Chicken Mole Tamales [VIDEO]

Tamales are a must during the Holidays or any other special occasion. Whether it’s one or ten, now or then, they make a tasty Mexican treat.

This recipe for Chicken Mole Tamales (or Tamales de Mole) is a delicious way to use up leftover chicken. A fiesta in your mouth from way down south. South of the border, that is.

More Mexican tamales recipes: Pork Tamales, Beef Tamales, Bean Tamales

How to Make Chicken Mole

• Add the mole paste and chicken broth into a stock pot. Stir until it dissolves.
• Add a tablet of Mexican chocolate.
• Once the chocolate is melted, add 1 cup of water to thin it out. Stir.
• Add the cooked, shredded chicken. Stir to combine.

I used Dona Maria’s Mole Paste. You can find it at just about any grocery store these days.

The sauce should be thin, not thick. This is the same sauce used to make Chicken Mole Enchiladas.

For those of you who are adventurous in the kitchen and want to make your own mole, try the sauce in my grandmother’s Enchiladas Dulces.

Note: You can also use chicken broth to thin out the mole instead of water. Taste for salt.

You might also like Tamales de Rajas con Queso, Sweet Tamales, Instant Pot Chicken Tamales.

• Cook the chicken in the mole sauce for 5 minutes on low heat.

It should look like the picture above. Saucy and delicious. You can also do this ahead of time which I highly recommend.

From here, let it cool. You’re about to assemble tamales, and you want the filling to be cool to the touch.

Pro Tips on Making Tamales

• Soak the corn husks the day before. They should be pliable before assembling.
• Have the filling ready to go.
• Make the Masa for Tamales in advance, or buy it at the store.
• Invite friends to help.

Have these all ready to go before proceeding to the next step.

Don’t try to make tamales on your own. It’s a lot of work. There are shortcuts you can take like making them Instant Pot Pork Tamales which will cut your time in half.

However, you still need to assemble them, and that is time consuming. It goes quicker with sangria and friends. We call this a “tamalada.”

For “healthier” tamales, also try Masa with Oil instead of shortening or lard.

How to Assemble Tamales de Mole

• Spread a thin layer of masa to the middle of the corn husk.
• To the center of the layer of masa, add 1-2 tablespoons of chicken mole, depending on the size of the corn husk.
• Fold both sides of the corn husk in.
• Fold the tip of the corn husk in.
• Repeat until there are no more corn husks, masa, or filling.

Set them aside in a container that will allow them to stand up, with the open side up.
Or, immediately put them in the steamer as you assemble.

• If you don’t place them standing up, the filling can fall out, ruining your tamales.

Use your best judgement on how much filling to add. Remember that you need to fold the sides of the corn husks in.

• Add 1 cup of water to the steamer.
• Place the uncooked tamales into the steamer with the open side up.
• Cover and cook for 1 ½ hours, or until the tamales are easily removed from the corn husks.

More Pro Tips:
Check the tamales after an hour. They might need more water. If they do, add more water and cook for another 30 minutes.

Be prepared to wait. The Tamales de Mole can take up to 2 hours to cook.

Once you turn off the heat, let them sit in the pot for about ½ hour before serving.

How to know if your tamales are done?

• Take one out of the pot. Let it cool slightly.
• If it peels easily away from the husk, then the tamales are ready.
• If the masa still sticks to the corn husk, add more water to the steamer (if necessary), and let them cook longer.

To ensure you success in your kitchen, ALL of my Tamale Recipes have instructional videos.

Check them out to clear up any questions, or ask me a question in the comment section below. Hope you enjoy!

Chicken Mole Tamales

I insist that you can’t resist these Chicken Mole Tamales. They are a combination of Mexico’s finest culinary contributions - mole and tamales. Unwrap these delicious Mexican bundles of joy and dig in! 

5 from 38 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Mexican

Prep Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 4 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 36 tamales

Calories: 330kcal

Author: Maggie Unzueta

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

For the Chicken Mole

• ▢ 1 8.25 oz Doña Maria Mole Paste
• ▢ 3 c chicken broth
• ▢ 1 tablet Mexican Chocolate such as Abuelita or Ibarra
• ▢ 1 c water
• ▢ 4 c cooked chicken shredded

Also Need

• ▢ 36-40 corn husks
• ▢ 8 c warm water
• ▢ 3 ½ c prepared masa

Instructions

For the Chicken Mole:

• In a large stock pot, add the mole paste and chicken broth. 
• Stir until the paste has dissolved. 
• Add the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate has melted. 
• Add water. Stir to thin out the sauce. 
• Add the chicken. Cook for 5 minutes. 
• Set aside to cool. 

For the Corn Husks

• Place in a large container. 
• Separate the corn husks as they like to stick to each other. 
• Remove any debris or corn hair. Cover with warm to hot water. 
• Place a heavy object on top so as to completely submerge the corn husks in water. 
• After 30 minutes, they should be pliable. If they are not, add more hot water and let them sit until they are.
• Best if this is done overnight. 
• Drain the water and shake off any excess water before assembling. 

How to Assemble the Tamales:

• Spread a thin layer of masa over the bottom half of the corn husk. 
• Only the pointy top section will not have masa. 
• In the center of the masa, add a spoonful of chicken mole.
• Each corn husk is different. Use your best judgement as to how much chicken to add. 
• Fold both sides of the corn husks in. 
• Fold the pointy top inward and toward the center of the corn husk. 
• Set aside the tamale, standing up so the filling does not come out. 
• Repeat until done with masa, filling, and corn husks. 
• Add 1 cup water to a steamer. 
• Add the tamales into a steamer with the open side up. 
• Cover with more corn husks. Cook for 1 ½ hours. 
• Check for water at the 1 hour mark. If it needs more water, add more water to the steamer.
• The tamales are ready when they peel away from the corn husk easily. 

Video

Notes

The chicken mole should be saucy. If it's too thick, add more water and adjust for salt. You can also use more chicken broth instead of water. 

If the tamales do not peel easily from the corn husks, check for water in the steamer, and cook for another 30 minutes. 

Pro Tips on Making Tamales:

• Soak the corn husks the day before. They should be pliable before assembling.
• Have the filling ready to go. 
• Make the masa for tamales in advance, or buy it at the store.
• Invite friends to help. 

 

Nutrition

Calories: 330kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 790mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g

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