Search Angie's Recipes


Crispy Pork Belly with Basic Mole


© 2022 | http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com




© 2022 | http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com


Earthy, intense and rich Mole (pronounced moh-leh) is most representative of Mexican cuisine. The word Mole derives from the language of the Aztecs, molli (or mulli), which just means “sauce,” Mole is generally a thick, dense sauce, ranging from red to green to black, and should never be runny. There are hundreds of variations of mole in Mexico, depending on where you are and the season.
This basic (not exactly authentic, but delicious all the same) mole sauce is made by toasting and combining some dried chillies (guajillo chillies, Kashmiri red chillies, ancho chillies) spices (cinnamon, anise, coriander, cayenne, cardamom), dark chocolate, herbs (oregano, thyme and cilantro), thickeners (old bread, nuts or/and seeds) and homemade broth. Serve it as a main course with savoury, rich, crunchy pork belly, melt-in-mouth pulled pork and juicy, tender chicken or spoon over tacos and enchiladas. Once you’ve made the sauce, you can use it for practically anything. Pork belly is a staple at our dinner table and paired with the rich, complex mole sauce is literally heaven on earth.

Pork BellyBasic Mole
  • 750 g-900 g Pork Belly
  • 1 Star anise
  • 1/2 tsp Coriander seeds
  • 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
  • 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns
  • 1/3 tsp Szechuan peppercorns, optional
  • 10 cm / piece Ginger root, sliced
  • 2 Garlic cloves
  • Black salt to taste
  • 1 L Water
  • 8 Dried Kashmiri red chillies, , stemmed and seeded
  • 10 Dried Guajillo chilies, stemmed and seeded
  • 4 Dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
  • 150 g Unsalted roasted peanuts
  • 30 g Pumpkin seeds
  • 1 Hard roll, torn into smaller pieces
  • 1/3 tsp Powdered cloves
  • 1/3 tsp Cardamom powder
  • 1/3 tsp Freshly milled black pepper
  • 1 tsp Coriander powder
  • 1 tsp Cumin powder
  • 1/2 tsp Anise powder
  • 1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp Cinnamon powder
  • 3 tbsp Ghee, butter or lard
  • 1 Shallot, diced
  • 5 Garlic cloves, soaked in honey, crushed
  • 50 g Raisins
  • 1 tsp Dried thyme
  • 1 tsp Dried oregano
  • 1-3 tbsp Garlic-infused honey
  • 70 g Dark chocolate, chopped
  • Salted, roasted peanuts, crushed for garnish
  • Cilantro, chopped for garnish
  1. Place the pork belly in your slow cooker, add in spices, and salt. Fill the slow cooker with water. Cook for 3-4 hours on high. The pork belly should be tender, soft, but not fallapart. Remove the pork belly to a tray or plate and cool completely. I usually leave it in the fridge, uncovered, overnight, so the skin dries up. Reserve the broth.
  2. Poke lots of little holes on the pork belly and cut into 4 squares or any desired sized pieces. Season with more salt and pepper. Place them in the basket of your air fryer and cook for 15 minutes at 180C/350F. Increase the temperature to 200C/400F and cook for a further 3 minutes until the pork skin is golden, crispy and puffed up.
  3. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Place all the dried chillies to the aluminum foil–lined baking tray and toast, turning once, until dark and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Place peanuts, pumpkin seeds, bread pieces, and spices in another tray and set it at the bottom of the oven.
  4. Meanwhile, fill a medium saucepan with 500 ml of reserved broth. Set the saucepan over low heat. Transfer toasted chillies to the saucepan with broth. Remove another tray with peanuts, bread and spices and add all the ingredients to the saucepan too.
  5. Heat the ghee, butter or lard in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add in chopped shallot and stirfry for a couple of minutes. Add in crushed garlic cloves and fry for just a few seconds. Stir in raisins and herbs. Transfer the whole mixture together with the honey to the saucepan too. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil and remove from heat. Purée the mixture using a stick blender to make a smooth thick mole.
  6. Transfer the mole to a large skillet. Add in dark chocolate and enough of broth to allow the mixture to blend. Process until completely smooth.
  7. Cook the mole sauce over low heat for 10 minutes until it thickens, stirring frequently. Add in more garlic honey and/or broth as needed.
  8. Spoon some mole sauce on serving plates, arrange crispy pork belly over mole sauce and garnish with crushed peanuts and chopped cilantro.

© 2022 | http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com





© 2022 | http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com



© 2022 | http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com


44 comments:

Brian's Home Blog 15/5/22 00:18

That sounds really good. You had me scared for a moment, over here a mole is a yard rodent LOL!

[Reply]
Tom 15/5/22 01:32

...this is something that I've never had.

[Reply]
Happy Retiree's Kitchen 15/5/22 01:51

Wow this looks sensational. I've never eaten mole with pork belly, Definitely worth a try. Yours photos are amazing as usual.

[Reply]
J.P. Alexander 15/5/22 02:08

Gracias por la receta me gusta mucho la panceta. Te mando un beso

[Reply]
Balvinder 15/5/22 02:33

Oh, that mole sauce looks so good, Angie! Perfect for so many other meats.

[Reply]
Mbul Kecil 15/5/22 03:40

Thank you Angie for knowledge about sauce in Aztec that called mole, mulli or molli. Your presentation dish as always looks so good and exquisite precition. While i don't eat pork. Have a nice day Angie ^^

[Reply]
Margaret D 15/5/22 07:07

A lot of ingredients in the mole but I bet it does taste good.

[Reply]
Lola Martínez 15/5/22 08:31

En casa no somos nada de especias, tampoco de panceta, me temo que esta receta no tendría mucho éxito, pero el aspecto que presenta es de buena mesa.
Bss

[Reply]
Anonymous 15/5/22 12:32

What a complex sauce, so many different spices, it is like an adventure for your palate.

