Tania Tovar loves pork tacos as much a good pani puri. The Mexican chef is visiting India for the second time and is carrying with her a generous stash of spicy arbol chillies in her suitcase. These will be used in her food festival, Gusto Mexicana, in collaboration with The Park Chennai, which promises vibrant flavours, like the one in this recipe below.
Lamb in mole sauce
For the lamb marination:
Lamb chops – 4 or 160 gms | Onion – 30 gms | Garlic – 15 gms | Salt – to taste | Hoja santa (Mexican herb)/ coriander – 15 gms | Cumin powder – 5 gms | Bay leaves - 4 to 5
For mole:
Ancho chili - 5 | Guajillo chili - 2 pieces | cascabel chili, or rattle chili - 2 pieces | Tomatoes - 10, chopped | Green tomato – 5, chopped | Oil | White bread - 4 slices | Cinnamon stick - 1 | Cloves - 4 to 5 | Whole peppercorns - 4 to 5 | Fresh thyme - 1 sprig | Cumin - 1 pinch | White sesame seeds - 1/2 cup | Peanuts - 1/2 cup shelled | Almonds - 1/2 cup blanched and de-skinned | Raisins - 1/2 cup | Plantain or raw banana - 1 chopped | Walnuts - 1/2 cup, roasted | Onion – 1 small onion roasted until black | Garlic – 1 small roasted until black | Corn tortilla – 3 | Dark chocolate – 100 gm | Lamb stock – 2 litres
For the lamb:
● Purée the onion, garlic, salt, hoja santa/ coriander, cumin powder and bay leaves.
● Marinate the lamb chops with this paste. Keep it aside for two hours.
For the mole:
● Toast ancho, guajillo, and cascabel chillies in a heavy skillet until skins are burnt and set them aside.
● Place tomatoes and green tomatoes in a tray and bake them until they are pretty toasted and set them aside.
● In a large saucepan, heat oil over a low flame.
● Cut the pour slices of white bread, into pieces and fry in the oil until golden brown.
● Add cinnamon stick, cloves, peppercorns, thyme, cumin, sesame seeds, peanuts, almonds, raisins, plantains and walnuts.
● Stir ingredients together. Add more oil, to coat ingredients lightly.
● Add chopped roasted onion and minced roasted garlic.
● Continue to fry over low flame for about 20 minutes. Add the tomato mixture. Remove from heat and
set aside.
● Place corn tortilla over open flame and cook until burnt and crispy.
Set aside.
● Blend everything together in different batches until you get a smooth paste. Use lamb stock if necessary.
● Bring the blended paste to a large pot. Add chocolate and cook until melted over a low flame.
● Add the rest of lamb stock as necessary to obtain a smooth sauce. Stir constantly.
● Add more of the lamb stock until you achieve the level of consistency that you like.
Attend a masterclass on March 7. Festival ongoing at Six ‘O’ One till March 14.