Ayocotes in Mole Purépecha

heirloom beans in red mole sauce in a clay bowl on a blue background

Ayocotes in Mole Purépecha

Heirloom beans, ayocotes, are cooked in a rich red mole sauce. It is truly a quintessential part of a traditional plant-based diet that is packed with nutrition, history, and incredible flavor!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Diet Vegan

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 2

Total Time 2 20

Servings servings (12 servings of mole)

Calories 697kcal

Author Dora S.

Ingredients

For the ayocotes:

1 lb. + dried ayocotes (soaked overnight) (500g)
¼ large white onion
3-4 large garlic cloves
2 dried avocado leaves replace with dried bay leaves or epazote leaves
1 ½ tbsp. coarse sea salt
1 tsp. tequesquite rocks optional

For the mole:

8 chile guajillo dried, seeds and stems removed
4 chile negro also called chile pasilla, dried, seeds and stems removed
4 chile mulato replace with chile ancho, dried, seeds and stems removed
6-8 chile de árbol dried, seeds and stems removed
⅓ cup raw whole almonds (50 g)
⅓ cup raw shelled pumpkin seeds (50 g)
⅓ cup raw white sesame seeds (50 g)
⅓ cup raw shelled peanuts (50 g)
½ tsp. thyme, dried
½ tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. oregano, dried
4 large allspice berries
4 large whole cloves
6 black peppercorns
1 Ceylon cinnamon stick about 4-5 inches in length
1 medium white onion
3-4 large garlic cloves
4-6 corn tortillas, fresh or premade work fine
¾ cup raisins (100g)
2 tbsp. avocado oil

Garnish:

½ cup diced white onion
¼ cup chopped cilantro
½ cup diced tomatoes
¼ cup minced serrano or jalapeno peppers

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

To prepare the ayocotes:

In a small cup, mix the tequesquite rocks with a small amount of water letting it soak for a few minutes while we prepare the rest of the ingredients.
In a large cooking pot, throw in the soaked beans with onion, garlic cloves, avocado leaves, and salt (with the exception of the tequesquite we have soaking), filling the pot with enough water to completely submerge everything with an additional 2-3 inches of water above the bean level.
Add in the tequesquite water being careful as to get as little of the sediment of the rocks as possible, stir, cover the pot with its lid, and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. (You can also do this in the instant pot at high pressure for 35 min.)
Once boiling, reduce to a medium-low flame and let cook for 1 ½ - 2 hours or until beans are fully cooked from the inside, turn off flame, remove onion, avocado leaves, and garlic and set aside meanwhile we prepare the mole paste.

To prepare the mole paste:

Fill a large bowl (heat proof) with warm water. We are going to use this to soak the ingredients once we have finished toasting them in order to soften them up and make it easier to blend in a food processor/blender.
In a large skillet or saucepan over high heat, we are going to toast the ingredients in groups as listed in the order above. Start with the chiles, toasting them for about 20-30 seconds or until fragrant and slightly charred, being careful not to burn them as this will impart a bitter flavor to the mole. Once toasted, place into the bowl of water to soak.
Toast the nuts and seeds until fragrant, being careful not to get the sesame seeds everywhere as they will pop during toasting. Once toasted place into the bowl of water.
The spices will need the most amount of attention as they can burn the fastest; they should only be toasted for a few seconds and then placed into the water bowl.
The final group of ingredients will take the longest because we want to get a really nice char on the onions and garlic while drying out the tortillas. Once completed place into the water bowl.
Once everything is done being toasted and has been soaking in the water (for about 10 minutes), we are going to fish out the ingredients with a large slotted spoon, working in small batches, placing them into a food processor/high-speed blender adding in enough water to completely process everything into a paste. The paste should be the consistency of tomato paste. Set paste aside.

Combining everything together:

In a pot or deep saucepan over medium-heat, warm up the avocado oil and add in two cups of the prepared mole paste.
Cook the paste until it starts to boil, consistently stirring to prevent it from sticking to the bottom.
Once boiling, add in the pot of cooked ayocotes with its broth, stirring until fully combined and adding in additional water or veggie broth to thin it out if necessary. I like mine on the thinner side
Cook this mixture for an additional 5 minutes until it is brought back up to a boil, salt to taste.
Serve into bowls and top with diced onions, cilantro, tomatoes, and/or fresh serrano or jalapeno peppers.

Notes

If you can’t find tequesquite you can just omit it. You can find ayocote beans at Rancho Gordo in different color varieties. Be sure to use Ceylon cinnamon, since it blends easier than other varieties. This recipe makes enough mole paste for about 12 servings. For this recipe, we are only using 2 cups of it. Store the remainder of the mole paste in an air-tight container in the fridge or freeze for future use. Store the final dish in the fridge for up to 1 week. When storing the dish, the ayocotes have a tendency to soak up excess water from the mole sauce. Reheat in a pot adding enough water or veggie broth to thin it back out to its normal consistency.

Nutrition