This paper is a discussion of what is unique about Mexican culture, through an examination of a dish peculiar to Mexico and rarely found anywhere else. Mexican mole (pronounced moh-lay) is usually described by foreigners as a Mexican chocolate sauce, but to natives it is a complex dish most often combining chocolate, chilies, and other spices and ingredients, served over chicken, pork, or beef. Recipes and regional variations on mole are as numerous as the Mexican population, reflecting thousands of different preferences, innovations, and idiosyncrasies. Considering mole's permutations and peculiarities offers an intriguing glimpse into an ancient, complex culture. Using mole as a case study allows the student of business to contemplate the special challenge that Mexico presents to the international marketer seeking to penetrate the Mexican marketplace. The diversity of mole recipes and the passion with which each region and household guards every individual variation provides a fascinating portrait of the special demands of this important but difficult market.
According to Mexican tradition, the first mole recipe was concocted between 1680 and 1688 in one of the convents of Puebla de los Angeles, a city in Mexico. The story told most frequently is that the original dish was created by Sor Andrea, sister superior of the Santa Rosa Convent. She put together the unusual mixture to acknowledge the archbishop for having built a convent in her honor. She chose her collection of ingredients specifically to blend Old World cooking with that of the new land, mixing the sweetness of chocolate with the spicy heat of chilies in a way that symbolizes the contrasts of Mexico itself. Her creation founded a national tradition.
The word mole derives from the Aztec molli, the ancient Indian word for a concoction, stew, or sauce. The name echoes Mexico's original ethnic identity in a dish created after the Aztecs were conquered by Spa...