Coloradito Chicken
Mole Coloradito con Pollo
Recipe Yield
6 servings
Cooking time
1 hour 35 minutes
Rate this recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ripe plantain
- 6 ancho chiles stemmed and seeded
- 5 guajillo chiles stemmed and seeded
- 1 pound (or 3 to 4) ripe Roma tomatoes
- 5 cloves garlic unpeeled
- 1 1/2-inch thick slice of white onion
- 1 1-inch-long stick ceylon cinnamon or canela (or 1/2 teaspoon ground ceylon cinnamon)
- 3 whole cloves
- 6 black peppercorns
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds
- 3 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons raisins
- 1 tablespoon grated piloncillo or dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons kosher or coarse sea salt divided
- 1 3-pound chicken cut into 8 serving pieces (wings removed for later use and breasts cut in half)
- Vegetable oil for cooking the chicken
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 3-ounce bar of Mexican chocolate broken into pieces
- 1 pound chayote squash peeled and sliced into 1-inch strips
- 1 pound green beans trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
- Tortillas or rice to serve
To Prepare
- Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the plantain in a baking dish lined with aluminum foil and make a couple of 1/2-inch slits on its skin. Bake until completely cooked through, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, when cool enough to handle, peel and slice. Set aside.
- Heat a comal, griddle or skillet over medium heat. Once hot, toast the ancho and guajillo chiles for about 30 to 45 seconds per side, until fragrant and lightly toasted. Place chiles in a saucepan along with the whole tomatoes, cover with water and set over medium-high heat. Simmer for 12 to 15 minutes, until the chiles are rehydrated and plumped up, and the tomatoes are cooked and mushy.
- On the same comal, griddle or skillet, char the unpeeled garlic cloves and the onion slice, until completely charred and softened, about 8 to 10 minutes, flipping a couple of times in between. Set aside to cool. Peel the garlic when cool enough to handle.
- On a small skillet set over medium heat, toast the cinnamon stick for a minute or two until fragrant, flipping once. Next, toast the cloves and peppercorns for a minute, moving them around the entire time. Toast the almonds for a couple of minutes, until lightly browned, as well as sesame seeds. Lastly, toast the oregano for 5 to 10 seconds.
- As each ingredient is finished being toasted, place it in the jar of the blender: the cinnamon, garlic, onion, cloves, peppercorns, almonds, sesame seeds, and oregano. Add the rehydrated chiles, cooked tomatoes and 1 cup of their cooking broth, and the plantain to the blender, as well. Incorporate the raisins, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt, and puree at least for a couple minutes until completely smooth. If your blender is on the smaller side, puree it in batches.
- Set a large casserole over medium-high heat and heat enough oil to have about 1/8-inch of depth. Season the chicken with the remaining teaspoon of salt. Once the oil is hot, brown the chicken pieces in batches, making sure to not crowd the casserole. Cook until they have created a crust on the skin and are easy to flip, about 3 minutes per side. Place the finished pieces in a large bowl.
- Once you are done browning the chicken, reduce the heat to medium-low. Carefully, and using the casserole’s lid as a shield (there will be splatters), pour the mole sauce into the oil. Stir and cover with the lid, leaving it slightly open, and cook for about 6-7 minutes, stirring occasionally (still protecting yourself with the lid), until the sauce is very thick and seasoned. Add the chicken broth, chocolate pieces, and the browned chicken pieces, and cook for another 20 minutes. Add the chayote squash and green beans, give it a good stir, and cook until vegetables are cooked yet tender, another 10 minutes.
- Serve with tortillas and/or rice.
Comments
40comments inColoradito Chicken
Dan Borradori
May 05
The Coloradito Chicken was outstanding. What a fantastic recipe Pati! The complex flavors of the mole were delicious, we couldn’t stop eating it and our house smelled wonderful. I took the leftovers and made enchiladas out of the them, again it was a meal to die for. Living in the CA Central Valley we have an abundance of Mexican grocery stores and all the ingredients are readily available. I found the recipe very easy to make and it will easily feed 6 people.
I’ve made over 30 of your recipes and haven’t found one that we or our guests haven’t thoroughly enjoyed. Keep up the good work Pati.
Pati Jinich
May 13
Yay, so happy to hear Dan! Thanks so much for following 🙂
Joe Cappo
Apr 12
Can I omit the almonds due “nut allergies?
Pati Jinich
Jun 06
Of course Joe, just leave them out 🙂
Gabby Brown
Aug 28
This is, like all Pati’s recipes, awesome! It’s best she left off the prep time on this one, because it took me an hour and I’m a pretty quick cook! I cooked it in my slow cooker with carrots instead of green beans. Muy sabrosa!
Pati Jinich
Sep 18
So glad you liked it Gabby, gracias!
Christina
Nov 30
Just finished watching this recipe on tv. I can’t get the sugar or mexican chocolate or those big dried chillies so will have to substitute dark Chocolate, palm sugar and some kind of chillies… don’t know which.