[Reply]
DEZMOND 15/5/22 13:23

That is what I don't like about Mexican and Indian food, they put in so much spice and seasonings that you don't taste the original piece of grocery being prepared. I don't eat anything that has more than five ingredients.

[Reply]
Muriel 15/5/22 13:55

Cette sauce a l'air terriblement appétissante et doit savoureusement ce morceau de porc. Bonne journée

[Reply]
Whats Cookin Italian Style Cuisine 15/5/22 17:03

what an interesting dish, I usually make bacon with belly this is very intriguing

[Reply]
Kitchen Riffs 15/5/22 17:27

I love pork belly! Haven't paired it with mole, though. What a brilliant idea! Must. Try. This. :-) Thanks!

[Reply]
My name is Erika. 15/5/22 23:14

This sounds delicious. I've never made a mole but it sounds like it would fun to give it a try. Happy new week Angie. hugs-Erika

[Reply]
foodtravelandwine 16/5/22 04:21

This is spectacular!!,.....something to try...I love the idea of Mole with Kashmiri chillies....East meets the West!!........Abrazotes, Marcela

[Reply]
Gingi 16/5/22 06:46

Ohhh, pork belly is so yummy!! I really do wish I could taste these lovely dishes you make! - http://www.domesticgeekgirl.com

[Reply]
speedy70 16/5/22 09:18

Molto gustosa questa pancetta, ottima!!!

[Reply]
Veronica Lee 16/5/22 09:18

I've never made a mole before but your pork belly dish sounds delish.

Happy Monday, Angie!

[Reply]
Królowa Karo 16/5/22 09:35

I'm very curious about this taste.

[Reply]
Marianela Beauty Tips 16/5/22 12:10

It looks delicious. Thanks for sharing.
I invite you to visit my last post. Have a good week!

[Reply]
rodzinatestuje 16/5/22 12:41

It looks really delicious :)

[Reply]
Anonymous 16/5/22 14:13

This is really wonderful! When we were in London I had pork belly and it was such a delight! If I get some I have to eat it all myself, so it was perfect at a restaurant. I love what you did with the spices and mole. Superb.

[Reply]
DeniseinVA 16/5/22 15:20

We had pork belly two days ago. I would enjoy trying this dish Angie. Thank you so much for sharing another delicious recipe :)

[Reply]
Amy (Savory Moments) 16/5/22 20:18

I absolutely love mole and this looks delicious!

[Reply]
Javier 17/5/22 08:59

Looks delicious! Great job and recipe! Mole sauce looks so good

[Reply]
Anonymous 17/5/22 13:18

It's Judee- The mole sauce looks really flavorful and delicious and I can think of so many ways to use ti. I love your presentation- so inviting.

[Reply]
Ben | Havocinthekitchen 17/5/22 13:39

What a long list of ingredients - WOW! lol This dish sounds ultra aromatic and tasty and it looks terrific - really restaurant-worth presentation!

[Reply]
Nancy Chan 17/5/22 13:54

Thanks for elaborating on the "mole" sauce. The dish looks mouth-watering.

[Reply]
savorthebest 17/5/22 15:00

Two amazing flavors! Great combination, Angie

[Reply]
Federica Simoni 17/5/22 15:40

che bel piatto interessante!

[Reply]
Lowcarb team member 17/5/22 18:04

An interesting read and recipe.
Many thanks for sharing.

All the best Jan

[Reply]
Pam 17/5/22 19:36

Wow! Delicious. I've never attempted a mole before but this makes me want to try it! Well done, Angie.

[Reply]
Cooking Julia 17/5/22 22:57

This dish looks very good and filling!

[Reply]
Rose world 18/5/22 11:46

Heard of mole sauce watched in food channel. Never tasted it though. Your pork belly sure looked delish!!

[Reply]
David 18/5/22 20:26

Angie, That is a lot of ingredients! However, we'd give it a try based on the fact that you had us at "pork belly". Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

[Reply]
Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake 18/5/22 21:28

What an elegant, gourmet pairing! A delicious way to serve pork belly!!

[Reply]
Yvonne @ Fiction Books Reviews 19/5/22 11:30

Not a recipe for me as it stands, because I don't like belly pork. However, I had to take a closer look to find out what 'mole' is and that is definitely a recipe I am interested in trying. I do like a good thick sauce or soup and can't stand thin and runny stuff! :)

[Reply]
Raymund 19/5/22 23:57

Ohh that Pork Belly specially that skin looks delicious

[Reply]
bread&salt 21/5/22 15:27

Looks a spicy dish. I would like to try it with beef meat.

[Reply]
thepaintedapron.com 21/5/22 16:04

Pork belly and mole, wow, what an amazing combo!

[Reply]
mjskit 22/5/22 01:23

I've had mole on a lot of things, but never pork belly. This does look delicious! You mole looks so rich and the flavor has to be amazing after going the list of ingredients. In seeing this I can see how pork belly and mole would work great together. Very creative Angie!

[Reply]
The-FoodTrotter 22/5/22 20:10

OMG this recipe is definitely bursting with flavours! I absolutely need to try ASAP :)

[Reply]


As always, any thoughts, comments, and suggestions that you may have are welcome and greatly appreciated. Please remember to use the "Name/Url" when commenting rather than linking to your profile page for more exposure!

Add to Google

Angie

Angie's Recipes

Angie's Recipes is an interactive blog dedicated to sharing yummy & creative recipes, helpful cooking hints and tips. Enjoy your visit and spread the word!


If you enjoy my recipes and want to support me, THANKS!

Friends

Join Us

angiesrecipes
skip to top

skip to top