The scent of chiles toasting hung low like a sweet, spicy cloud swirling around the kitchen. I worked with one or two dried chiles at a time for the most control, flipping, then flattening them with a ...

Cactus might look intimidating, but once you learn how to clean and cook it to make nopales, you’ll be looking for ways to incorporate this nutritional powerhouse into more dishes Walk around almost ...

Nopales, the paddles of cactus plants, get tender, smoky, and soft on a comal or griddle, picking up a strong char from the hot cast iron. High-heat cooking also tempers their natural sourness and ...

Cactuses aren’t just part of the scenery in South Texas. For centuries, the fruit and paddles from the prickly pear cactus have fueled the people who live there, and they’re still easy to find on the ...

Have you ever noticed a stack of fresh cactus paddles at your local market, but were unsure how to use them — or at least how to keep from getting stuck? The paddles of the prickly pear cactus are ...

Nopales, also known as cactus pads or paddles, have long been a part of my California culinary life. I've had periodic bursts of enthusiasm over their slightly lemony flavor and firm-to-the-bite flesh ...

Here’s how to harvest, prep and cook the cactus pads. Remember the shmoo? This animal was invented by cartoonist Al Capp and introduced in his comic strip L’il Abner in the late 1940s. Shmoos were ...

Nopales (or ‘cactus paddles’) are now available at the farmers market for a short time. Although the prickly “spines” have been removed, be very careful when handling nopales. In a large pot, bring 4 ...