Mole Coloradito: Oaxaca’s Sweet Red Mole

Quick Summary: The “little red” mole of Oaxaca, sweeter and more approachable than mole negro. Made with ancho chiles, chocolate, and warming spices, with a reddish-brown color and gentle sweetness. One of the more accessible of the seven Oaxacan moles, requiring fewer ingredients and less time. Traditional method developed with mi amiga. Prep: 45 min | Cook: 1 hour | Serves: 6-8

Jump to: What Is Mole Coloradito? | Ingredients | How to Make | Simplified Version | FAQ

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When mi amiga and I made this mole Coloradito together, her grandmother on the video call from Mexico seemed almost relieved we weren’t tackling mole negro again. “Coloradito es más fácil,” she said. Easier. Fewer ingredients, less charring, more forgiving.

Coloradito means “little red,” and this mole lives up to its name. It’s reddish-brown, sweeter than the other Oaxacan moles, and more approachable for home cooks attempting their first traditional mole.

The sweetness in coloradito comes from the ancho chiles themselves (which have dried-fruit notes) and from a small amount of chocolate and sugar. It’s not dessert-sweet, but noticeably sweeter than mole rojo or mole negro. Some families add plantain or raisins for additional sweetness.

This mole pairs beautifully with pork as well as chicken. The sweetness complements pork’s richness in a way the more bitter moles don’t.

What is Mole Coloradito?

“Coloradito” means “little red,” and it’s not hard to see where mole coloradito gets its name from! This deep red mole uses primarily ancho chiles, with some help on occasion from guajillos.

Mole coloradito uses plantains to create a thicker sauce, which also makes coloradito on the sweeter side.

Another ingredient that makes mole coloradito unique is the garlic. While many moles have some garlic, it is typically prevalent in higher amounts in mole coloradito.

Mole coloradito is one of the seven traditional moles of Oaxaca. These are its defining characteristics:

• Color: Reddish-brown, from ancho chiles and a touch of chocolate. Lighter than mole negro, redder than mole rojo.
• Sweetness: The sweetest of the savory Oaxacan moles. The sweetness comes from ancho chiles, chocolate, and sometimes added sugar or dried fruit.
• Accessibility: Fewer ingredients than mole negro or rojo. The technique is more forgiving. A good starting point for learning traditional mole-making.
• Texture: Smooth and velvety when properly blended and strained.

Coloradito is everyday food in Oaxaca, not just celebration food. It appears at family dinners, not just weddings.

Key Ingredients

• Ancho chiles: The star. Dried poblanos with sweet, fruity, slightly smoky flavor. They provide the color and much of the sweetness.
• Chocolate: Mexican chocolate or unsweetened chocolate with sugar. Less than in mole negro, but present.
• Nuts and seeds: Almonds and sesame seeds, toasted.
• Aromatics: Onion, garlic, tomatoes. Charred or roasted.
• Spices: Cinnamon, cloves, oregano, thyme, black pepper. Warming and aromatic.
• Plantain (optional): Ripe plantain, fried, adds sweetness and body. Traditional in some family recipes.
• Bread or tortilla: For thickening. Not burned black as in mole negro, just toasted.

The ingredients I chose for the mole Coloradito included:

• Chiles: ancho, guajillo
• Nuts or Seeds: pine nuts, almonds, peanuts, sesame seeds
• Sweetener: plantains, chocolate

