The renowned Oaxacan restaurant Guelaguetza’s website says it all: ilovemole.com. In honor of the Mexican holiday Día de los Muertos, which is often celebrated with a dinner of mole, co-owner Bricia Lopez will teach us how to make the restaurant’s famous Estofado de Pollo (chicken in mole estofado), a dish featured in the restaurant’s 2019 cookbook, Oaxaca: Home Cooking from the Heart of Mexico. Ingredients list will be sent upon RSVP. Come with supplies prepared and ready to cook! 

Bricia Lopez is an entrepreneur, cultural ambassador, and key figure in LA’s gastronomic world. Her family’s restaurant, which won the James Beard Foundation Award, helped put Oaxacan cuisine and culture at the forefront of today’s dynamic culinary scene. Bricia lives in LA with her husband and son, and travels frequently to Oaxaca.

Global Cuisine Cooking Lessons:  Variety is the spice of life. Learn how LA’s favorite international restaurants cook up their most famous, easy-to-make dishes in live cooking classes led by their chefs on Zoom. When food is your love language, some secrets are too good not to share.

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PREP INSTRUCTIONS + INGREDIENTS
Estofado de Pollo (Chicken in Mole Estofado)

This is the mole that my mother has made the most throughout our life. I have many memories of asking her to make this dish for my birthday growing up. I would say that it is probably my favorite of them all. It was also the first mole that I learned how to cook, since it is the most approachable and easiest to make. The dish’s briny, bright flavors are quite different from many other moles because there aren’t any dried chiles involved. The main flavor comes from pickled jalapeños and olives, so try to get the highest quality of those two ingredients available. To bump it up a notch, substitute cooked cow’s tongue for the chicken. – Bricia Lopez, Oaxaca: Home Cooking from the Heart of Mexico (Buy the cookbook here! tinyurl.com/heartofmexico)

Equipment Needed
Stove top
Oven with Broiler
Cutting Board
Knife
Stockpot
Strainer
Bowl for 3c reserved broth
Baking sheet
Dutch Oven or large skillet
Slotted spoon
Comal or griddle or cast-iron skillet
Molcajete or spice grinder
Pot
Spatula
Blender
Food processor

All ingredients should be prepared in advance. Ie: if the ingredients call for 1 cup coarsely grated carrots, prepare 1 cup coarsely grated carrots before joining the Zoom class. If you wait to prepare until we go live you may fall behind!

Ingredients (Serves 4-6)
1 whole chicken (about 2 pounds/1 kg), butchered into eight pieces
1 small white onion (about 100g), peeled and halved then smashed
3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed plus 10 cloves, peeled
¼ c vegetable oil
¼ c chopped white onion
¾ c whole almonds, shelled
½ c sesame seeds
1 ½ c raisins
10 cloves garlic, peeled.
½ cinnamon stick
5 ¾ c chopped tomatoes
6 tomatillos, husked and rinsed
½ c dried oregano
¼ c dried thyme
4 sprigs fresh parsley
12 black peppercorns
3 whole cloves
½ c sugar
½ c vegetable oil
1 small can (7 oz) sliced jalapeños in escabeche, drained
Sea salt
Water

OPTIONAL: cooked rice

***PREPARE IN ADVANCE (~60 min)
1. Place the chicken, 3 cloves smashes garlic, and smashed onion in a stockpot filled with salted water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat to a simmer, cover, and let cook over medium heat until the chicken is tender and fully cooked. Remove the chicken from the broth to cool. Strain the stock and reserve 3 cups (720 ml).

2. Preheat your oven’s broiler to its highest setting right before you begin the lesson.

Note: Bricia and her family also jar their proprietary mole paste, which you can find on their online shop – store.ilovemole.com/ – and can help make mole in just a few minutes. She always recommends to have a great ‘mole from scratch’ recipe on hand but loves to offer this as an excellent alternative.
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