Proud Mexican-American Women in Brooklyn Who Make a Widely Distributed Homemade Mole Sauce

Great Big Story went to Brooklyn in order to visit with the Mole Poblano Asunción Corp., a shop in Brooklyn, New York where three generations of Mexican-American women (grandmother Damiana Bravo, daughters, and granddaughter) prepare a homemade mole sauce from a special recipe that Damiana brought to the States from her hometown of Puebla.

Back in the 1970s, Damiana Bravo’s Brooklyn kitchen smelled like mole all day, every day. Recently arrived from Puebla, Mexico, she sold the special sauce to coworkers craving a taste of home. As word of Damiana’s culinary magic spread, the orders got bigger and bigger. Now, decades later, Damiana, her daughter and granddaughter cook up nearly 2,000 pounds of mole a day at Mole Poblano Asunción Corp.