Mole Enchiladas (Enmoladas), Ready in 35 Minutes

Enchiladas vs enmoladas

An enchilada is a tortilla in chile sauce. An enmolada is a tortilla in mole. The word changes because the method does: enmoladas are not baked under cheese. Each tortilla is warmed, dipped in the sauce, filled and rolled on the plate, then dressed with more mole, raw onion, crema, crumbled cheese and sesame seeds. They go to the table in minutes and taste like the sauce, which is the point.

Which mole to use

Mole Coloradito is the classic for enmoladas in Oaxaca, and Mole Rojo is a close second. Both are red, a little lighter than negro, and let the chicken and cheese come through. Mole Negro makes a darker, richer plate that is wonderful for company. Whichever you use, make the sauce a touch thinner than you would for chicken, so the tortillas dip easily.

Ingredients

• 12 corn tortillas
• 1 pouch (8 oz) Halietza dehydrated Mole Coloradito, Rojo or Negro
• 3½ cups warm low sodium chicken broth
• 2½ cups shredded cooked chicken (a rotisserie chicken works well)
• ½ white onion, thinly sliced
• ¾ cup crumbled queso fresco or cotija
• ½ cup Mexican crema or sour cream
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, for softening the tortillas (optional)

Serves 4, three enmoladas each. About 20 minutes of work, 35 minutes start to finish.

How to make enmoladas

1. Make the mole. Warm the broth in a wide saucepan until it steams, whisk in the mole for 60 to 90 seconds, then simmer 2 to 3 minutes until it is glossy. It should run off the spoon in a ribbon; whisk in a little more warm broth if it is thick. Keep it over the lowest heat.
2. Warm the chicken in a covered skillet with a spoonful of the mole so it is hot and lightly sauced.
3. Soften the tortillas, four at a time, for about 30 seconds per side in a dry skillet, or a few seconds in a thin film of hot oil. Keep them wrapped in a towel.
4. Build each plate: dip a tortilla in the mole with tongs, lay it on the plate, put a spoon of chicken down the middle with a few slices of onion, and roll it. Make three per plate.
5. Spoon more mole over the rolled enmoladas, then top with the crumbled cheese, a drizzle of crema, the rest of the onion and the sesame seeds. Serve at once and start the next plate.

The cheese version

Skip the chicken and fill each tortilla with a spoon of crumbled queso fresco and a little raw onion. This is how enmoladas are often served in Oaxaca for breakfast or a light supper, and it is the version to make when the pantry has mole and the fridge has cheese and nothing else.

Tips from our kitchen

• Warm the tortillas first. A cold tortilla cracks when you roll it. Thirty seconds in a dry skillet, or a quick pass through hot oil, keeps them soft.
• Thin the mole. For dipping, the sauce should run off the spoon in a ribbon, not sit on it. Whisk in warm broth a splash at a time.
• Do not bake them. Baking enmoladas dries the tortillas and dulls the sauce. The whole appeal is a soft tortilla in glossy mole.
• Save sauce for the top. Half the mole goes into the dip, half gets spooned over the rolled enmoladas.
• Make them ahead only as parts. The sauce and the filling keep for 3 days in the fridge. Roll them at serving time. More on storing the sauce in How to store mole.

What to serve with them

A spoon of refried or black beans on the plate, a few slices of avocado, and radishes and lime for freshness. Rice is not needed, since the tortillas already do that job. The rest of the list is in What to eat with mole, and the full method for the sauce is in How to make mole from dehydrated mole.