I still remember the day I first tried mole. I was at a hole-in-the-wall restaurant, The Red Iguana, right outside of downtown Salt Lake City. I was visiting my newly married brother and he said I had to try this mole sauce they were famous for. I was super skeptical once I glanced at the list of ingredients. My teenage palette hadn't tried such unique ingredients all together!
He ordered the mole sampler which comprised of all 7 mole sauces they serve at the restaurant. As I began tasting the dark brown, vibrant yellow, and burnt orange sauces, I was completely surprised. I had never tasted anything like them and I was hooked! I ordered mole enchiladas on the spot and have been a huge fan ever since.
When we were on a family vacation in Park City last Fall, we had to get our mole fix at the Red Iguana. I ordered the mole sampler so I could be reminded of my favorite earthy mole sauces. I wanted to lick the plate and almost did just to embarrass my kids a little!
I came across a Crockpot Mole recipe in my America's Test Kitchen Cookbook and I knew I had to try it. Mole usually cooks for 10 hours so to make such an easy mole sauce with very little ingredients, I had to give it a shot. I have played around with it, tweaked the recipe, and now sharing my Crockpot Mexican Chicken Mole recipe.
The beauty of a mole sauce is the depth of flavor. This isn't some one note sauce. It is a combination of tomatoes, chili powder, chocolate, raisins, peanut or almond butter, garlic, and other spices. Don't be afraid of these crazy ingredients. It has such unique flavor!
I am fully obsessed with crockpot recipes for so many reasons. It's my go-to method for cooking any type of meat since it leaves it so tender. As a busy Mom of 4, I am always looking for quick and easy dinner ideas. This Crockpot Mexican Chicken Mole literally melts in your mouth. This is NOT a boring dinner!
To make it super simple, you throw all of the mole sauce ingredients into a blender and pour it over the chicken. You cook it low and slow on the low setting and once it is nice and tender, you shred the chicken breast. It can be served in warm corn or flour tortillas for tacos -- topped with Mexican cheese, cilantro, and avocado. It can also be served on top of fried tostada shells or alongside cilantro lime rice. Our favorite is to make mole chicken tacos.
Crockpot Mexican Chicken Mole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ½ - 2 lbs. Chicken Breast
- ½ cup Chicken Broth may substitute water, but will need to add more salt
- 1 - 14.5 ounce can Diced Tomatoes
- 1 ½ Tablespoons Chili Powder
- ¼ teaspoon Cumin
- 1 Tablespoon Minced Garlic or 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Pepper
- 2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder
- 2 Tablespoons Peanut Butter
- ⅓ cup Raisins
- Topping:
- ⅓ cup Cilantro Leaves chopped
- Peanuts chopped
- 1 Avocado diced
- ¼ cup White Onion diced
- ¾ cup Queso Fresco
- Fresh Orange Juice optional
- Corn Tortillas
Instructions
- In blender, combine chicken broth, tomatoes with juice, chili powder, cumin, garlic, salt, pepper, cocoa powder, peanut butter, and raisins. Blend up creamy.
- Place chicken in crockpot. Sprinkle with a little salt. Pour ¾ of the mole sauce over chicken. Cook on LOW for 4-5 hours, or until tender. Shred with two forks. Pour remaining sauce over chicken. Cook for 30 minutes longer. Season to taste.
- Place mole chicken on platter. Squeeze a little fresh squeezed orange juice over mole (optional) and season to taste.
- Serve with corn tortillas, queso fresco, diced white onion, cilantro and avocado.
I hope you love this simple chicken mole as much as our family does!
Happy Eating, my friends! xo
Caroline
I have always wanted to make a mole sauce, so tried this recipe. It was fabulous and so easy. I will make it again very soon.
Sara
I love mole! This recipe was incredible.
Dani
Hi Melissa! I can’t have peanuts and wondered if I could substitute almond butter or some other type of nut butter in place of the peanut butter? Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Erica
My family cannot eat peanuts or tree nuts. Can you suggest a substitute for the peanut butter in this recipe?
Cassie
My family is also allergic to peanuts and tree nuts. We used sunflower seed butter. You can usually find it in healthy grocery stores, like Whole Foods.
Sue
I love this recipe! We wanted something simple and delicious for Christmas Eve lunch and this was perfect! We made tostadas with refried beans, mole, and topped with Costco Mexican corn dip, guacamole, cojita cheese and cilantro. Made the mole as written with addition of 1/2tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp sugar, and for the chili powder used chipotle chili powder. Love all your recipes I have tried: all the Levain cookies, Love At First Sight Chocolate Cake-these are now “go-to” favorites. Thanks for sharing your delicious research!
Daniel Rounsaville
Hi Melissa,
I had a girlfriend in school that made fantastic cheese enchiladas with Mole sauce. Her recipe was similar to yours but included a boatload of bacon grease. When I saw your recipe I couldn't wait to try it!
I have a question- do you take the chicken out of the cooking sauce when you pull it and discard the sauce before adding in the last 1/4 of the uncooked Mole? I noticed the cooking sauce had lost it's slight sweetness so I tossed it and just used the remaining 1/4 for he last 30 minutes of cooking. Thanks for the excellent recipe! BR/Dan
Modern Honey
Daniel! How are you my friend? I am about 6 weeks late in responding to your comment. So sorry! That is a great question. I left my sauce in because I was afraid 1/4 cup wouldn't be enough sauce. Another idea is to leave out 1/2 - 3/4 cup of sauce and then discard the sauce cooked with the chicken. Those cheese enchiladas with mole sauce sounds so heavenly right now! I may have to work on a recipe for some cheese enchiladas. Have a wonderful day and stay warm! - Melissa