Chicken with Banana-Basil Mole
My old friend David Garrido, a supremely talented chef, came up with a fresh take on mole that combines guajillo chiles with fresh basil, bananas, and dates to create a lively, fruit-sweetened sauce that marries beautifully with chicken. I love this dish for a relaxed but elegant dinner party at home. Skinny bi***es take note: the dish contains little fat, lots of flavor.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 8
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
TO MAKE THE BANANA-BASIL GARNISH: Peel 1 banana half and cut the fresh into small dice. Mince 4 of the basil leaves; combine the minced basil and diced banana with 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Set aside.
Step 2
TO COOK THE CHICKEN: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Season the chicken breasts with salt. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over high heat. In batches, cooking only as many as will fit in the skillet at once without crowding, sear the chicken until light brown, 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Transfer the breasts to a large baking dish in a single layer. Bake, uncovered, until cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes.
Step 3
TO MAKE THE MOLE: Meanwhile, in the same skillet set on medium heat, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and cook the garlic and onion until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Peel and coarsely chop the remaining banana half and mince the remaining 6 basil leaves; add to the onion mixture along with the guajillos, dates, the remaining tablespoon of lemon juice, and the chicken stock. Cook for 4 to 6 minutes. Use tongs to remove the softened guajillos (see Tip). Pour the remainder of the mixture into the jar of a blender and puree until smooth. Season with salt.
Step 4
To serve, place a generous amount of banana mole on each plate and place 1 chicken breast on the sauce. To garnish, top each chicken breast with a spoonful of banana-basil garnish.
tip
Step 5
Guajillos are slim dried chiles with a red-brown cast and a famously tough skin. They can be quite hot. Unless you are a heat-loving fiend, remove them from the mole sauce before pureeing it as directed above. Just by simmering in the sauce they lend enough heat to satisfy most American palates. If, after tasting the sauce, you crave additional heat, puree the guajillos separately in the blender, adding a couple of tablespoons of chicken stock, and pass the mixture though a sieve before combining with the mole sauce. Don’t skip the straining, as the tough skin of these chiles won’t process to a fully smooth puree.
