Prickly pear burritos and pitayas for lunch

[mavaz]

Hi:
Today I walk around in a botanic garden where I make some work and found some pitayas. I have "Nopalitos" (Prickley pear pads) for lunch, so I decided to take some fruits to complete my meal....let me tell you about

In Mexico we call "pitaya" to a lot of fruits. The cacti from where they come is diferent in diferent regions, but all pitayas:

1.- Come from a cacti
2.- Are globosus fruit
3.- They are delightful

But we not call "pitaya" to Prickly pear (Opuntia ficus indica) fruit, we call it "tuna".

In the Northern-center of Mexico, where I live, Echinocereus stramineus is the "pitayo", so their fruit is the "pitaya". So people go to the natural places in search of the tasty and refreshing fruits. The flavor is something like the strawberry.

In my photobucket album you can see the picture of the plant and the dessert of my lunch
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c105/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... mineus.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c105/mavaz/pitaya.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

You can also see the first dish in my lunch at
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c105/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... alitoz.jpg

I found baby Prickly pear pads (cladodes) ready to eat at local Wall Mart. They are soft boiled and then placed in vinegar with little pices of zuchinni, onion, carrot and (of course) slices of chili. So I made a pair of tasty "burritos de nopal". They are good, and easy to eat, so "fast food" cacti is already in Mexico stores. I bought this just for know about this product, because we can have fresh cladodes to make it in a lot of ways.

At http://www.noplaitoz.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; you can find information about this company and what they sale... is interesting..

[tvaughan]

Very useful post, thanks.

[Dominique]

Thank you, Mavaz, that's interesting. By the way, I'm trying to grow jalapeno pepper Brought the seeds back from Texas. If it works, my Texan husband is going to be delighted...

[daiv]

Very neat -makes me hungary!

[ihc6480]

By the way, I'm trying to grow jalapeno pepper Brought the seeds back from Texas. If it works, my Texan husband is going to be delighted...

Dominique,

Try growing some Habeneros to go along with those jalapenos. I'm sure your hubby knows about them.

Wonder what Nopalito's would taste like in my hot pickled veggie mix

[Dominique]

OK, Bill, I'm going to ask him about that

[mavaz]

Hey Dom...take care...Bill is talking about the most spicy of all the chili gennus...Habanero pepper (Capsicum chinensis) is most common in the far south of Mexico, in Yucatan.
If you cook anything and put just a little pice, just a little, maybe you can?t eat your meals.
So, maybe jalape?o is a good idea.

[ihc6480]

Hey Dom...take care...Bill is talking about the most spicy of all the chili gennus...Habanero pepper (Capsicum chinensis) is most common in the far south of Mexico, in Yucatan.
If you cook anything and put just a little pice, just a little, maybe you can´t eat your meals.
So, maybe jalapeño is a good idea.

Regards

Yes it is spicy indeed and one of the ingredients in my homemade salsa along with jalapeno's, cayenne's.
I love spicy hot stuff

[daiv]

I'm with you on that Bill! The hotter, the better! Good for you too -keeps your sinuses cleared out!

[countrydudeuk]

I recently bought some seeds off of E-bay of "Firecracker cactus" that produces Pitaya fruit. I wonder if that's the Echinocereus you talk of Mavaz?

[Tony]

Wonder what Nopalito's would taste like in my hot pickled veggie mix

Mmmm, hot pickled veggie mix with nopalitos
you guys are makin me hungry!
Careful with them habeneros Dominique, muey caliente!