Recipe - Dominguez Family Cactus Stew

Stephen Ceideburg
1 Cactus paddle (about 8
ounces)
Salt
One half Onion
1 Garlic clove
Several sprigs cilantro
Dry husks from 4 tomatillos
(optional)
2 pound Finely minced pork
3 Garlic cloves, minced
1 cn Enchilada sauce (Las Palmas
preferred) *
2 teaspoon Oregano
1 teaspoon To 2 teaspoon toasted cumin seed,
crushed or ground
2 tablespoon Masa harina
One fourth cup Water
One fourth cup Minced cilantro
1 Toasted japones chile,
ground (optional)

* 1pound, 12ounces size

To clean the cactus paddle, hold it gingerly between the nodes of the
prickly spines. Use a sharp paring knife to slice off the nodes. Keep a
damp paper towel nearby to wipe your knife on, making sure the spines stay
on the towel. Trim around the edge of the paddle where the spines are
closer together. It is not necessary to peel the cactus, only to remove the
nodes and spines on both sides. Trim off the blunt end where the paddle was
cut from the plant. Cut the paddle into 1/4inch strips about 2 inches
long.

Bring 4 quarts water with 1 tablespoon salt, the onion, garlic, cilantro
and tomatillo husks to a boil; drop in the cactus strips. (Tomatillo husks
help retain the bright green color of the cactus.) Blanch the cactus until
just crisp tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain strips in a colander and
rinse with cool water.

Place the meat in a pot with 3 cups of water. Simmer, covered, until the
water is just about gone

Tilt the pot and drain off the fat.

To the drained meat, add garlic, the red chile sauce and spices. Simmer
about 30 minutes. Taste for salt, then stir in the drained nopalitos.
Simmer for 20 minutes.

Blend the masa harina and the water to make a paste; whisk it into the stew
for a thickener. Simmer 5 minutes longer, then stir in the cilantro. If you
like a spicy stew, add the japones chile. Serve in bowls accompanied by
warm tortillas.

PER SERVING: 430 calories, 34 g protein, 14 g carbohydrate, 27 g fat (12 g
saturated), 91 mg cholesterol, 411 mg sodium, 1 g fiber.

From an article by Jacquiline Higuera McMahan in the San Francisco
Chronicle

Posted by Stephen Ceideburg

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini