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  • From: Josh Robinson <rolling_stone123@yahoo.com>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [permaculture] Using Prickly Pear cacti
  • Date: Sun, 13 Aug 2006 21:50:24 -0700 (PDT)

Lisa,

Having spent the last four years practicing
permaculture in Arizona, I have a fond love of prickly
pear cacti. Nothing quite says summer like nopales.
Hear is how I prepare the cactus pads. Look for the
newer young pads and cut them off. Run a knife
perpendicular to the pads to remove the spines and
glocids (hairlike spines). You will probably notice
that the cactus pads are now getting slimy. They are
very mucilagenous, which can be very medicinal, but
maybe not quite appealing. At this point, I tend to
cut the pads into about one inch strips and them boil
for a couple of minutes. This seems to remove much of
the mucilagenous texture of the pads. Drain. Try
adding them to a stir fry with some garlic, onions,
and tomatoes. Serve with a nice pot of beans and some
tortillas. I have heard of people just removing the
spines and glocids and serving raw with a bit of salt
and maybe some lime juice. I tend to prefer them
cooked.

Many prickly pear varieties also have tasty fruits
which I have used to make smoothies and even wine.

I hope this helps,
Josh Robinson

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  • [permaculture] Using Prickly Pear cacti, Josh Robinson, 08/14/2006

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