This richly flavored pumpkin mole is an easy sauce perfect for topping grilled tofu. Serve with Mexican tomato rice for a delicious and healthy meal!
Outside of Mexico, when you think of mole sauce you probably think of that darkly colored, richly flavored, nuanced chocolate-chili sauce called mole poblano. A recipe that will have you laboring over the stove for hours with an equally long ingredient list. But mole (pronounced moe-LAY for those unfamiliar with the dish) comes from the Nahuatl word for sauce and refers to a wide range of traditional sauces in Mexican cuisine.
For most mole sauces the base is made of dried chiles, fruit (often dried), nuts, and spices. This pumpkin mole follows the same basic formula, with ancho chiles for the dried chiles, pumpkin for the fruit, pepitas for nuts, and plenty of spices. I use a few short cuts–like canned pumpkin instead of roasting my own, ground spices instead of toasting whole and grinding them myself–but the results are still absolutely mouthwatering.
The idea to make a pumpkin mole has been simmering in the back of my head for the past year after I encountered a bottled version at the grocery store. I didn’t try it at the time, but the thought of making my own has been with me since and boy was it worth the wait! But also, not worth waiting, so make this now and not a year from now! I promise you won’t regret it 😉 .
The Ingredients
Pumpkin mole is a rich and deeply flavored sauce, with balanced sweet, savory, smokey, and spicy flavors. The sweetness of roasted pumpkin puree is enhanced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice while balanced with cayenne for heat and cumin for its savory notes. Ancho chiles (which are dried ripened poblano peppers) are a mildly spicy chile with used for their smokey flavor and raisin-like sweetness.
Onion and garlic are fragrant aromatics and bring a sweetness and sharpness to the pumpkin mole sauce. I add tomato sauce for acidity, it brightens the flavors and adds a bit of tang. To thin the sauce out I use vegetable broth, which brings layers of flavor without extra work (assuming you use store bought broth or bouillon).
Instead of nuts I use pepitas, which are a specific kind of pumpkin seed that doesn’t have a hull (the white shell). Pepitas have a mild nutty flavor and blend to thicken the sauce while adding slight bitter notes. Lastly I add some brown sugar and salt to the pumpkin mole. Sugar enhances the savoriness of the sauce and adds caramelly notes.
Making the Pumpkin Mole Sauce
To start the sauce, toast the ancho chiles and pepitas on a dry pan. This brings out the flavors of those ingredients, turning the pepitas toasty and the anchos fragrant. Toasting the chiles makes it more soft and pliable, so it’s easy to remove the stems and seeds from inside the pepper before soaking in boiling hot water to rehydrate. Make sure to wash your hands immediately after or wear gloves when handling the peppers, anchos aren’t particularly spicy but you still don’t want to rub your face after handling them!
Next, sauté the onion and garlic until browned and softened. It’s ok to bring a little char to the onions here as it adds to the smokey qualities of the final sauce. Cooking the whole smashed garlic cloves mellows them so that they don’t overpower the mole.
Then we add everything to the blender! The toasted pepitas, the anchos (hydrated and drained), the sautéed onion and garlic, the canned pumpkin, tomato sauce and broth, spices, salt and sugar (start with the smaller amounts). Blend them all together until smooth, then return to the pot and bring to a simmer. Leave the lid ajar (you can prop it open with a wooden spoon) so steam escapes, but make sure to use a lid otherwise you’ll end up with a splattery mess all over your stove.
The pumpkin mole is simmered for a long time to layer the flavors and bring them together harmoniously. You’ll want to cook it for a full half hour, tasting towards the end and adding more salt and sugar as desired.
The sauce will taste even better the next day, so feel encouraged to make it in advance. The recipe makes a huge amount, so get creative in how you use it! It’s great over grilled tofu, but you’ll be able to stretch it over several pounds. You can also douse roasted vegetables with the sauce. Or even cook the vegetables in the sauce (more broth will probably be necessary in this case). The pumpkin mole is also great cooked with beans, seitan, or tempeh.
You can make the best tacos with this recipe! We enjoyed leftover grilled tofu, sliced up and tossed in the pumpkin mole, stuffed in corn tortillas and topped with extra pepitas for crunch. Leftover sauce is going to find its way over pan fried seitan before meeting the same tortilla wrapped fate.
The sauce will freeze very well, so know that’s always an option!
The Mexican Tomato Rice
I didn’t plan on sharing a rice recipe alongside the sauce, but knew I wanted to serve the pumpkin mole with grilled tofu and have a side of Mexican rice and black beans. I guess I figured you’d want to do the same!
Making this style of rice requires a few extra steps. Fry the rice lightly in oil along with garlic, cumin, and salt, then cook it in broth and tomato sauce. Once all the liquid is absorbed, let it sit and steam for 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Just like making regular plain rice but with a lot of extra flavor!
Maybe I’ll share the quick black beans (not pictured) we enjoyed with this recipe another time, but these Mexican pinto beans would also be fantastic with the mole!
If you make this mouth watering pumpkin mole with grilled tofu and Mexican tomato rice, leave a comment and give the recipe a rating on the recipe card below! Also don’t forget to share your creations with me on Instagram, tag @thecuriouschickpea and #thecuriouschickpea, I absolutely love seeing your photos!
LIKE WHAT YOU SEE? FOLLOW ALONG ON INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK, AND PINTEREST.
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.Pumpkin Mole with Grilled Tofu
Ingredients
Grilled Tofu
Instructions
Recommended Products
Mexican Tomato Rice
Ingredients
Instructions
Tamsin says
YUM I can’t wait to try this pumpkin mole sauce, I’d never heard of it before!
thecuriouschickpea says
Aw thanks Tamsin! I’m such a fan of mole, and I think you’d really like it! 🙂
Valarie Tooby (Australia) says
Hi, I’m also vegan can’t wait to make your suites steaks, they sound so awesome
Thank you for sharing your delicious recipes.
thecuriouschickpea says
Thank you so much Valarie! I hope you enjoy the recipe! 🙂