WITH WHITE BEANS (+CALABRESA)
I have yellow chiles from Oaxaca in my house, the last time I made this mole with them, it came out delicious, but super spicy. This time, I used different chiles to try something new: 4 costeños, which I bought at Aquí es Oaxaca —one of the stores located in the corridor of Oaxacan products that I recommended in my last post— and a guajillo chile. I did not use any dry spices. The only seasoning I added was a medium garlic and salt in addition to the herbs: a couple of avocado leaves to cook the beans, and a handful of fresh epazote that I added at the very end. I used about 50-60 grams of masa.
*I cooked the beans before and I added a medium clove of garlic and ¼ onion along with the avocado leaves.
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