Cactus Chili

[stevej37]

Had some of the best chili today at a bar & grille that I've ever had.
Cactus chunks, northern beans, sweet corn, and ground beef in a tomato broth.
Delicious.

[KFC911]

Mmmmm... but cactus chunks?

That's different!

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by KC911

Mmmmm... but cactus chunks?

That's different!

Yep, they were small chunks, about the size of a large BB. Easy to spot them because of their green color.

Here is a recipe for it....(except this recipe calls for black beans...might be better than northern ones)

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/255866/slow-cooker-cactus-chili/


.

[masraum]

I'd eat that. I'm no chili snob. I've been to several chili cookoffs. I've had bad chili and good chili. I'm game to have chili with alternative meats (I've even had good vegetarian chili), and with or without beans, and with other stuff (like cactus and corn).

[stevej37]

I printed off the recipe in the link and will try making it sometime. Looks very simple to make.

[stevej37]

Had a hard time finding cactus around here. A friend told me that she has seen it at Walmart.
I checked their website....

https://www.walmart.com/ip/DONA-MARIA-Nopalitos-Tender-Cactus-Shelf-Stable-Sliced-30-oz-Glass-Jar/10292966?classType=REGULAR&from=/search

[911 Rod]

Not sure if you want pickled cactus.

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by 911 Rod

Not sure if you want pickled cactus.

Good question...I'm reallly not sure.
I just got back from getting it and the jar says "drain and rinse before use and to use for salads, soups, and omlettes.

I'm thinking these are right because the recipe says use 1 jar (30 oz) diced nopales.
This is a 30 oz jar, but I'll have to chop them a little to get to diced.

I'll taste one before I put it together. There were no other cactus choices where I live.

Oh...and nowhere on the jar does it mention pickled...or is that a given if in a jar?

[masraum]

Originally Posted by stevej37

Good question...I'm reallly not sure.
I just got back from getting it and the jar says "drain and rinse before use and to use for salads, soups, and omlettes.

I'm thinking these are right because the recipe says use 1 jar (30 oz) diced nopales.
This is a 30 oz jar, but I'll have to chop them a little to get to diced.

I'll taste one before I put it together. There were no other cactus choices where I live.

Oh...and nowhere on the jar does it mention pickled...or is that a given if in a jar?

I think "pickled" is a given if it's "1 jar."

I think you can get them fresh here, but does not surprise me that you can get them fresh there. I don't think I've ever had them fresh or pickled.

[stevej37]

Another questionable choice....the recipe calls for one Chipotle Pepper.
Couldn't find any, so I questioned the lady stocking the produce. She said "you won't find any at this time of year here...get a Poblano Pepper, the closest thing to Chipotle"

So I did.

[TimT]

the recipe calls for one Chipotle Pepper.

Chipotles are dried and smoked jalapeno peppers...In supermarkets by me you find them canned in the ethnic section usually.. Also having a fairly large Latin population in my area fresh nopales are often available

[stevej37]

The recipe says, "use 1 Chipotle Pepper, chopped"
The Poblano Pepper should be a good substitute...I think.

I bought all the ingredients in the correct sizes....except I bought 1 lb. of ground beef instead of the 2 lbs asked for.
I'm making a half recipe and if it's good, I'll just buy another lb. of gr beef in the future sometime. At that time I can change anything that I didn't like the taste of.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by stevej37

The recipe says, "use 1 Chipotle Pepper, chopped"
The Poblano Pepper should be a good substitute...I think.

I bought all the ingredients in the correct sizes....except I bought 1 lb. of ground beef instead of the 2 lbs asked for.
I'm making a half recipe and if it's good, I'll just buy another lb. of gr beef in the future sometime. At that time I can change anything that I didn't like the taste of.

If you don't like spicy food, then poblano will be OK, but a jalapeno would be better.

jalapeno = chipotle in a slightly different state.

[stevej37]

[QUOTE=masraum;12372466]If you don't like spicy food, then poblano will be OK, but a jalapeno would be better.


That describes my taste exactly.

[KFC911]

I'd put one of each ... mebbe two

Sometimes I regret my approach ....

[stevej37]

^^^
One bowl of chili would need three beers.

[javadog]

You won't want to use pickled cactus. Use fresh, if you can find it, or leave it out.

A poblano and a chipotle are about as far apart as you can get. The adobo sauce that the chipotles are in is somewhat like a spicy barbecue sauce. That flavor will get added to the dish. Poblanos are basically thing skinned green peppers, generally without any heat. They contribute almost nothing.

[stevej37]

^^^I'm only making a half recipe tomorrow....I'll taste the cactus before using or maybe use less.
No big loss if it isn't great. There are no fresh cactus in MI....lol...only about a foot of new snow.

If Poblanos don't have much heat....I'm in.
There's a restaurant near me that has chili and sandwich special every week and I can't eat the chili. They ruin it with heat.

[craigster59]

I've had Nopales in chili and with eggs. To me it just tastes like Del Monte green beans. Not a real distinctive flavor.

[stevej37]

^^^ The Cactus Chile that I had in the first post....the cactus was a very subtle taste. The corn was more noticeable and the broth was great. Overall it was just the way I like chili.