Maybe you brought back some great mole paste from your adventure in Oaxaca or Mexico City and want to relive those memories. Perhaps you created a labor-of-love pot of mole for a special occasion, and still have a couple of leftover cups stashed in your freezer. Weaving that mole into a chicken torta filling might just be the ticket. The crema, fresh cheese and white onion may sound like gilding on a perfectly beautiful lily, but they are so good, I say “gild away.”
Typically, a red mole–mole poblano, mole rojo, Oaxacan coloradito or the like–finds its way into a torta filling, so feel free to use any red mole you have.
INGREDIENTS
- 4 Mexican bolillos
- 1 or 2 tablespoons fresh-rendered pork lard or vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups red mole
- 4 cups (about 1 pound) coarsely shredded cooked chicken (a rotisserie chicken would be my suggestion)
- 1 cup crema
- 1 cup crumbled Mexican queso fresco or another garnishing cheese such as farmer’s cheese or dry goat cheese crumbles
- 1/2 a medium white onion, sliced thinly and rinsed
INSTRUCTIONS
Prepare the bread. Heat the oven to 375 F and warm the bread for about 5 minutes to re-crisp. Split each roll in half around the equators, then pull out some of the migas (the soft bread) from the middle of each roll’s bottom half
Make the bean puree. Scrape the beans into a blender or food processor, add the lard or oil and process until smooth. Taste and season with salt, if necessary.
Layer the Tortas. If using a mole paste, reconstitute it according to the package directions to yield 1 ½ cups of finished sauce that’s the consistency of a medium-thick cream soup. Heat your mole in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the coarsely shredded chicken, and cook until heated through. Smear a portion of the bean spread over the bottom of each roll, then scoop on a portion of the chicken in mole and spread it to cover the bread. Top with dollops of crema, followed by a generous sprinkling of queso fresco and white onions. You’re ready for a spectacular torta.
