Nopal

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Nopal

Nopales (from the Nahuatl word nopalli for the pads, or nostle, from the Nahuatl word nochtli for the fruit) are a vegetable

Vegetable

The term "vegetable" generally means the Eating parts of plants. The definition of the word is traditional rather than scientific, however, and therefore the usage of the word is somewhat arbitrary and subjective, as it is determined by individual cultural customs of food selection and food preparation....
made from the young cladophyll

Cladophyll

Cladophylls also called cladodes are photosynthesis branches or portions of a Plant stem that resemble and function as a leaf. Cladophylls are flattened, modified stems that resemble leaves, many cacti and structurally similar plants have cladophylls....
(pad) segments of prickly pear

Opuntia

Opuntia, also known as nopales , or Paddle Cactus from the resemblance to the ball-and-paddle toy, is a genus in the cactus family , Cactaceae....
, carefully peeled to remove the spine

Spine (biology)

In biology, spine or spiny may refer to:*Spine , needle-like structures in plants*Spine , needle-like structures in animalsSpine may also refer to:...
s. They are particularly common in their native Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federalism constitutionalism republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of Mexico....
. Farmed nopales are most often of the species Opuntia ficus-indica
Opuntia ficus-indica

Opuntia ficus-indica is a species of cactus and a long-domesticated crop plant important in agricultural economies throughout arid and semiarid parts of the world....
, although the pads of almost all Opuntia
Opuntia

Opuntia, also known as nopales , or Paddle Cactus from the resemblance to the ball-and-paddle toy, is a genus in the cactus family , Cactaceae....
species are edible.

Nopales are generally sold fresh, bottled, or canned

Canning

File:Berthold Weiss Canned Foods.jpgFile:Canned food factory .jpgCanning is a method of food preservation in which the food is processed and sealed in an airtight container....
, less often dried

Drying (food)

Drying is a method of food preservation that works by removing water from the food, which prevents the growth of microorganisms and decay. Drying food using the sun and wind to prevent spoilage has been known since ancient times....
.

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Encyclopedia

Nopales (from the Nahuatl word nopalli for the pads, or nostle, from the Nahuatl word nochtli for the fruit) are a vegetable

Vegetable

Cladophyll

Opuntia

Opuntia, also known as nopales , or Paddle Cactus from the resemblance to the ball-and-paddle toy, is a genus in the cactus family , Cactaceae....
, carefully peeled to remove the spine

Spine (biology)

Mexico

Canning

File:Berthold Weiss Canned Foods.jpgFile:Canned food factory .jpgCanning is a method of food preservation in which the food is processed and sealed in an airtight container....
, less often dried

Drying (food)

Mucilage

Mucilage is a chemical polarity glycoprotein; an polysaccharide; a polymer produced by most plants and some microorganisms.It occurs in various parts of nearly all classes of plant, usually in relatively small percentages, and is frequently associated with other substances, such as tannins and alkaloids....
texture.

Nopales are commonly used in Mexican cuisine

Mexican cuisine

Mexican cuisine is a style of food that originated in Mexico with a considerable Spanish influence. Mexican cuisine is known for its varied flavors, colorful decoration, and variety of spices....
in dishes such as huevos con nopales (egg

Egg (food)

An egg is a round or oval body laid by the female of many animals, consisting of an ovum surrounded by layers of membranes and an outer casing, which acts to nourish and protect a developing embryo and its nutrient reserves....
s with nopal), "carne con nopales" (meat with nopal) or "taco

Taco

A taco is a traditional Mexican cuisine composed of a maize or wheat tortilla folded or rolled around a filling....
s de nopales." Nopales are also an important ingredient in New Mexican cuisine

New Mexican cuisine

New Mexican food is a type of regional cuisine originating in Mexico. New Mexican chili pepper comes in two varieties, referred to as either green chile or red chile depending on the stage of ripeness in which they were picked....
, and are gaining popularity elsewhere in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
.

Health benefits

Nopales are very rich in insoluble and especially soluble dietary fiber

Dietary fiber

Dietary fiber, sometimes called "roughage", is the indigestible portion of plant foods that pushes food through the digestive system, absorbing water and easing defecation....
. They are also rich in vitamin

Vitamin

A vitamin is an organic compound required as a nutrient in tiny amounts by an organism. A compound is called a vitamin when it cannot be biosynthesis in sufficient quantities by an organism, and must be obtained from the diet....
s (especially vitamin A

Vitamin A

Vitamin A, a bi-polar molecule formed with bi-polar covalent bonds between carbon and hydrogen, is linked to a family of similarly shaped molecules, the retinoids, which complete the remainder of the vitamin sequence....
, vitamin C

Vitamin C

Vitamin C or ascorbic acid is an essential nutrient for humans, a large number of simian species, a small number of other mammalian species , a few species of birds, and some fish....
, and vitamin K

Vitamin K

Vitamin K denotes a group of lipophilic, hydrophobic vitamins that are needed for the posttranslational modification of certain proteins, mostly required for blood coagulation....
, but also riboflavin

Riboflavin

Riboflavin , also known as vitamin B2, is an easily absorbed micronutrient with a key role in maintaining health in humans and animals....
and vitamin B6

Vitamin B6

Vitamin B6 is a water-soluble vitamin and is part of the vitamin B complex group. Pyridoxal phosphate is the active form and is a cofactor in many reactions of amino acid metabolism, including transamination, deamination, and decarboxylation....
) and mineral

Dietary mineral

Dietary minerals are the chemical elements required by living organisms, other than the four elements carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen present in common organic chemistry....
s (especially magnesium

Magnesium

Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, atomic weight 24.3050 and common oxidation number +2.Magnesium, an alkaline earth metal, is the ninth most abundance of the chemical elements in the universe by mass....
, potassium

Potassium

Potassium is a chemical element. It has the symbol K , atomic number 19, and atomic mass 39.0983. Potassium was first isolated from potash, hence the name....
, and manganese

Manganese

Manganese is a chemical element, designated by the symbol Mn. It has the atomic number 25. It is found as a Oxidation state in nature , and in many minerals....
, but also iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a Group 8 element and period 4 element. Iron is lustrous and silvery in color....
and copper

Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29.It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity....
). Nopales have a high calcium

Calcium

Calcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft grey alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth most abundant element by mass in the earth's Crust ....
content, but the nutrient is not biologically available because it is present as calcium oxalate

Calcium oxalate

Calcium oxalate is a chemical compound that forms needle-shaped crystals. Its chemical formula is CaC2O4 or Ca2....
, which is neither highly soluble nor easily absorbed through the intestinal wall. Addition of nopales also reduces the glycemic effect

Glycemic index

The Glycemic index or GI is a measure of the effects of carbohydrates on blood glucose levels. Carbohydrates that break down rapidly during digestion releasing glucose rapidly into the bloodstream have a high GI; carbohydrates that break down slowly, releasing glucose gradually into the bloodstream, have a low GI....
of a mixed meal. Nopales are low carbohydrate and may help in the treatment of diabetes.

Economic value

According to Reuters, some 10,000 farmers cultivate nopal in Mexico, producing around $150 million worth of it each year. Detection of the cactus-eating moth Cactoblastis cactorum
Cactoblastis cactorum

Cactoblastis cactorum commonly known as the cactus moth or nopal moth. The species is native to South America where it lives on Opuntia cacti....
in Mexico in 2006 caused anxiety among the country's phytosanitary authorities, as this insect can be potentially devastating for the cactus industry.

Nopal

Health benefits

Economic value

Lifecycle

Edible Leaf Cycle

External sources