We’ve always thought that part of the appeal of mole poblano to American palates is the sweetness imparted by Mexican chocolate in the sauce. By that standard, manchamanteles should be an even bigger hit. This bright sauce always features chunks of pineapple and fried plantains. We’ve been curious to try making it since first tasting it in a restaurant years ago. Adapted from recipes by Rick Bayless, Zarela Martinez, and Diana Kennedy, this variant also adds sweet potato pieces to the stew. Some cooks make this classic Oaxacan mole with a dizzying array of chiles and dried fruits. We’ve opted for a streamlined version of this labor-intensive recipe.

In the interest of simplicity, we’ve specified lard as the cooking fat. Vegetable shortening is a perfectly acceptable substitute. You could probably also get away with palm oil. In any case, you want a semi-solid fat that really coats the pan and stands up to repeated heating in a way most lighter vegetable oils do not. The abundant fat gives the sauce its name, which translates as ‶tablecloth-stainer.″

Technically, this is a recipe for manchamanteles de cerdo, that is, with pork. In Mexico, this mole is usually part of a buffet table and includes chicken parts as well as the pork cubes. We’ve seen a lot of variations by American bloggers that cook the sauce and then pour it over poached chicken breasts or steamed shrimp. As the French say, à chacun son goût (there’s no accounting for taste). We think that simmering the meat in the sauce imparts an essential meat flavor. There’s no way around it—this is a heavy, somewhat greasy dish that will spatter your kitchen with fat. Just be sure to turn on the exhaust fan and clean up the spatters right away. The taste is worth all the trouble.

MANCHAMANTELES DE CERDO

INGREDIENTS

2 medium sweet potatoes
6 ancho chile peppers
1/4 cup lard, divided
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, peeled and cut in half
2 pounds lean pork, cut in 1 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup diced fresh or canned tomato
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut in 1-inch cubes
1 ripe plantain, quartered lengthwise and cubed
1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
2 tablespoons sugar

DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 350°F. Place sweet potatoes on baking sheet and roast until knife can be easily inserted (about 40 minutes). Remove from oven to cool. Peel and cut in 1 1/2-inch cubes. Reserve,

Trim ancho chiles to remove stem and seeds. Open chiles lengthwise and remove some of the veins unless you like a very hot dish. Toast the halves quickly on a hot griddle, turning to prevent burning. Place in heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Weigh the chiles down with a plate if necessary to keep them submerged. Soak for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, heat half the lard in a chicken fryer (half-height Dutch oven) over medium heat and fry onion until soft (about 5 minutes). Add garlic and continue cooking until onion begins to brown—roughly another 5 minutes. Remove from pan, draining the fat back into the pan, and place onion-garlic mix in blender jar.

Blot pork cubes with paper towels until they are quite dry. Raise heat under pan to medium-high. Adding more fat as needed, brown pork cubes in a single layer at a time. Allow up to 3 minutes per face of the cubes. Set aside. Do NOT clean skillet.

Remove chiles from soaking water and add to blender. Add tomato, cloves, cinnamon, and black pepper. Blend, adding up to a cup of soaking water to produce a smooth but thick purée. Strain through a medium sieve and discard any pulp left behind.

Bring chicken fryer back to heat over medium-high flame and add remaining fat. When hot, add the chile purée all at once. (Warning: It will spatter wildly.) Fry purée, stirring constantly, until it darkens and thickens (4-6 minutes). Be sure to scrape up any bits that might have stuck to the pan earlier.

Add chicken broth and vinegar to chicken fryer and stir well to combine with purée. Add pork cubes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about an hour.

While sauce and meat are simmering, prepare the fruit and vegetables. In a separate frying pan, heat the oil and fry the plantain and pineapple pieces until browned. Reserve. Add the sweet potato cubes and brown. Remove from pan and reserve half half the browned sweet potatoes with plantains and pineapple. Place remainder in blender jar and blend with a half cup or so of the chile sauce. Reserve.

When pork is tender (after the hour of simmering), add the plantain, pineapple, and sweet potato cubes to the sauce. Simmer another 15 minutes. Stir in the sweet potato purée and cook 5 minutes as sauce thickens further. Add salt and sugar and continue cooking a few minutes until well combined.

Serve with warm tortillas.