San Pedro CactusSan Pedro Preparation From: steveb@surfcity (Steve Barton) Abstract Various nopale recipes from dianna kennedy's "The Art of Mexican Cooking" are adapted to Trichocereus Pachanoi. Implications of using this cactus as a foodstuff are examined. The primary challenge to the cook is seen to be mucilage and bitterness, rather than emesis or cramping. Intro Traditional preparations of trichocereus pachanoi involve boiling the sliced whole cactus for long periods of time with various admixtures. drawbacks to this are 1) Emesis: the curandero actually seeks to make the patient vomit and if the pachanoi preparation fails to induce this a supplemental emetic draught is administered, and 2) Pharmaceutical complications: a datura species is usually added to the broth. reliable dosage information for tropane alkaloids from natural sources is very hard to come by, the margin of error is vastly smaller than with, say, blotter acid, and the special contributions of tropane alkaloids to an entheogenic experience may not be sought-after. :-) Most contemporary practice either mimics a simplified form of the traditional broth (abandoning both the datura, the emetics, and every shred of the set-andsetting of traditional use) or follows well-established chemical methods of alkaloid extraction (which is timeconsuming and equipment-costly, and usually involves toxic solvents.) One neglected approach is to treat the cactus as a 5 oz/linear inch to 3. One experienced respondent opined that the white tissue none-the-less contains enough non-entheogenic psychoactives (such as . and the obvious informal qualitative bio-assay suggests that the white tissue is either very weak. or else entirely inactive. The outermost layer is a tough.5"-3.5".vegetable foodstuff. the results of some initial explorations of this approach are reported here. This shades rapidly into a zone of white tissue.5" dia. or softer. In more mature base cuts they are very woody. from 0. the green tissue is most widely identified as the seat of these virtues.5". pachanoi is a slightly tapering cylinder with a small number of ribs (typically 6 or 7). at the core is a hollow cylinder of tough fibers. There are conflicting statements in the popular literature about which of these tissues contain the entheogenic virtues. The outermost membrane is almost certainly devoid of them (unfortunately ott's pharacotheon asserts that this is where they reside). in younger tip-cuts the fibers are like a loofa-sponge. cuttings of these diameters range in weight from < 1. It is a logical location for a barrier of cactophagic repellents. with a heart of more white tissue. and clusters of 1-2mm spines running along the ridge of the rib and spaced about 1" apart. and I believe this to be the case.5 oz/in. and *probably* indicating that it therefore has the highest concentration of alkaloids). Preparing the Cactus t. cactus cuttings in the market range in diameter from about 2.1. it proves to be sharply more bitter than the white tissue (certainly indicating that it is very basic. plastic-like membrane a significant fraction of a mm thick. Directly underneath this is a zone of green tissue less than 1/4" thick. compared to the green. almost like bamboo bbq skewers. and draw upon mexican culinary experience with nopales (opuntia cactii) as prior art. It is possible to detach the skin in a single piece. Once the cactus is peeled it should be further broken down.the mescaline precursor dopamine?) to positively "color" the experience. Blanching the unsplit cactus for a minute in rapidly boiling water only makes things worse: It causes the soft tissues to begin to exude mucilage. then cut the fibrous tissue off of the white tissue. There are many ways to approach peeling off the skin. This is rather time-consuming. Pierre . Take multiple passes to do this. Starting from the corners and working along the length of the ridge. but this gave me the best results: Nick or notch out the spine clusters. The skin is likely to tear when lifting it away from scars and blemishes. I split the green layer off. the peel can be re-started by picking at it with a thumbnail if this happens. Split the cactus by cutting from the "valleys" between the ridges inward to the center of the core. refrigerated for a week or so. a whitish waxy scum boils off of the skin (which is nauseating to even look at). or dried in a home food-dryer. if you are patient. this yields a "stick" of cactus with a diamond-shaped cross section which gives the most support to the green tissue during the peeling. Kennedy suggests listening to music while peeling nopale paddles. Recipes Crudites St. "cactus jerky" can be further processed in a blender or food processor to yield "cactus granules". The peeled cactus can be used fresh. Avoid leaving any of the green tissue clinging to the skin. and the skin still adheres. carefully peel off the skin. so there may be no way to speed this up. and the cactus is lightly browned. Nopales al Vapor To 1 2/3 C peeled. this is the second-best tasting recipe. Nopales Asados Fry raw. This is the best-tasting recipe. and the contrast of the crispness with the now-gelatinous interior is rather nice. in particular. It *does* significantly reduce the volume of the cactus material. Serve lightly salted. shake the pan from time to keep the cactus from sticking. so far. add chopped parsely to taste. has an underlying quality of sweetness that is brought out by frying.Slice raw. although perhaps it is not carried out of the tissues in the mucilage. until the juice has evaporated some. My concern is that some of the mescaline might stick to the pan rather than being entirely resorbed. uncover the pan and cook for an additional 15 minutes. this is. the residue has begun to