Mexican · Authentic-ish Mexican
Mole Poblano
425 kcal a serving, against 598 for the traditional version. That is 173 kcal off, or 29%, with 51.9g of protein. Serves 8. 1 hour.
What the traditional version is
Whole chicken thighs simmered in a dark, complex sauce. The base is made by deep-frying dried chillies, almonds, peanuts, sesame seeds and stale white bread in copious amounts of pork lard. This fried mixture is pureed, fried again in more lard, then thinned with chicken stock and finished with dark chocolate.
What changed, and what each change costs
1600g of chicken thigh and 100g of lard swapped for 1600g of chicken breast and zero lard
Lard is pure animal fat, and chicken thighs bring plenty of their own fat to the pot. Dropping the lard and switching to lean breast meat strips thousands of calories from the pan while keeping the bulk of the meal intact.
What it costs you. You lose the glossy slick of fat that sits on top of a real mole. Chicken breast is also unforgiving. If you overcook it, it turns to chalk. It's the first compromise you'll notice when you bite into the meat.
100g of white bread swapped for 50g of corn tortillas
Fried white bread acts as a sponge for lard and adds heavy starch. A small amount of dry-toasted corn tortilla provides enough body to stop the sauce splitting, without the massive energy load.
What it costs you. The sauce loses its velvet texture. It will be noticeably thinner and slightly rougher on the tongue than the traditional version.
50g of almonds, 50g of peanuts and 60g of seeds reduced to 30g of almonds, 30g of peanuts and 20g of sesame seeds
Nuts and seeds are incredibly dense in fat. Halving the quantities leaves enough to provide the essential nutty background notes without dragging the energy load back up.
What it costs you. You miss out on the deep, roasted nuttiness that defines a true mole. The chocolate and chillies dominate the plate instead.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 598 | 425 |
| Protein | 48.1g | 51.9g |
| Fat | 33.6g | 14.4g |
| Saturated fat | 9.6g | 3.2g |
| Carbohydrate | 26.4g | 21.1g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 8g | 12.2g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Mexican prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. milk, nuts, peanuts, sesame.
The method is in the book
This is a brilliant pot of food, but This is a sharp, lean weeknight dinner. Nobody is going to mistake it for a celebratory Oaxacan masterpiece. You're trading the dripping decadence of a lard-heavy sauce for a thinner stew you can actually eat on a Tuesday without feeling heavily sedated afterwards. The dry-toasted spices and chillies still deliver a massive punch of flavour.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Mexican, along with 56 more. Buy the paperback