Pan-Crisped Chicken Thighs with Guajillo-Pear Mole #FabulousFallBounty #Sponsored

 This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the sponsors of #FabulousFallBounty.

I received complimentary product for the purpose of review and recipe development,
but all opinions are honest and they are my own. This page may contain affiliate links.

Here we are at the third day of our celebration of #FabulousFallBounty. You can read more about the event: here. And, once again, many thanks to our event sponsors: Silpat for a handy silicone mat; Le Creuset for a lovely serving platter; and Melissa's Produce for providing the bloggers with a beautiful box of goodies. My mind was aswirl with how to incorporate it all into some autumn-inspired dishes when I received this bounty of seasonal produce.

I knew that I wanted to showcase the dried guajillo chiles and pears in a fun mole sauce. After attending a mole cooking class last year, we've been experimenting with different variations. So, this isn't a traditional mole recipe per se, but the process is.

The Creations

An InLinkz Link-up

Guajillo-Pear Mole 

Ingredients makes 5 to 6 C of mole so you'll have lots and lots of leftovers for other dishes

Mole

• 6 to 8 T lard (preferably home-rendered)
• 2 to 4 C homemade chicken stock
• 6 oz dried guajillo chiles
• 2 oz dried cascabel chiles
• 3 T hazelnuts
• 2 T almonds
• 1 T sesame seeds
• 1/8 C dried pears
• 1/8 C dried prunes
• 1/8 C raisins
• sherry (enough to cover the dried fruits)
• 1 large or 2 medium onions
• 4 unpeeled garlic cloves
• 1 C diced tomatoes (I used canned tomatoes)
• 3 medium pears, cored and sliced (I used my Fiorlle pears from Melissa's)
• 1 plantain
• 1" cinnamon stick
• 1/2 t black peppercorns
• 2 cloves
• 1 t dried oregano
• salt to taste

Chicken

• 6 to 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed
• 1 t ground cinnamon
• freshly ground pepper
• freshly ground salt

Procedure

Mole

Bring your chicken stock to a boil, then hold it at a simmer. Slice your dried peppers lengthwise. Open them up and take out the seeds and the veins. Set the seeds aside. You can discard the stems and veins.

Cut the pears and prune to the size of the raisins and place them in a medium bowl. Pour sherry over the top of them until they are submerged, approximately 1/2 C. Set aside.

 

With tongs, hold peppers over an open flame until they blister and turn a lighter shade of brown. Place them in a large bowl and pour hot stock over the top. Every 10 to 15 minutes, turn the peppers or press them down so that they are submerged.

Melt 1 T lard in a skillet and toast the nuts. When they are all golden brown, approximately 5 to 7 minutes, place them in the bowl with the peppers. Toast the sesame seeds until they begin to pop. Place those in the bowl with the peppers, too.

Melt 1 T large in the skillet and toast the spices. I started with the cinnamon sticks and clove and ended with the oregano. Once toasted, place them in the bowl with the peppers, nuts, and seeds.

Melt 1 T lard in the same skillet and char the seeds from the peppers. You want these really, really burnt. Place the seeds in a large mason jar filled with ice water. Let stand for 30 minutes. Change the water and ice and let stand for another 30 minutes.

 

Melt 1 T large in the same skillet and fry thick slices of plantain until crisped and golden. Place those in the bowl with the peppers.

Cut onion, tomato, and pears into large chunks, Crush and mince the garlic. Melt 2 T lard in your skillet and cook onion, garlic, tomato, and pears until everything is softened and the onion turning translucent. Stir well to combine.

Combine all of the ingredients into one large bowl - the peppers, the sherry-soaked fruit, the fruit-tomato mixture, and the charred pepper seeds. Now you are ready to combine all of the elements and purée all the ingredients, using either a blender and food processor combination or a blender by itself. 

In batches, purée everything until smooth.

In a large, heavy saucepan or Dutch oven, heat the remaining lard over high heat until rippling. Add the purée, all at once, taking care to avoid splatters. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and cook, stirring frequently, for at least 30 minutes until the taste of the chiles has mellowed. Season to taste with salt. Set aside. The flavors will deepen and develop the longer you let the mole sit. I left mine to age for two days - in the fridge - before using.

Chicken

Mix garlic, cinnamon, salt, and pepper together in a small mixing bowl and rub that mixture into the skin side of the chicken. In a heavy skillet, heat olive oil. Place the skin side of chicken down and cook for 25 to 30 minutes.

Turn the chicken over - the skin will be browned and crisp - and cook on the second side for 25 to 30 minutes.

Because I didn't add any chocolate to my mole sauce, I served the chicken and mole over chocolate egg noodles!

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*Disclosure: I received product for free from the sponsor for recipe development, however, I have received no additional compensation for my post. My opinion is 100% my own and 100% accurate.