How to clean nopales (cactus paddles)

You might have eaten nopales at restaurants and maybe have thought about cooking them yourself, but just the idea of getting a nasty thorn in your hands makes you shy away from cooking them. Well, fret no more and learn the right way of how to clean nopales (cactus paddles).

Nopales are a staple food ingredient in Mexico which is eaten all year round and specially during Lent. They were considered a sacred plant for several Mesoamerican cultures. Nopales are part of Mexicans identity such that the image of a nopal makes part of Mexico's national flag.

Nopales can be used for sweet and salty preparations. They are highly versatile and can be incorporated in soups, salads, moles sauces, quesadillas, eaten with eggs, in stews, in sauces, such as with my easy Chile morita salsa and simple salsa verde, and grilled, such as this Grilled Cactus Paddles.

Nopales are low in calories and high in fibre. They go perfect in salads, soups, stews, quesadillas, etc. They are also great for meal prepping so you can easily incorporate them in your meals even if you are on the run.

Step 1: Pinch the bottom of the nopal with a fork and with the help of a knife, remove the thorns and the black spots in the paddle. Do it on both sides of the paddle.

Step 2: Cut the edge of the nopal to make sure there are no thorns left there.

Step 3: Cut the bottom of the nopal as well.

Step 4: Rinse your nopal paddle under running water. Shake off the excess water. If you are eating the cactus paddle as a whole, you can grill it, such as in this Grilled Cactus Paddles recipe to get rid of the slimy liquid. Otherwise, you can cut it into stripes and dice it up.

Step 5: To a saucepan at medium heat, add in enough water to fully cover the nopales, add in salt, and the tomatillo papery husks or baking soda. Cook for approx 10 mins or until the nopales feel soft if you pinch them with a fork and have changed color to a deeper green color.

Step 6: Remove the papery husks if you used them. Rinse your nopales under cold water and drain.

Storage. You can keep the already cooked nopales in the fridge in an airtight container or in a ziplog bag for up to 5 days.

Can you Freeze Nopales?

I don't recommend to freeze the cooked nopales as they lose some of their texture when thawing. However, you can freeze the raw, clean nopales. Place them in a ziplog bag in the freezer. They will last for 2 months.

You can substitute the tomatillo papery husks with baking soda. It's important to use either or in order to get rid of the viscous liquid typical of cactus or nopales.

What are nopales?

Nopal is a generic name given to plants which belong to the Opuntia type. They are cactus that contain a viscous liquid, with tender stems, meaty, oval and flat shaped, with thorns on both sides. They are native to the American continent.

How can I eat nopales?

Nopales are low in calories and high in fibre so they are perfect to add to your salads, soups, stews. Add them to your favourite version of quesadillas, burritos, etc. Also add them to salsas, such as my easy Chile morita salsa and simple salsa verde. You can also grill them such as in this Grilled Cactus Paddles recipe.

Where can I buy nopales?

You can buy them at Latin American specialty stores, Whole Foods, and Save on Foods.

Of course! If you do, please tag me on my Instagram and/or leave a comment below. I always love to hear from you if you have any comments and/or questions. Also, remember to sign up for my newsletter to stay up to date with all the upcoming recipes and articles about Mexican cuisine.

How to clean Nopales (Cactus Paddles)

Ana Jimenez

Nopales (cactus paddles) are delicious, but you might be thinking it's challenging to clean them up. Learn the right way to clean nopales and start adding them to your salads, soups, stews, etc.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Course dinner, how to, Salad

Cuisine latin american, Mexican

Equipment

• 1 pairing knife
• 1 fork
• 1 cutting board
• 1 medium-sized pot

Ingredients

  

• 1 cactus paddle
• 2 tomatillo papery husks can be substituted with ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

 

• Pinch the bottom of the nopal with a fork and with the help of a knife, remove the thorns and the black spots in the paddle. Do it on both sides of the paddle.
• Cut the edge of the nopal to make sure there are no thorns left there.
• Cut the bottom of the nopal as well.
• Rinse your nopal paddle under running water. Shake off the excess water and cut in stripes and dice it up.
• To a saucepan at medium heat, add in enough water to fully cover the nopales, add in salt, and the tomatillo papery husks or baking soda. Cook for approx 10 mins or until the nopales feel soft if you pinch them with a fork and have changed color to a deeper green color.
• Remove the papery husks if using them. Rinse your nopales under cold water and drain.

Notes

You can substitute the tomatillo papery husks with ¼ teaspoon of baking soda. The papery husks or baking soda will help remove the viscous liquid typical of nopales.

 

Keyword cactus paddles, healthy, nopales

Nutritional Information provided by Nutrifox. The below is just an estimate.