Nopales On My Mind

Serves 4


Because everyone deserves a taste of this slimy creature food. This dish pairs nicely with other summer fare such as grilled chicken or sausages.

INGREDIENTS:
1 medium sized nopal leaf (be sure that it's pretty flat and firm if you are going to prepare the leaf yourself)
kosher salt
2 larger or 3 smaller ripe manila mangoes
2 large, ripe avocados
2 Tbsp of fresh lime juice
1/4 cup chopped, fresh mint
2 Tbsp of roasted and salted pistachios
1/8 tsp very high quality, viscous balsamic vinegar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Trim and wash the nopal leaf.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the whole nopal leaf for 15-18 minutes. Remove the nopal from the boiling water and transfer to an ice bath.
3. Cut the nopal into 1/2" thick strips that are about 2" long. Place the nopales in a chilled bowl - they will be a bit slimy and will become even more mucilaginous once they are in the salad - don't fear.
4. Cut the mangoes into bite sized pieces and remove the skin. Add them to the bowl of nopales.
5. Cut the avocado into bite sized pieces and sprinkle with kosher salt.
6. Add the lime juice and nearly all of the mint to the bowl of nopales and mango. Then add the avocado to the salad and stir. Top off the salad with the remaining mint, pistachios, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

***Buy prepared nopales if you can so that you needn't bother with trimming the thorns off of this cactus. If you can't buy the nopales that have already been trimmed, use a vegetable peeler instead of a knife and peel horizontally to work most efficaciously. It is much easier to trim a flat nopal than one that is bent. There are instructions on the link above.
***Manila Mangoes are originally from the Phillipines. They are less fibrous and even more delicious than your typical mango and readily available at most Whole Foods, all mexican markets, and many supermarkets
*** If you'd like to get loquissimo replace the pistachios or the nopales with radishes, queso fresco, and/or cotija cheese.

recipe by Cristina Paul