Pati Jinich
Dec 02
You can find the Guajillo and Ancho Chiles online easily Christina 😉
Anne M.
Aug 30
Hi there! What would you recommend in place of the squash for non squash lovers? Thank you!
Pati Jinich
Sep 05
How about potatoes, carrots or mushrooms Anne? Enjoy 😉
Lynne Rupp
Aug 27
I live in a tiny CO town and would love to make this. But, no plantains here. What could I sub for this? Thank you!
Pati Jinich
Sep 05
Hi Lynne, I have not tried this myself, but I’ve heard sweet potatoes are good plantain substitutes some times, good luck!
Emiliano
Aug 02
Pati thank you so much for this delicious recipe. My abuelita made it for me as a kid and now I got a chance to make it for my 35th birthday. My family loved it. I am a huge fan of your show : )
Pati Jinich
Aug 02
Happy birthday, Emiliano!
Milagros
Apr 20
When I saw this on TV this made my mouth water, I am so excited to have this recipe. It is so hard to find authentic food in my area, all food comes in on a truck, no one, not one of the Mexican restaurants around here makes things authentic or fresh, its all the same stuff, tacos, enchiladas, burritos, just some limited. Mexican food is so MUCH more!
Pati Jinich
Apr 20
Hope you love the chicken, Milagros!
Debie
Apr 19
Hi Patti can you use any meat with this or just Chicken. Is there different types of mole sauces for different meats.
Thanks
Pati
Apr 27
Oh you can use your favorite type of meat.
Danika
Mar 07
Hola Pati, saludos desde Mexicali, donde puedo encontrar tus recetas en español?
Gracias
Pati
Mar 08
Aqui 🙂 http://patijinich.com/pati_2020/es/programa/
Shonna
Mar 02
I just made this for my husband (who is originally from Oaxaca) and I don’t think he has ever enjoyed anything I have made for him more! He was so proud he took some to his brother and friends. Now he’s asking if you will post a recipe for menudo!
Pati
Mar 02
Super! This makes me so happy to hear Shonna. I’m so glad he enjoyed it so much. And I’ll try to post a menudo recipe soon.
Gloria
Feb 18
OMG!!! This recipe I will surely make soon as I buy what I need from my local Mercado. Gracias Pati…
Hope its as delicious as my moms…love you mom😢.
Pati
Feb 19
I hope you enjoy it Gloria.
Mary Ramirez
Jan 08
Hola Pati
Can I used boneless chicken instead of bone in chicken?
Pati
Jan 09
Sure!
Norm
Dec 25
I’m exhausted.
Pati
Dec 26
Oh no!
Kim Thomas
Dec 07
Making this tonight have potatoes ready in fridge . chocolate leche cake is done .Ingredients all measured and ready to start on mole and chicken so excited , my husband is also a critic and a wonderful cook so I giving this a try .. love watching your shows and seeing the place you visit.
Pati
Dec 08
Oh I hope you and your husband love it!
Gerry Salinas
Dec 07
Buenos Dias Pati! I watched your show this early morning for my first time & saw you make this Coloradito chicken dish. I’ve always loved Mole from a Kid in Kansas watching mi Abuela & My Mom make it! Tambien me gusta con Costillas de Puerco como las preparaba mi Suegra en Houston! This weekend I will be prepping this Coloradito Chkn with a good friend of mine who loves Mole as much as I do. Please come to Texas & put on a Cooking Show. maybe I can find a friend of mine in Community Events to find you a Sponsor!! Un Abrazo Grande!!
Pati
Dec 07
I’m so happy you discovered the show, Gerry! I hope you enjoy the chicken. And I love coming to Texas…I was just there 🙂
Martha Munguia
Nov 20
Wow! The best mole my family has ever had! The flavor was awesome, the chicken succulent and the vegetables perfection. I have learned to put my complete trust in Pati’s recipes. Thank goodness for the blender, did it in one batch. Definitely a keeper and another new receipt to add to menu. Thank you Pati! You are a god send!
Pati
Nov 20
Thank YOU Martha!
Jennifer
Nov 16
I made this for Sunday dinner last week. It is the best mole we have ever had. My husband is an excellent cook and a careful critic of what he eats. He love it! He said it was a surprising mole with such nuances of various flavors. In addition, I was on the fence about buying a powerful blender. This recipe convinced me to get a Vitamix blender. You need a powerful machine to puree the sauce. Yes, you can do it in batches, but it takes more time. Love Pati’s show, recipes and her!
Pati
Nov 17
Oh you will love your blender…I know I couldn’t live without mine!
Christina C.
Oct 31
Hi Pati – I am looking to change up my tamales (that I learned from you!). Could I use shredded chicken with this mole recipe and put it in a tamale casserole?
Pati
Nov 22
Give it a try…and let me know how it goes!
Elaine
Oct 22
I love to know how you make the chicken souc
Pati
Nov 17
I have lots of great chicken recipes on my site! And here’s my recipe for chicken broth http://patijinich.com/pati_2020/recipe/mexican-chicken-broth-405/