Mole Poblano at El Fogon in Owasso
Mole Poblano is a rich, complex Mexican sauce with a rich, complex history. The history goes back almost 400 years (more, if you count the Aztec origins) and the sauce is so complex it takes almost a whole day to prepare. I wrote a long description of Mole Poblano in my review of Tres Amigos in South Tulsa. A reader commented that the spectacular mole at El Fogon is the best in Oklahoma. But El Fogon is almost twenty miles from midtown Tulsa and, because the dish is so hard to make they serve it only once a month (and not on the same day of the month either). So I forgot about that.
Yesterday I decided to visit El Fogon, just to try the other dishes, which I’d heard were outstanding. We drove a long time on darkened roads to what looked like a little shack. But inside there was a cozy and inviting dining room.
By incredible good luck it was Mole Poblano night!! Of course I ordered it (and it was only $8, with chicken), and out this came.
Oh it was wonderful, the totally authentic real deal. I can’t say it was better than the Tres Amigos version. But, glistening and packed with flavor, it was certainly as good, and it was a totally different interpretation of the recipe. So good that I’m ready for a return visit to try the restaurant’s regular offerings… and when I do, I’ll write a full review. If you ever learn that El Fogon is serving Mole Poblano, pack up your bags and head north to Owasso.
El Fogon
11515 N. Garnett Road (about a mile west of the Route 20/116 Street exit of the Mingo Valley Expressway)
371-6230
Open daily to around 9 PM (except Sunday is lunch only)
Oklahawg, and 
Bob Haywood 1:18 pm on December 3, 2011 Permalink |
We saw you there that night! We love El Fogon. The family are super nice people and all the food is home made!
Oklahawg 10:48 pm on March 2, 2012 Permalink |
Eating at El Fagon is a weekly ritual. The family that runs the restaurant is like our family after years of visiting them for our “family night” meal on the town.
I thought I had discovered all the “goodies” but I tried something new a few weekends ago that was spectacular: torta ahogadas. I think I have that correct. Its a smallish (think 6-inch Subway sandwich, and then not as bulky) torta compared to some of the monsters you can get around Tulsa at independent Mexican restaurants. It was packed with my meat of choice, the spicy pork (al pastor at many restaurants). It is soaked in a tasty and not-too-spicy sauce that reminded me of a wet burrito from El Rio Verde or Costa Azul. Also included were two “sealed” tacos, almost empanadas that were easily dunked in the sauce.
I was in heaven.
A week later? It was a special again and I ordered it without considering other options. A month has passed and its not been on the menu again. If it is, I’ll order it. Unless the mole winds up on the menu, at which point I’ll order one to go for lunch the next day.
The most consistently wonderful mexican food I have found in OK is in the humble little building in North Owasso, El Fagon.