Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe

Whenever someone mentions Mexican food, the first things that cross your mind are hot chili peppers and hot sauces. You may have heard of them, you may have tried to make some of them for yourself. I’m presenting you my personal favorite.

The most famous Mexican mole, or sauce, is mole Poblano. However, I’m not going to tell you about it, in this article. I’m going to tell you about a very special Mexican hot sauce – the one that takes a lot of time, and sometimes even more than 30 ingredients to prepare. It is known as Mole Negro Oaxaqueño – Oaxacan Black Sauce.

The history of moles in Mexico is very long and very interesting.

There are three states in Mexico that claim to be the birth place of mole – Puebla, Oaxaca and Tlaxcala. Legend of Puebla says that first moles appeared early in the colonial period. It is said that an archbishop was supposed to visit a covenant in Puebla. The nuns got all panicky because they were very poor and had no idea what to prepare for such an important visitor. So, they gathered all the herbs and spices they could get their hands on, some chili peppers, stale bread and some chocolate, and killed the old turkey they had. They prepared turkey meat with the first mole ever, and the archbishop loved it.

To this day, moles are mostly served with turkey meat, especially for special occasions. They also go perfect with chicken or pork, and there is a high variety of them, especially in Oaxaca. The state Oaxaca is called “the state of seven moles.” They are famous for their mole negro, mole colorado, mole amarillo, mole verde, mole chichilo, mole coloradito, and mancha manteles (tablecloth stainer). Mole negro is the subject of this article.

Mole negro is not something you can make in 20 minutes.

If you don’t have time to make it right, don’t even start in the first place. This particular Mexican hot sauce recipe will take you up to 2.5 hours, and 30 ingredients. The making of mole negro is a special process that needs commitment and love. But, trust me, once you have a chance to try it, you’ll see that all the effort was worth it.

mole negro sauce

Here’s what you need to make your mole negro:

  • 8 mulato chilies
  • 8 pasilla chilies
  • 4 chilhuacle chilies
  • 4 tablespoons of lard
  • 4 slices of bread, torn in pieces
  • ¼ a cup of almonds
  • ¼ a cup of raisins
  • ¼ a cup of pumpkin seeds
  • ¼ a cup of pecans
  • ¼ a cup of peanuts with skins
  • ¼ a cup of sesame seeds
  • 4 avocado leaves
  • ½ a teaspoon of dried thyme
  • ½ a teaspoon of dried marjoram
  • ½ a teaspoon of dried oregano
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • ½ a teaspoon of anise
  • 3 whole cloves
  • ½ a teaspoon of cumin
  • 3 whole black peppercorns
  • 2 plantains, cut in slices
  • 1 tomato, roasted
  • 3 tomatillos, roasted
  • 3 cloves of garlic, roasted
  • 1 medium onion, roasted
  • 4 cups of chicken broth
  • pinch of sugar
  • ½ a cup of dark chocolate
  • salt

The preparation starts with toasting the chilies. You could either cut them in half, remove the seeds and then toast them, or toast them whole and keep the seeds, depending on how hot you want your mole negro to be. Soak the toasted chilies in hot water and leave them for 15-20 minutes. Put them together with the water in a food processor, and blend.

Heat the lard in a frying pan, and fry almonds until golden brown. Remove the almonds and fry raisins. Fry pumpkin seeds, pecans, peanuts, sesame seeds, thyme, marjoram, oregano, cinnamon, anise, cloves, cumin, peppercorns and plantains, all separately, for 2-3 minutes each. Finally fry the bread cubes, in the remaining lard.

Roast tomatillos, tomatoes, onion and garlic. Watch out not to burn them. Add tomato mixture, spices, nuts, bread and chicken broth into the food processor and blend until smooth. Take the remaining lard from the pan in which you fried the nuts and the spices, and pour it in a deeper pot.

Pour the sauce over and cook for 45 minutes on medium heat. Add the chili paste you made, and cook for another hour. When you’re almost done, add chocolate and stir until it melts. In the end, add salt to taste, and add a pinch of sugar.

Give this recipe a try. I know it sounds hard, and I’m not going to lie to you – it does take time and effort. But the results you will get will sweep you off your feet. This is the best Mexican hot sauce I have ever tasted. Try it!

About the author

Sarah

I’m a free spirit who likes to travel, cook and fly. Licensed paraglider pilot, I spend all my spare time flying. In the meantime, I like to share my recipes and travel experiences.

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