Chocolate Mole Chicken Thighs bring authentic mole flavor into your kitchen with a simplified approach. This version features tender chicken in a rich, complex sauce where dark chocolate provides deep aroma, not sweetness. It’s a celebratory meal that fills your home with incredible fragrance.
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Why You’ll Love This Chocolate Mole Chicken Thighs
- Complex flavor: Simplified process keeps all the wonderful depth and layers.
- Incredibly forgiving: Longer simmer only improves the sauce and keeps chicken juicy.
- Special yet approachable: Impressive for guests but easy enough for a cozy family meal.
- Leftovers improve: Flavors meld and deepen overnight for even better next-day lunches.
Ingredients & Tools
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 2 tbsp olive oil or avocado oil
- 1 large white onion, roughly chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 dried ancho chiles, stems and seeds removed
- 1 dried guajillo chile, stems and seeds removed
- 1/4 cup almonds
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds, plus more for garnish
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1 corn tortilla, torn into pieces
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 3 cups chicken broth, divided
- 1 oz dark chocolate (70% cacao or higher), chopped
- 1 tbsp smooth peanut butter
- To taste salt and black pepper
Tools: A large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, a blender, and kitchen tongs.
Notes: Don’t stress if you can’t find ancho or guajillo chiles—substitute other dried mild chiles like pasilla. Use a good quality dark chocolate bar, not cocoa powder, for best texture.
Nutrition (per serving)
| Calories: | 480 kcal |
| Protein: | 35 g |
| Fat: | 28 g |
| Carbs: | 22 g |
| Fiber: | 5 g |
Serves: 4 | Prep Time: 25 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Before You Start: Tips & Ingredient Notes
- Don’t skip toasting the dried chiles and spices. This step is non-negotiable for unlocking their full, deep flavor. Just a minute or two in a dry skillet until they become fragrant makes a world of difference in the final sauce.
- Why use both peanut butter and chocolate? The peanut butter adds a subtle nutty creaminess that complements the chocolate, which itself isn’t sweet but provides a bitter, complex depth. Together, they create the signature mole richness without either flavor dominating.
- Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs are your best bet. They’re more forgiving than breasts and won’t dry out during the long simmer. The bones and skin also add extra flavor to the sauce as everything cooks together.
- Blend the sauce while it’s still warm. A warm sauce blends more smoothly and evenly, giving you that velvety texture mole is known for. Just be careful not to fill your blender too full—the heat can create pressure.
How to Make Chocolate Mole Chicken Thighs
Step 1: Pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towels and season generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the oil in your Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken thighs skin-side down. You’ll hear a satisfying sizzle. Cook for 5-7 minutes until the skin is golden brown and crispy, then flip and cook for another 3 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate—it won’t be cooked through yet, and that’s perfectly fine.
Step 2: Reduce the heat to medium. In the same pot, using the rendered chicken fat and oil, add the chopped onion. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion starts to soften and become translucent. Add the minced garlic and cook for another minute until fragrant. You’ll notice the kitchen smelling amazing already.
Step 3: While the onions are cooking, prepare your dried chiles. Remove the stems and seeds, then tear them into smaller pieces. In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the chile pieces, almonds, sesame seeds, and torn tortilla for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until everything is lightly browned and smells nutty. Be careful not to burn them! Add the raisins, cumin, cinnamon, and cloves to the skillet for the last 30 seconds to warm them through.
Step 4: Transfer the toasted mixture from the skillet to your blender. Add the diced tomatoes with their juices and 2 cups of the chicken broth. Blend on high speed until the mixture is completely smooth. This might take a minute or two—you’re looking for a thick, uniform paste with no chunks.
Step 5: Pour the blended sauce into the pot with the onions and garlic. Add the remaining 1 cup of chicken broth, the chopped dark chocolate, and the peanut butter. Stir well over medium heat until the chocolate and peanut butter have fully melted into the sauce. The sauce should look glossy and darken in color.
Step 6: Return the seared chicken thighs to the pot, nestling them into the sauce skin-side up. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer, then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and let it cook for 45 minutes. The slow simmer allows the chicken to become incredibly tender and the flavors to meld beautifully.
Step 7: After 45 minutes, remove the lid and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes to allow the sauce to reduce and thicken slightly. You’ll notice the sauce has deepened to a rich, mahogany color and coats the back of a spoon nicely. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning with more salt if needed.
