Roasted Chicken with Medjool Date Mole Sauce

This flavourful chicken dish is easy enough to make for a weeknight family meal, but refined enough for a dinner party or date-night in.

View Instructions

Serves:

4 to 6

Prep Time:

Under 15 minutes

Cook Time:

60 minutes

Category:

Chicken | Mains

Introduction

About this Recipe

This flavourful chicken dish is easy enough to make for a weeknight family meal, but refined enough for a dinner party or date-night in. Ancho chili peppers offer flavour without much heat, and chipotle peppers add a smoky, spicy kick, moderated by the natural sweetness of Medjool dates. If you want increase or decrease the chili heat, change the amount of chipotle pepper you wish to add –the quantity in this recipe offers a medium heat level.

Ingredients

Medjool Date Mole Sauce:

2 dried ancho chili peppers
2 cups (500 mL) tinned diced tomatoes
2 small fresh corn tortillas (or 1 cup corn tortilla chips)
1 large cooking onion, peeled and diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
¾ cup (110 g) chopped, pitted Medjool dates
3 Tbsp (45 mL) chipotle peppers (chopped peppers and sauce combined)
2 Tbsp (30 mL) natural peanut butter
2 oz (60 g) bittersweet or unsweetened baking chocolate, chopped
Juice of 1 lime
2 ½ tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
Salt & pepper

Chicken & Serving:

1 3-4 lb (1.4-1.8 kg) whole chicken**
Cooked basmati rice, sour cream, chopped fresh coriander, lime wedges and extra corn tortillas, for serving

NOTES: The chicken can be purchased already cut into pieces, or you can break the chicken down into breast, leg and thigh portions, leaving the bones and skin on, and cutting each of the breast portions in half.

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

Step 2

For the mole sauce, pour boiling water on top of the ancho chilis in a bowl and let this sit until cooled to room temperature. Remove and discard the stems of the peppers. Add the peppers along with the remaining ingredients into a blender or food processor and purée until well combined (but the sauce does not need to be smooth). Season lightly with salt & pepper.

Step 3

Pour half of the sauce in the bottom of a large roasting pan. Arrange the chicken pieces over the sauce in a single layer and with the skin-side up. Season lightly and pour the remaining sauce overtop. Bake the chicken uncovered until the chicken is fully cooked, 45 to 60 minutes.

Serve the chicken and sauce over rice, with sour cream, coriander leaves and lime on the side, and use the corn tortillas to dip into the sauce.