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rogerj1
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Location: Gig Harbor, WA
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Pitahaya fruit
I've been reading Graham McKintosh's book and I just finished reading the chapter where he gorges on the fruit of the Pitahaya cactus. The way he
describes them, they sound so tasty! How do those who've eaten the fruit like it? Can you buy them already prepared or do you need to harvest them
yourself?
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David K
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I asked JESSE about this when we met at JR's last month... It is a family thing to go out and pick pitahayas... There are two varieties, both good.
They are ripe mostly in the fall... Ensenada and south for the Pitaya Agria (Sour Pitahaya)... early Spanish sailors ate the fruit to prevent scurvey.
Pitaya Dulce (Organ Pipe Cactus fruit) is the famous fruit of Baja Indians, the second harvest, orgies, etc. Grows in central and south Baja. I am
reading (in Norm Roberts' book) that Pitahaya daiquiris are delicious!!! I am getting thirsty!
I invited Graham to the Baja Cactus fiesta, he said would love to be there, but he will still be in Michigan then. Perhaps he will post some comments
on his love affair with the pitahaya fruit!?
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capn.sharky
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Cactus Apples
Are you talking about the red fruit that appears after the flower blooms on the cactus? If so, it is very good and does not have to be prepared.
Just peel and eat. It is full of vitamine C and very good for you. I get mine in my backyard here in California and love it. You got to beat the
birds to it though. It is a bit grainy but very sweet.
If there is no fishing in heaven, I am not going
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David K
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Yes cactus fruit, but not what you have Sharky which is the Prickly Pear Cactus Apples (Nopal in Spanish), the fruit is called 'tuna' in Spanish.
The Pitahaya is much sweeter, even the 'Sour Pitahaya' is sweet. It is the creeping cactus lower to the ground, very heavy beyond El Rosario. The
Pitaya Dulce is the Organ Pipe Catus, upright branches, like a dwarf cardon.
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JESSE
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I am still not sure i will make it to the movie-dinner, but if i do i will bring along some fresh Pitayas for all to see and eat.
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BajaCactus
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Fruit...
This fruit is excellent.... Jesse if cannot make it to the event, let me know and I may be able to take some for everyone.....
BajaCactus
"Where Baja is so much more than a dream..."
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Germanicus
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when and where please will
A) the Baja Cactus Fiesta
B) the "movie-dinner"
take place.
(Or is that out of TV > Dinner and a Movie?)
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David K
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Germanicus??
There are two threads running about the BajaCactus Fiesta (movies and dinner and museum and more) on the General Baja Discussion Forum (on Nomad).
This (here) is The Q & A board, but a lot more is posted on the General board.
If you come to Nomad daily (I think you do), then click on 'Today's Posts' link at the top of the page (bookmark it). It will show you any Baja board
with activity in the past 24 hrs.... That way you won't miss any new conversations.
If you don't come here daily, then go to each board that interests you and scroll down, reading anything that appeals to you.
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Taco de Baja
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Pitahaya fruit
Excellent tasting.
Another good one is the "old man cactus"
Lophocereus schottii I seem to recall it is ripe in the early Summer. It's kind of like a cross between a strawberry-watermellon with a fig
like texture. YUM
For pictures of what the plants (Pitahya, Old-man and others) look like, so you can find them yourselves, and lots of info go to:
http://helios.bto.ed.ac.uk/bto/desertecology/cactgall.htm#to...
Also some info on the desert plant communities.
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jrbaja
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Thanks Taco
Good site. Pitahayas are growing all over the place down south and the birds love em!
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Germanicus
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DK, thanx for the hint!
As you know, I'm a newbe here.
I'm also visiting other baja forums and , man , I do have my struggle to remember all the names I've got and all the passwords.
As time is limited to me to sit infront of the comp., I do not even sign out.
Even if the comp is shut down, next day I'm in automaticly.
(That makes all the statistics of the admin so true)
thanx again!
G.
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David K
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A note from Graham Mackintosh on Pitahayas and Michigan
(I sent Graham this thread to read while he is in the Great Lakes enjoying summer, here is his reply, thought you guys would like to read it)
--------------------------------------------------------
Hi David,
Wish I had some pitahayas to pick now -- the local blueberries and raspberries just don't quite compare. Hope all's well in sunny CA. It's cold, windy
and raining up here. Bonni is at least delighted with the bumper crop of mushrooms. I know what's for dinner tonight.
Graham
--------------------------------------------------------
(the note on mushrooms is understood if you have read his third Baja book, 'Nearer My DOG to Thee' http://grahammackintosh.com )
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rogerj1
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Straight from the source
Well done David. Perhaps Graham could wax rhapsodic about the Pitahaya some other time when he's not so distracted by the foul weather.
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jeans
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Ok....I have a ton of cactus in my yard, one variety is a type of "beaver tail" that an elderly neighbor comes every week or so to trim for nopalitos.
This cactus also has the fruit bulb that comes after the flower.
After reading this thread, I took a pair of tongs and a knife, cut one off, trimmed off the little spines, cut it length-wise and scooped it out with
a spoon.
It had a pleasant, sweet taste...sort of like a kiwi. But the seeds were much too tough to chew or swallow. (no second harvest here)  My neighbor told me today that I might have cut it too soon. The others on the
plant are now turning yellow and mine was still green.
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Neal Johns
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Hot tip for cactus fruit experimenters:
To remove any fine spines (glochids), put the the fruit into a paper sack with some sand and shake, shake, shake. Works great!
If you read this too late,  use white glue over affected area, when dry, peel
off.
My motto:
Never let a Dragon pass by without pulling its tail!
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whodat54321
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would a potato peeler work on that too?
I never think of the future - it comes soon enough. ? Albert Einstein
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Neal Johns
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Sure, just hold it in one hand and peel with the other. 
I don't want those scraped glochids in my "potato"!
My motto:
Never let a Dragon pass by without pulling its tail!
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David K
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Although I will be tasting pitahaya for the first time this Sunday at the fiesta, I have eaten prickly pear ('nopal') cactus apples ('tuna' in
Spanish) from my former back yard near Escondido. The trick I read was to rotate the fruit over a flame (stove top) to burn off the tiny spines. I
then put the fruit in the fridge and enjoyed when cool. I used a fork to hold the fruit when rotating over the flames.
[Edited on 8-19-2004 by David K]
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elizabeth
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Burning off the spines of the tuna over an open flame also carmelizes the fruit sugars making the tuna sweeter!
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capn.sharky
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Cactus Fruit
If there is no fishing in heaven, I am not going
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