How to Make Mole Coloradito

1. Toast and rehydrate chiles: Toast ancho chiles in a dry skillet until fragrant and pliable, about 2-3 minutes per side. Don’t char them black. Place in a bowl, cover with hot water, soak 20-30 minutes. Reserve soaking liquid.
2. Toast nuts and seeds: In a dry skillet, toast almonds and sesame seeds until golden. Set aside.
3. Roast aromatics: Broil or pan-roast onion, garlic, and tomatoes until softened and slightly charred. Not black, just blistered.
4. Fry plantain (optional): If using, fry ripe plantain slices in oil until golden on both sides.
5. Toast spices: Toast whole cinnamon, cloves, and peppercorns until fragrant. Grind to powder.
6. Blend: Combine rehydrated chiles (stemmed and seeded), roasted aromatics, toasted nuts, fried plantain, ground spices, and some chile soaking liquid in a blender. Blend until very smooth, adding more liquid as needed.
7. Strain: For the smoothest texture, pass through a fine-mesh strainer. This step is optional but traditional.
8. Fry the paste: Heat oil or lard in a large pot over medium heat. Add the blended mixture and fry, stirring constantly, for 10 minutes. It will darken slightly and become very fragrant.
9. Add liquid and chocolate: Add chicken broth to reach sauce consistency. Add Mexican chocolate (about 1-2 oz), broken into pieces. Stir until melted and incorporated.
10. Simmer: Cook on low for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add salt and a small amount of sugar if needed.
11. Finish: Add cooked chicken or pork and simmer in the sauce for 15 minutes before serving.

Simplified Version with Spice Blend

A mole spice blend that I developed for the farmers market works well for a quick coloradito, and I personally didn’t notice much of a loss in the deep flavor (but I did notice the time savings!). Here is the spice blend I developed. This is what was used in the quesadilla recipe below.

• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp cumin
• ½ tsp oregano
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 tsp chipotle powder
• 2 tsp cocoa powder
• ½ tsp annatto
• 2 tsp ancho powder
• ⅓ cup sesame seeds (toasted)
• ¼ tsp cloves
• ½ tsp anise
• 1 tsp serrano

Sauté onion and garlic. Add the spice blend and canned fire-roasted tomatoes. Add chicken broth, a tablespoon of almond butter (for the nut element), and Mexican chocolate. Simmer 20-30 minutes.

Adjust sweetness with a small amount of brown sugar if needed. The result won’t have the depth of traditional coloradito, but it captures the essential flavor profile.

Another quick preparation of mole Coloradito is to purchase a paste. I pick up a few when I was in Oaxaca and you can get most of these on Amazon.

So, you can choose between the traditional way of rehydrating dried chiles, use a ready-made paste, or go “semi-homemade” and simmer fresh ingredients with a spice blend.

Serving Suggestions

Coloradito pairs especially well with:

• Pork (the sweetness complements richness)
• Chicken thighs
• Turkey
• Eggs (for breakfast)
• Enchiladas (as the sauce)

Serve with warm corn tortillas, Mexican rice, and black beans. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and fresh cilantro.

Check out this collection of mole recipes, which covers moles made in traditional methods to modified easier versions.

FAQ

my recipe:Mole Coloradito Quesadillas

This “recipe” is so simple, it’s hard to even call it a recipe! I borrowed this ingenious idea from a friend who has a large outdoor comal (or cooktop, similar to this). He had a big batch of leftover mole coloradito and decided to try his hand at making these quesadillas. I’ve been recreating the food memory ever since!

To Make the mole coloradito:

• Broil the tomatoes and the onion on high for 5-8 minutes per side. Set aside to cool slightly. If using canned tomatoes, broil the onion alone until charred.
• To a food processor or blender, add the tomatoes, onion, garlic and a powdered enchilada spice blend or whole toasted chiles. If using whole chiles, stem and seed them and toast in a dry skillet for 30 seconds or so. Blend everything until smooth. Add a small amount of water (1/2 cup- 1 cup) and blend again if the sauce is too thick for you.

To make the quesadillas:

• Warm oil on the comal or in a frying pan.
• Using tongs or a long fork, dip a tortilla in the mole sauce. Add a slice of queso fresco and fold the tortilla over. Cook for 30 seconds or so on the hot comal or frying pan.
• Serve immediately with optional garnishes and repeat until the ingredients are gone!

4 tomatoes, roughly chopped or 1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes

1/4 medium onion

2- 4 cloves garlic, minced

2-4 Tbsp mole spice blend or 15 dried chiles, stems removed, seeded and lightly toasted

1-2 Tbsp olive or vegetable oil

Small tortillas

Queso fresco

Cilantro, chopped (optional, for serving)

White onion (optional, for serving)

Mexican crema (optional, for serving)