P
Mexican
Mole de Xico (Veracruz mole)
Mole de Xico is the iconic mole of Xico, Veracruz — a complex sauce made with mulato, chipotle, and ancho chiles combined with plantain, prune, raisin, and almonds. Unlike Oaxacan moles, it uses ripe plantain as a primary thickener and sweetener, giving it a distinctly fruity-sweet profile. Associated with festivals and celebrations in the Xico region. Less nationally known than mole negro or poblano but considered by some chefs as the most complex Mexican mole.
‹Swipe for the next dish›
I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
3
Mulato chiles
stems and seeds removed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2
Ancho chiles
stems and seeds removed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2
Chipotle chiles
stems and seeds removed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 large
Ripe plantain
peeled, sliced — must be fully ripe, skin black-yellow
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
80 g
Prunes
pitted
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
60 g
Raisins
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
60 g
Blanched almonds
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
500 ml
Turkey or chicken stock
good body, warm
Your own market
60 g
Lard
divided — for frying ingredients and finishing the paste
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II
The Method
1
Toast each chile type separately in a dry heavy pan over medium heat, pressing flat with a spatula, until the skin blisters and the kitchen smells of dark, dried fruit with a faint edge of smoke — not acrid. Remove immediately. Soak all toasted chiles together in just-boiled water for 20 minutes until fully pliable.
2
In a wide pan, heat a little of the lard over medium-high heat. Fry the plantain slices in a single layer until deep golden-brown on each side — the cut surface should caramelise fully, not merely soften. Remove. In the same pan, fry the prunes and raisins briefly until they puff and glisten. Remove. Fry the almonds until pale gold. Remove. Each ingredient is fried separately; the layering of caramelisation is what builds the sauce's complexity.
3
Drain the soaked chiles, reserving the soaking liquid. In a blender, combine the chiles, fried plantain, fried prunes, raisins, and almonds. Add enough warm stock to allow the blades to move. Blend in stages to a completely smooth, uniform paste — this is where the dish lives or dies: insufficient blending leaves a coarse, unintegrated sauce that no amount of subsequent cooking will correct.
4
Heat the remaining lard in a deep, heavy pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Pour the blended paste in all at once — it will spit forcefully. Fry the paste, stirring constantly, until it darkens by one full shade and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
5
Add the warm stock gradually, stirring to incorporate. Simmer over low heat, stirring frequently, until the mole coats a spoon cleanly — drawn finger leaves a clear line — with the body of crème anglaise, neither a thin broth nor a thick paste.
6
Taste for balance: dried-fruit sweetness against chile heat against smoke. Adjust chipotle character with reserved soaking liquid if more smoke is required, or with additional stock to open the sauce. The finish should be sweet-fruity in arrival, smoky in the middle, and warm with chile on the close.
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Turkey from a free-range regional producer; lard rendered from heritage-breed pork; mulato and ancho chiles sourced directly from Veracruz or Oaxacan producers; chipotles dried and smoked traditionally, not in adobo sauce.
02
Estate — Good-quality dried chiles from a specialist importer; a fully ripe, deeply blackened plantain; homemade turkey or dark-meat chicken stock reduced to good body; fresh lard from a butcher.
03
Market — Dried chiles from a Latin grocery; supermarket plantain ripened at room temperature until the skin is predominantly black; good commercial chicken stock; block lard.
04
House — Any available dried chiles (ancho alone if mulato is unavailable); ripest available plantain; carton stock; vegetable oil in place of lard — the smoke and fruit profile will still be legible, though the depth will be reduced.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Smell. Toasted chiles release dark dried-fruit aroma with a faint edge of smoke; any acrid or burning note means they have gone too far.
◇Sight. Fried plantain slices are deep golden-brown and caramelised on the cut face — not pale, not scorched.
◇Touch. Finished mole coats a spoon and holds a clean finger-drawn line — the texture of crème anglaise.
◇Sight. The fried paste darkens one full shade and pulls away from the pan walls before stock is added.
◇Where it lives or dies. The blending of fried plantain, dried fruit, and soaked chiles must be taken to a completely smooth, uniform paste — a coarse blend at this stage produces a sauce that no subsequent cooking will redeem.
Pillar V
Cross-cuisine parallels are part of membership.
The dishes this one teaches you, across the cuisines — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Agave spirit
From British Columbia
Nothing from British Columbia holds against this yet.
Without alcohol
No pour without alcohol holds against this yet.
Why each one works is part of membership — Enter · from $49 a year →
The whole pairingPillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year