Recipes from Chef Rick Bayless - Rick Bayless | Frontera

By sallycohen

Ingredients

• Classic Red Mole
• 1/2 cup agave syrup (preferably organic raw) or dark corn syrup
• 24 portions of chicken—24 leg-and-thigh pieces, 24 bone-in chicken breast halves or a mixture of the two
• Salt and fresh ground pepper
• Reserved toasted sesame seeds from the Classic Red Mole recipe
• Sprigs of watercress or flat-leaf parsley for garnish

Details

Servings 24
Adapted from rickbayless.com

Preparation

Step 1

24 portions of chicken—24 leg-and-thigh pieces, 24 bone-in chicken breast halves or a mixture of the two

Directions

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a small (2-quart) saucepan, mix together 1 cup of the mole with the agave nectar or corn syrup. Simmer over medium heat until glossy and reduced to 1 cup, about a half hour. On rimmed baking sheets, lay out the chicken in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 45 minutes (the chicken should be tender to the bone at this point—leg-and-thigh portions should register 165 degrees at the thickest part on an instant-read thermometer).

Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Tip off the juices that have collected around the chicken, then brush the pieces liberally with the glossy mole mixture. Sprinkle with the reserved sesame seeds. Bake for 10 minutes to set the glaze.