Mole Mole

Raise your hand (or just wiggle your mouse) if you’ve ever felt totally uninspired staring at the package of raw chicken in your fridge. You want to make something new and creative, but you don’t want to spend a bunch of time or money doing it—and you really don’t want to have to make a last minute run to the grocery store.

If you’ve ever found yourself in that situation, these recipes are perfect. It’s likely that you already have everything in your cabinet that you need to make the chicken (it’s just some sugar and spice after all, but with a sweet and savory, mole-inspired twist). And, if you can think enough in advance to grab a bell pepper and a jalapeno when you’re at the grocery over the weekend, you probably have everything you need to make the delicious corn relish too (don’t worry about the cilantro if that’s not one of your herb staples—you can swap it for parsley or just leave it out). Mix it all together, everything cooks in under 10 minutes and—presto!—dinner is served.

Side Bar: Incidentally, the chicken and corn relish make awesome leftovers when the chicken is sliced up and thrown into a warm flour tortilla with the relish and a little queso fresco.

Mole-Rubbed Chicken
Serves 4

vegetable oil
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 ½ tsp. chipotle chili powder
1 ½ tsp. garlic powder
1 ½ tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
½ tsp. cinnamon
sea salt and black pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Lightly grease an indoor grill pan with the vegetable oil. Heat to medium-high.

In a shallow bowl, stir together the next 6 ingredients. Add the chicken and turn to coat, pressing the mixture into the meat.

Grill the chicken for 5-6 minutes per side, or until cooked through. Transfer to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes. Spoon corn relish over each piece and serve immediately.

Corn Relish
Makes approx. 2 cups

1 tbsp. butter
½ white onion, thinly sliced
1 c. corn kernels, fresh or frozen (thaw completely if using frozen)
½ red bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeno (ribs and seeds removed), minced
sea salt and black pepper
3 tbsp. fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté 2-3 minutes. Add the corn, bell pepper, jalapeno and sauté until the veggies are just tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and stir in the cilantro.