Chichilo is perhaps the most unorthodox of Oaxaca’s seven classic moles. Thickened with corn masa, it lacks the fatty richness of seeds or nuts. Nor does it boast the sweet and round flavors of the tomatoes, tomatillos, raisins, or plantains found in other moles. The simplicity of chichilo is very similar to a Texas all-meat chili con carne. It consists primarily of meat stewed in a sauce of puréed chile peppers.

But chichilo is also one of the Oaxacan ‶burnt″ dishes that get part of their flavor from charred ingredients. Some of those recipes call for blackened onions, fire-roasted tomatoes, or even fire-roasted green chiles with the charred flesh left on. This version of chichilo, adapted from Zarela Martinez‘s seminal The Food and Life of Oaxaca, uses burnt tortillas as a thickener. The unpleasant smell of the char cooks away as the burned tortillas impart a distinctive character to the mole. This is a rather austere mole and not to everyone’s taste. It’s frankly our least favorite among the classics, even after tinkering with the recipe to reflect our palates. But we’re posting it to complete our journey through the canon of Oaxacan moles.

The traditional version of this dish incorporates equal amounts of pork and beef cubes, so feel free to mix and match to your taste. It’s also sometimes served with thimble-sized masa dumplings called chochoyotes. We haven’t mastered making them, but we get much the same effect by serving the stew with wedges of fresh cornbread. We’ve given our house recipe at the end.

CHICHILO CON CARNE (BURNT MOLE WITH BEEF)

6 servings

INGREDIENTS

6 cloves garlic, unpeeled
medium onion, unpeeled and quartered
2 pounds beef round cut in 3/4-inch cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
3 dried pasilla chiles
3 dried mulato chiles
4 dried guajillo chiles
3 corn tortillas
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon crumbled Mexican oregano
10 dried avocado leaves
1/2 cup masa harina mixed with 1 cup warm water

DIRECTIONS

Place 2 unpeeled cloves of garlic and quartered onion in a 4-5 quart pot or Dutch oven. Add beef cubes, salt, and pinch of ground black pepper. Add 9 cups cold water. Bring to boil over high heat, skimming off foam. Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove meat and set aside. Simmer remainder of stock another 15 minutes and strain, leaving a little less than 8 cups of beef stock. Clean pot and refill with stock. Reserve 1 1/2 cups stock.

Break up the chile peppers, removing seeds and veins. Toast lightly on a griddle. Place tortillas on broiling pan and heat under broiler until very brown or even charred. (Try not to set them on fire….) Place tortillas and chiles in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain, discarding the liquid. The solids may look unpleasant, but they will taste good. Place in blender jar. Peel 4 garlic cloves and add to jar. Add 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, ground cloves, and Mexican oregano to blender jar.

Lightly toast avocado leaves on a griddle until fragrant and lightly browned—about 10-15 seconds. Reserve four leaves and add remainder to blender jar with reserved 1 1/2 cups of beef stock. Blend, stopping often to push down the purée.

Return beef stock to stove and bring to a simmer. Press the puréed mixture in blender jar through a medium sieve into simmering stock. Check seasoning and add more salt if needed. Add reserved avocado leaves.

Adjust the masa harina and water mixture to texture of pancake batter by adding more water or more masa harina as needed. Whisk in a cup of simmering broth, a little at a time, until completely incorporated. Then whisk the mixture into the stock, stirring constantly. Stock should thicken to the texture of heavy cream. Add the beef cubes and simmer with the pot lid slightly askew for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep mixture from sticking.

Serve in bowls with wedges of cornbread.

CORNBREAD

INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 cups stone ground cornmeal
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
3 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS

Mix wet ingredients in a medium bowl, dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Melt butter in 9-inch cast-iron pan. Fold into batter.

Scrape batter into the frying pan. Smooth. Bake at 425ºF until lightly browned on top and toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean (20-25 minutes).