The students are often asking us, "Hey, do Mexicans eat turkey at Christmas?" Some do, although you'll find the ones in Oaxaca are often not exactly plump and juicy. Personally, I like a good bacalao, reflecting our Spanish roots, at Christmas but, for those of you who HAVE to have a turkey...

Here's a recipe from the El Sol de la Costa (Puerto Escondido) magazine for Turkey Mole. Some of the chiles you may need to get at a Mexican or Latin American grocery store.

PREPARING THE TURKEY:

1 turkey 4 - 6 kilos
4 litres of water
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 onion
1 tsp, salt
Herbs de olor

Cut the turkey, obviously defeathered and cleaned, into pieces and cook
in boiling water with the other ingredients for about an hour or until
the meat is tender.

INGREDIENTS FOR THE MOLE

250 g of chiles ancho
320 g of chile mulato
100 g of chile pasilla
1/2 cup of oil
2 large tomatoes
2 dried chipotles
10 garlic cloves
1/2 onion chopped
150 g peeled almonds
150 g peanuts
6 g of pepper
1/2 tsp. anís
1 stick of cinamon
3 cloves
1/2 cup raisins
90 g bitter chocolate
1 Tsp. sugar
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 1/2 burned tortillas
Salt & pepper

PREPARING THE MOLE