Step 8: To serve, spoon plenty of sauce over each chicken thigh and garnish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds. The chicken should be falling-apart tender—you might need a spoon to serve it!
Storage & Freshness Guide
- Fridge: Store in an airtight container for 3–4 days; flavors deepen overnight.
- Freezer: Freeze sauce alone (without chicken) for up to 3 months.
- Reviving: Reheat gently on stovetop; add a splash of broth if sauce thickens.
Serving Suggestions
Complementary Dishes
- Cilantro-lime rice — The bright, fresh flavors cut through the richness of the mole beautifully and soak up the extra sauce.
- Warm corn tortillas — Perfect for making little tacos or just scooping up every last bit of mole from your plate.
- Charred street corn (esquites) — The creamy, tangy corn salad provides a cool contrast to the deep, spiced chicken.
Drinks
- A light Mexican lager — The crisp, clean bubbles help reset your palate between bites of the rich sauce.
- Hibiscus iced tea (agua de jamaica) — Its tart, fruity notes are a refreshing counterpart to the earthy mole flavors.
- Oaked Chardonnay — The buttery notes and slight oakiness stand up well to the complex spicing in the dish.
Something Sweet
- Orange and cinnamon flan — The creamy caramel dessert continues the Mexican theme while providing a cool, smooth finish.
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Chocolate Mole Chicken Thighs
Learn how to make authentic Chocolate Mole Chicken Thighs with this simplified recipe. Rich, savory, and deeply flavorful. Try this impressive yet easy dish tonight!
Ingredients
For the Ingredients
-
8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
-
2 tbsp olive oil or avocado oil
-
1 large white onion (roughly chopped)
-
4 garlic cloves (minced)
-
2 dried ancho chiles (stems and seeds removed)
-
1 dried guajillo chile (stems and seeds removed)
-
1/4 cup almonds
-
2 tbsp sesame seeds (plus more for garnish)
-
1/4 cup raisins
-
1 corn tortilla (torn into pieces)
-
1 tsp ground cumin
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1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
-
1/4 tsp ground cloves
-
1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes (undrained)
-
3 cups chicken broth (divided)
-
1 oz dark chocolate (70% cacao or higher, chopped)
-
1 tbsp smooth peanut butter
-
salt and black pepper (to taste)
Instructions
-
Pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towels and season generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the oil in your Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken thighs skin-side down. You’ll hear a satisfying sizzle. Cook for 5-7 minutes until the skin is golden brown and crispy, then flip and cook for another 3 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate—it won’t be cooked through yet, and that’s perfectly fine.01
-
Reduce the heat to medium. In the same pot, using the rendered chicken fat and oil, add the chopped onion. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion starts to soften and become translucent. Add the minced garlic and cook for another minute until fragrant. You’ll notice the kitchen smelling amazing already.02
-
While the onions are cooking, prepare your dried chiles. Remove the stems and seeds, then tear them into smaller pieces. In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the chile pieces, almonds, sesame seeds, and torn tortilla for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until everything is lightly browned and smells nutty. Be careful not to burn them! Add the raisins, cumin, cinnamon, and cloves to the skillet for the last 30 seconds to warm them through.03
-
Transfer the toasted mixture from the skillet to your blender. Add the diced tomatoes with their juices and 2 cups of the chicken broth. Blend on high speed until the mixture is completely smooth. This might take a minute or two—you’re looking for a thick, uniform paste with no chunks.04
-
Pour the blended sauce into the pot with the onions and garlic. Add the remaining 1 cup of chicken broth, the chopped dark chocolate, and the peanut butter. Stir well over medium heat until the chocolate and peanut butter have fully melted into the sauce. The sauce should look glossy and darken in color.05
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Return the seared chicken thighs to the pot, nestling them into the sauce skin-side up. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer, then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and let it cook for 45 minutes. The slow simmer allows the chicken to become incredibly tender and the flavors to meld beautifully.06
-
After 45 minutes, remove the lid and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes to allow the sauce to reduce and thicken slightly. You’ll notice the sauce has deepened to a rich, mahogany color and coats the back of a spoon nicely. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning with more salt if needed.07
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To serve, spoon plenty of sauce over each chicken thigh and garnish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds. The chicken should be falling-apart tender—you might need a spoon to serve it!08
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