Pollo en Mole de Cacahuate\Chicken with Peanut Mole Sauce

Place the cut-up stewing chicken in a large pot and cover with 8 cups of water. Add the celery stalks, sliced carrot, cut-up onion, parsley sprigs, chicken bouillon granules, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the chicken is tender, approximately 45-50 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the broth and set aside to cool slightly. Strain the broth through a fine sieve, discarding the vegetables and herbs, and reserve 3 cups of the cooking liquid.

When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones, shred or cut into bite-sized pieces, and set aside.

Tear the white bread into small pieces and place in a blender or food processor along with the creamy peanut butter, whole cloves, whole black peppercorns, and the cinnamon stick. Pulse until the spices are finely ground and the mixture is well combined.

Add the 2/3 cup tomatoes with green chiles, minced garlic clove, and 3/4 teaspoon chili powder to the blender with the peanut butter mixture. Blend until smooth, adding a splash of the reserved broth as needed to reach a pourable consistency.

Strain the blended mole sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot, pressing gently to extract all the liquid and flavor while leaving the coarser solids behind.

Stir in the reserved 3 cups of chicken broth into the mole sauce and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes to meld the flavors and thicken slightly.

Add the shredded chicken pieces to the mole sauce and stir well to coat. Simmer for an additional 5-10 minutes until the chicken is heated through.

Taste and adjust seasonings as needed with additional pepper or chili powder. Serve the chicken with peanut mole sauce hot, traditionally accompanied by rice.