P52 - Week 28 - Special Request

It's Wonder Dad's birthday today, so he got to pick the menu for dinner tonight. I wasn't at all surprised that he wanted this dish - this one is at or near the top of both of our "favorite comfort food" lists! And sharing this here allows me to save the recipe for easy access as well!


I give you the ULTIMATE comfort food - Chicken Mole Verde! Sometimes we call it "green gravy chicken." This is one of those recipes that takes a bit to pull everything together, but it really is worth the effort. And I'll share a few shortcuts as well. But first ... the full deal ...

Part 1: Preparing the Chicken
Ingredients:
1 - whole roasting chicken (about 3-4 lbs), skinned and then cut up as desired into 6-8 pieces as will fit in boiling pan
1 - bunch chopped cilantro
1 - Tbs kosher salt
1 - tsp whole black peppercorns
2 - cloves garlic
1 - large yellow onion, chopped
1 - bay leaf
Directions:
1. Place the chicken, cilantro, salt, peppercorns, garlic, onion and bay leaf into a pan with 12 cups of water and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered until chicken is tender - about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.
3. Remove chicken from the pan and strain liquid through a fine strainer. Reserve 4 cups of the broth for the mole. I freeze the rest for later use.
4. Set chicken aside and begin preparing the mole.


Part 2: Preparing the Mole Verde
Ingredients:
8 - 10 oz. tomatillos, peeled and chopped
4 - jalapeños, chopped (leave seeds)
1 - bunch cilantro
1 - tsp kosher salt
2 - cloves garlic, chopped
2 - 8-inch flour tortillas, toasted
3 - Tbs olive oil or grapeseed oil
Directions:
1. Heat tomatillos and jalapeños in a 4-qt. saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until darkened and thick, about 10 minutes.
2. Transfer to a blender with cilantro, salt, garlic, tortillas, and 1 cup of the chicken broth; puree.
3. Heat the oil in a 6-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat; add tomatillo puree to the oil - be very careful as it will sputter quite a bit. Cook, stirring constantly for about 5 minutes, until the puree thickens into a paste.
4. Whisk in remaining chicken broth, bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often for about 30 minutes until it reaches a gravy-like consistency. 5. Shred the chicken and add to the mole. Cook about 5 - 10 minutes until the chicken is completely heated.

I know that's a lot of work, but TRUST ME, it is SO worth it!

Now ... I mentioned some short cuts. Often, if I have some of the left-over chicken broth in the freezer, I will skip the first part where you prepare the chicken and will use whatever chicken I have on hand. I make this chicken a lot, so it is not uncommon for me to have chicken in the fridge or freezer that can be used. You could pick up a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store if you are really short on time. I prefer that to canned or just straight-up, plain boiled chicken. But by not having to worry about the chicken, you cut quite a bit of prep time off of this recipe.

We like to serve this as shown in the photo above, with plain old white rice. It is a stick-to-your ribs kind of meal and there is never a bad time to serve it. It also pairs very well with Spanish rice and tortillas. And if you are looking for a slightly-more-elegant looking meal, don't shred your chicken. Leave the pieces whole and ladle the sauce on top of them. I like shredding because it really helps to get the chicken to soak up the flavor, but it is not a requirement.

Anyway ... I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do!