Jose Flores was drawn to a sunny corner spot on Hope Street for the Williamsburg outpost of his De Mole Restaurant.
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His first location is still going strong, 14 years later, in Sunnyside, Queens.
The former corporate chef gets to experiment with a menu that pays tribute to the Mexican coast, Mexico City and Puebla.
On the weekend, the menu includes street foods like gorditas and little sandwiches called chubbies.
But the Mole Poblano is the biggest draw.
It's a multi-step process that takes days, from deveining and soaking the dried chilies, to continually stirring the paste.
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The hints of Mexican chocolate mixed with toasted spices, plus the kick from the chilies melds well with salmon, chicken and enchiladas.
Recipe for Mole Poblano:
Ingredients:
-- 3 (dried and seeded) mulat peppers
-- 3 (dried and seeded) pasilla peppers
-- 2 (dried and seeded) Ancho peppers
-- 1 ripe Plantain (peeled and sliced)
-- 2 teaspoons ground Coriander
-- 2 teaspoons ground Cinnamon
-- 1 teaspoon ground clove
-- 1/4 cup chopped almonds
-- 1/2 cup diced white onion
-- 3 garlic cloves
-- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
-- 2 slices of white bread
-- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
-- 3oz of Mexican chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate
-- 1 tablespoon sea salt
-- 1 cup of vegetable oil
-- 2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
Preparation:
1. In a medium mixing bowl place seeded peppers (mulato, ancho, pasilla). Cover the peppers with warm water, soak them for 3 hours.
2. While peppers are soaking, in a medium saute pan, add oil and bring to medium heat.
3. Fry the plantains until golden brown, repeat the process with onion, garlic, bread, and almonds.
4. In a blender place 1 quart of chicken stock, soaked peppers, cloves, and almonds. Blend until smooth.
5. Place mixture in a medium mixing bowl. Using the remaining stock, blend the rest of the ingredients (except the chocolate and sesame seeds) and mix with the rest of the ingredients.
6. In a medium saucepan, add oil used to fry the ingredients, slowly add the blended mix. Using a wooden spoon, mix all ingredients until everything is well combined, bring to a boil, and immediately bring to a simmer.
7. Simmer for at least 20 minutes or until mixture thickens, then add Mexican chocolate and salt. Stir until chocolate dissolves. The Mole is ready to serve. Enjoy!
*If the mole is too thick, add stock as needed.
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For more information visit, demolehopest.com.
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