AIP chicken in mole-style sauce with carob and nomato

Cocoa is a seed, so the deep, slightly bitter warmth you expect from a mole has to come from somewhere else here. Carob does that job. It will not fool anyone who eats chocolate daily, but on a night when even a small taste of something rich feels like a win, this sauce gets you there in under 45 minutes with 6 ingredients and whatever chicken you already have on hand.

Carob itself is linked to antioxidant activity and tends to sit easier on digestion than cocoa for a lot of people, which matters if chocolate has been one of the harder foods to set aside. This sauce asks the least of the chicken: braise it plain, then let 6 ingredients and 30 minutes of simmering turn it into a meal that does not taste like a substitution.

Swap the water for bone broth if you have it, so the braising liquid becomes the sauce base and the dish gets more nourishing without any extra effort. Serve it warm over roasted sweet potato or cauliflower rice, and eat it sitting down.

Ingredients

• 1 lb chicken breast or thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1/3 cup nomato sauce
• 2 tsp honey
• 2 tsp carob powder
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/6 tsp garlic powder
• 1/6 tsp cinnamon
• 1/3 tsp sea salt
• Water to cover (or substitute bone broth for added nourishment)

Method

Place the chicken pieces in a medium pot and add enough water (or bone broth) to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a gentle simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Carefully pour off or ladle out all but 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Reserve that cup in the pot with the chicken.

Whisk the nomato sauce, honey, carob powder, ginger, garlic powder, cinnamon, and sea salt directly into the reserved liquid. Stir until smooth.

Bring the pot back to a low boil, then reduce heat and simmer on medium-low for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and deepens in color. The chicken will absorb the sauce as it cooks.

Serve warm over roasted sweet potato, cauliflower rice, or simply on its own with steamed greens alongside.

*Adapted from acleanplate.com*