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Pasta with Mole Sauce

Name: Pasta with Mole Sauce
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 0.5 White onion (finely chopped); 20 g Dark chocolate (70% cacao, to boost the mole); 400 g Fettuccine (or spaghetti); 400 ml Chicken stock; 1 to taste Toasted sesame seeds and coriander (to garnish); 150 g Black or poblano mole paste (ready-made); 100 ml Soured cream or cooking cream; 2 tbsp Olive oil; 2 cloves Garlic (2 cloves); 80 g Aged manchego cheese (grated)

40 min (15 prep + 25 cook) Medium 4 servings Fusion

Edmond Bojalil

Recetas Mexas

Published: 27 Mar 2026 · Updated: 30 Mar 2026

Al dente fettuccine in mole poblano sauce with cream and cheese, Italian and Mexican fusion.

About this recipe

Pasta with mole is the most surprising Italian-Mexican fusion: fettuccine or spaghetti cooked al dente, tossed in a mole poblano sauce - that complex sauce of over 20 ingredients with mulato chilli, ancho chilli, cacao, cinnamon, cloves and achiote - with a swirl of cream, grated manchego or cotija cheese and optional shredded chicken. Mole as a pasta sauce is a revolutionary idea that works because both cuisines share a love for rich, long-simmered sauces with layers of flavour. The result is a dish that surprises everyone who tries it.

History & Origin

Mole poblano has one of the richest stories in Mexican cuisine: born in the convents of Puebla in the 17th century (with Sister Andrea de la Asunción as the central figure of the legend), it concentrates pre-Hispanic ingredients (chillies, cacao, tomato, pumpkin seeds) with European spices (cinnamon, cloves, pepper) in an extraordinarily complex sauce. Pasta, for its part, arrived in Mexico with Italian immigration in the 19th century and integrated so well into Mexican cooking that today fideo soup, dry fideo and pasta in mole are considered Mexican creations. Pasta with mole emerged as a gastronomic experiment in cutting-edge Mexican restaurants of the 2010s, popularised by chefs like Enrique Olvera, who proposes new readings of classic Mexican ingredients in contemporary forms. In Spain, it can be found in modern Mexican cuisine restaurants in Madrid and Barcelona.

Estimated cost

£12.00

Total cost

£3.00

Per serving

* Approximate prices based on UK supermarkets

Nutritional information per serving

540

Calories

18g

Protein

62g

Carbohydrates

24g

Fat

Fibre

580mg

Sodium

* Approximate values. May vary depending on ingredients used.

Method

1
Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water before draining. Drain and set aside.
💡 The starchy pasta water will help bind the mole sauce.
2
In a wide pan, fry the onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent, 3-4 min. Add the mole paste and fry for 2 min to activate the aromas. Pour in the chicken stock gradually, stirring constantly until incorporated.
💡 Mole paste can burn quickly - use medium heat and do not walk away.
3
Add the dark chocolate in pieces and the soured cream. Mix until melted. Taste and adjust salt. If the sauce is too thick, add pasta water. Incorporate the cooked pasta and mix so it is well coated in the mole sauce.
💡 The sauce should be creamy but not watery - it needs to coat the pasta.
4
Serve in deep plates. Grate plenty of aged manchego cheese over the top. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and coriander leaves. Serve immediately.
💡 Serve with a glass of chilled tamarind water to complete the fusion experience.