Paleo Chicken Mole

No, that's not pronounced mole. It's mole-A! Give it a Mexican flare at the end, come on, try it!! TRY IT!!! Shout it at the roof tops. "Mole-A, Mole-A, TODAY TODAY!!" That's what you should be singing when you are cooking this up tonight! If you don't sing/yell loudly, it's not even worth making. That's a lie. I didn't yell any of the sort while I cooked up this mole. I had company, and I try to only make a fool of myself on occasion. I have a reputation to uphold.

Anyways, if you've never tried mole before, you absolutely should try the REAL stuff. It's often made with peanut butter and dark chocolate, but it is FANTASTIC! I mean, how the hell couldn't it be, right? But you need to go to the right restaurant. One of those Mexican restaurants that truly makes you uncomfortable because it looks like the silverware was used right before you walked in the door, or a place that has floor tiles that are peeling away, revealing a green fuzzy mold pattern. Those are the best. Those restaurants use the real sh*t. Sweat.

Ok, so this recipe may not be quite as good as the real deal, but it does a person good.  I literally just sat smiling at my desk eating out of my always adorable (of course) tupperware, getting mole on my face. Not to be confused with getting mole on my moles. Holy crap that's confusing.

What you need:

• 1 lb chicken tenders, breast, thighs (whatevs)
• 2 tablespoons fat (I used duck fat)
• 3 garlic cloves, pressed or thinly sliced
• 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained of liquid
• 2-3 chipotle peppers, chopped
• 1/4 cup coconut milk OR broth OR water (just need it to help thin out the mixture)
• 2-3 heaping tablespoons almond butter
• 3-4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 yellow cabbage, roughly chopped
• 1/2 purple cabbage, roughly chopped
• Salt and pepper, to taste

What you do:

1. Heat fat in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add pressed garlic and mix around in your pan a bit.
2. Add chopped onion and let cook down until translucent.
3. Add spices and continue to cook the onions down.
4. Add diced tomatoes, chipotle peppers, cocoa powder, and almond butter and mix together. Then add your broth/coconut milk/or water until you get the preferred consistency.
5. Add chicken directly to your pan and mix with your sauce until chicken is coated.
6. Cover pan and let cook for about 20-25 minutes, depending how thick your pieces of chicken are. Check on it randomly to make sure it is cooked through!
7. While the chicken is cooking, grab another saute pan and heat up a bit more fat (olive oil, coconut oil, etc.). Add your chopped cabbage to the pan and let cook for about 15 minutes, stirring the cabbage ever so often to make sure it doesn't burn. If you want it to cook a bit faster, add 1 tablespoon of water to the pan and cover with a lid, the steam will help those little babies cook quick! Towards the end of the cooking process, add a bit of salt and pepper to taste.
8. Serve your chicken mole over your sauteed cabbage and enjoy your fiesta. Mole-A I say!!

 

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Grocery Store Helper:

• Chicken tenders: on sale at Sunflower Market
• Canned tomatoes: King Soopers
• Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce: King Soopers in Ethnic foods isle
• Veggies: Sunflower Market
• Spices: Kroger
• Cocoa Powder: King Soopers