Cooking with Cactus: Nopales Cactus Recipes

While strolling down the ethnic food isle at your local grocery store, you may have noticed a can or jar labeled “nopales cactus”. Unless you’ve dined in Mexico, you may have been a little confused and probably passed it up. If your local grocer carries nopales in jars, you’ve seen that they basically look like slices of green pepper. If you’re lucky enough to live in an area where you can buy whole cactus pads, you’ve probably seen that they basically look like… well, cactus. Though many Americans have never tried it, nopales cactus has become a major cash crop in Mexico thanks to its growing popularity in Asia and across the Americas.

If you’re ready to try something new, cooking with cactus is a great way to add a new twist to many of your favorite dishes. It’s healthy too! Cactus isn’t just great in typical tex-mex dishes (chili, tacos, fajitas, etc.); it can also be used on pizzas, in spaghetti, in hot and cold salads, and countless other dishes.

A quick note before you start putting nopales cactus in your meals: I strongly recommend rinsing the cactus pieces in cool water and patting them dry before you use them. This is not just to get rid of the brine taste on jarred or canned cactus; it’s also because nopales can take on an unpleasant slimy quality that most people will want to get rid of. And if you’re in a location where you can get whole, fresh cactus, be sure to peel all the spines off!

Note that no matter how much rinsing you do, nopales cactus pads are still going to have a silky, slippery texture somewhat similar to okra. If you can’t stand “slimy” food, you may want to steer clear of cooking with cactus altogether.

But if you think a little slime has never hurt anyone, and you’re ready to try cooking with cactus, here are two quick and easy recipes to get you started-one for breakfast and one for dinner.

NOPALES SCRAMBLED EGGS
I first had a version of this dish at a hostel in Mexico. With its texture and taste, cactus really adds a whole new dimension to this old-school breakfast favorite.

Ingredients:
Butter or oil
½ cup sliced or diced nopales cactus
¼ cup diced onion
4 eggs
Milk (optional)
8 oz. shredded Colby-jack cheese
Red and black pepper to taste

Begin by sautéing the cactus and onion in butter or oil for about 5 minutes. Remove them from the pan. Beat the eggs in a bowl-splash in some milk if you like-and then add the cactus, onion, cheese, red and black pepper, and any other seasonings you’d like. Scramble this mixture in a hot skillet and serve.

This should make a good breakfast for 2 people and it tastes great topped with salsa or hot sauce.

CHICKEN-CACTUS CHILI
This is a “Frankenstein” concoction that I pieced together from a few other recipes and some of my own ideas. It doesn’t taste like a normal beef-and-beans chili, but I think it’s pretty darn delicious in its own right.

Ingredients:
½ onion, diced
½ cup sliced or diced nopales cactus
1.5 pounds chicken, diced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can chili beans
1 (small) can tomato sauce

In a pan, sauté the onions until they’re soft. Add the cactus and chicken and continue sautéing until the chicken is fully cooked. While the chicken is cooking, you may want to add black pepper, red pepper, or any other seasonings that you feel are appropriate.

Once the chicken is ready, dump in the tomatoes (don’t drain their juices), tomato sauce, and chili beans. Add the chili powder and stir it all together. Put a cover on it; let it simmer for 20 minutes and you’ll be ready to treat yourself to a unique and delicious chili.

And remember, cactus is like any other ingredient: you’ll get the most enjoyment out of it when you experiment. To invent your own cactus recipes, try using nopales in place of okra or green peppers, or see if you can find a place for cactus in your favorite Italian, Cajun, and Asian dishes.