Mole is a traditional Mexican sauce made from 20-30 ingredients, including chili and other peppers, nuts, seeds, fruits, spices, herbs, and various other items (often chocolate, tomatoes, etc). The recipe and process used by the woman in this picture have been passed down through her family for hundreds of years. The making of mole is very labor-intensive, taking 2 days of roasting, drying, grinding, blending, cooking, stirring, etc.
The final stage involves cooking in the clay pots seen here on an open fire for 8 hours with constant stirring. The pots are being pre-coated with plaster to prevent cracking during the intensive cooking process.