Mexican Beef Mole Poblano
Pronounced moh-leh - traditionally it takes dozens of ingredients and many hours of cooking to produce the authentic flavours of this dish. Using the spice blend and a few other short cuts this Mexican Beef Mole Poblano celebrates all of the earthy rich, layered, nutty, chocolate-y, savoury, and slightly sweet flavours of a traditional mole - not quite authentic but tastes amazing and can be easily rustled up on a week night!
Serves 4
Effort; Moderate
Prep: 15mins
Cook: 90mins
Ingredients
1kg diced beef *see hints & tips
1 large onion, diced small
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp Mole blend
1 tbsp tomato paste
500ml beef stock
2 tbsp peanut butter *see hint & tips
50g dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces *see hints & tips
2 tbsp honey *see hints & tips
1 tsp salt
To serve - Rice, feta, flaked almonds, lime, coriander & fresh chilli (optional)
Method
In a heavy bottomed cooking pot place 1 tbsp of olive oil on a medium heat. Brown beef in batches and set aside in a bowl.
Add a little more oil & soften the onions (3-4mins) before adding garlic & Mole spice blend. Cook until fragrant then mix in the tomato paste and cook for 1 min continually stirring. Place beef with its juices back into the pot and coat well.
Add peanut butter, beef stock and salt, stir until combined. Reduce the heat to low & simmer for 30mins covered, stirring occasionally.
Remove the lid and add chocolate & honey and stir through. Leave to simmer uncovered for 1 hour adding extra water if needed, stirring occasionally, until beef is tender & sauce is thick.
Serve with rice & top with flaked almonds, feta, coriander & lime wedges on the side.
Hints & tips
Beef - Cuts that work well for slow cooking, chuck, brisket, round, topside, stewing steak etc..
Chocolate - We used Gold Original dark chocolate as it is easily found in all shops plus we found it is the perfect balance for this dish.
Peanut butter - Almond butter or seed butter are good alternatives.
Honey - Maple or date syrup can be used as a substitution.
Cookware - A cast iron casserole dish with a lid is my top pick for cooking this dish. Alternatively, you can do it in the slow cooker but I would recommend thickening the sauce after.
