Mexican Chicken with a Ancho pepper sauce on Sweet Potato Mash

I have watched Bobby Flay and Rick Bayless make a lot of sauces using dried chiles.  I have tried to make them myself but it has never really worked out.  It might help if I followed a recipe.  This whole recipe was made up but made a lot of sense in my mind.  Which proves, a little knowledge can take you a long way.  Re-hydrating dried chiles is a snap.  Then, creating a balance with the spice is not too hard.  I chose to compliment my the spice of the sauce with sweet potatoes that I added brown sugar.  I love to mix sweet and spicy.  When you eat things with a combination of sweet and spicy, you get 2 flavors as you eat.  The latter flavor is the kick from the spice.  I love it.

Ingredients:

• 2 whole chickens 
• 2 tbsp each Seasoned salt and Cajun seasoning
• a bunch of dried ancho chiles
• a handful of dried chile arbol
• 2 cups water
• 1 – 28 oz can tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 5 sweet potatoes
• 2 tbsp brown sugar

Directions:

Spread the spices on the chicken and roast in a 325 degree oven for 75 minutes.

Let cool and then pull using 2 forks.

Set aside.  In a pot, boil the water and then immerse the dried chilis.  Let the chiles re-hydrate for at least 30 minutes.  Take the chiles with the stock, lemon juice and as much of the leftover water as needed to create a puree.

Blend well.

Return to a pot and add the tomato sauce.  Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.

In a separate pot boil enough water to cook the sweet potatoes until fork tender.  Put them in your mixer and puree until smooth.  Add the brown sugar and a little stock if needed.

If you like your food really hot, you can add the chicken to the sauce.  My guests are a little gun shy so I put a little bit of the sauce over the chicken and then served the rest of the sauce on the side.

For plating, take a good helping of the sweet potatoes, cover with a good helping of the chicken and cover with more sauce.  Enjoy!