resorb. Scrape the pan with a wooden spoon to prevent sticking. a minced clove of garlic and salt to taste. This ties for second best-tasting. Fry in 1 Tbs olive oil. peeled cactus strips in extra-virgin olive oil over medium. and small golden-brown blisters rise up on the faces. over lowmedium heat for 10 min. and let stand in the refrigerator for at least an hour. add salt.high heat. lime-juice and chopped cilantro to taste. When the juice has started to flow. eat like "bitter cucumber spears". my method of choice. . partly because it is so minimalist. and chopped fresh cactus add 1 Tbs chopped scallions. Ensalada de Nopalitos To each 4 oz of peeled. until the sharp edges brown. peeled cactus into sticks. but remains behind in the cells. the white tissue. chopped raw cactus add 2 Tbs good-quality cider vinegar. covered. Yield 1/2 C. trimmed. decreases the bitterness. or so. Adding the juice of 1/2 lime. dripping in strings from the stirring spoon. unpeeled. fresh cactus = 270 mg mescaline. the mucilage becomes quite pronounced. but what it really reminded me of was a bad head-cold. but can be made ahead. the more there is to chew". pachanoi (wet) is 0. . fresh cactus = 400 mg mescaline. 12 oz (340 gms) whole. and is quite handy.2 Tbs cactus granules to 1 C hot water. Home-drying is probably not as complete as freeze-drying. Cactus Jerky The peeled.12% mescaline. it is more work than "cactus sticks". but this might be due primarily to water content. and dried cactus sticks can be eaten out-of-hand. sliced. Since the mucilage begins to reconstitute during chewing this has the unnerving property of "the more you chew. pachanoi is quoted at 2%. and let stand for a bit. insignificant-looking granules swell to rice-grain size. unpeeled. Tossing the reconstituted tea back into the blender smoothes out the texture some. reminiscent of some beloved child-hood comfort food. This is my second-favorite recipe.Chunky Snot Tea Add 1 . Conversions and Yields A widely-quoted figure says that t. and even finely chopped and ground fibrous tissue become noticeable "chunky-bits". Freeze-dried unpeeled t. rather than environmental or cultural considerations. I wish that i could say that the mucilage reconstitutes as a silky unction. It is my impression that fresh cactus varies significantly in entheogenic activity. I can't help thinking that this treatment has potential. 8 oz (226 gms) whole. but i'm darned if i can make it manifest. 5-4" dia fresh unpeeled ~=3.5 oz/in 3. or if an inveterate espresso-drinker such as myself has such a cast-iron stomach that mescaline can't . skin and spines.5" dia fresh unpeeled ~=1. Mature tissue from the base of a column seems to have a sandy. fibrous pith 16 oz. as noted an authority as shulgin says that that can almost be counted upon even with pure synthesized mescaline. dried (+ 7/8 oz. which is particularly intense in the green tissue (see "chemical considerations" below). 1 oz. Palatability The discarding of the skin is probably an essential step to reducing the nausea induced by any cactus preparation (with the exception of a proper chemical extraction. it makes cucumber peel look burpless.2-2. pachanoi moved into the shade increases its alkaloidal content. I've only had one mild episode of stomach cramping. although it grows fastest in direct sun. it was evolved to be abrasion-resistant and water-proof. crunchy texture. peel). I don't know if the mucilage actually soothes stomach tissues. green tissue + 1 oz. as well as possibly intensifying the alkaloidal content (one cactacean informs me that t. fresh cactus =1 oz. white tissue + 6 oz. 12 oz. This stuff was not evolved to be digested. the addition of lime-juice or vinegar improves palatability by neutralizing the bitterness.) Just looking at the waxy scum that boils off of it in just a minute of blanching is enough to turn my stomach. fresh cactus = 5/8 C chopped.) the bitterness compares to a bitter espresso. although storage in a dark closet for some weeks may reduce this.5 oz/in 3 oz. fresh cactus ~=+ 6 oz. Generally. dried cactus = 2 slightly heaping Tbs cactus granules 4 oz. but in volume can become daunting. I don't know if this has any implications for absorption. often enough. Any kind of heating. The best-tasting recipes do taste better than simple raw cactus. i would expect stomach acid to convert free-base to the chloride. and also shrink the volume of cactus to be consumed. the volume of drawn juice reaches equilibrium). and that offhand he sees no reason to think that it will decompose before it boils (although he suggests that I ask a Real Chemist (tm) to be sure. so i'd expect the surface of frying (not scorching) cactus would not exceed that. above) can become quite unpleasantly slimy. Chemical Considerations Presumably the addition of lime juice or vinegar converts various free-base alkaloids into their respective citrate or acetate.get its attention. but diced t. can any of you speak to this?). pachanoi salad stored in the refrigerator can become quite slimy (although after an hour or so. or if I just haven't yet eaten enough.210C. A kind respondent assures me that mescaline has a boiling-point of 320C @ 1 atm. heatinduced browning reactions in food occur from about 130C . nor the moist interior to exceed 100C. . According to mcgee "On Food and Cooking". dry-heat treatments such as pan-frying act against this trend. as well as exposure to food acids. unless i was doing an extraction. starts the flow of mucilage. I would discard the fibrous tissues. but they don't taste a lot better. nor have I yet suffered emesis. Reconstituted dried cactus (as in "tea". It's just too hard to make it seem like food. Some cacti species have such pronounced mucilage that they are used to repair pottery. so except for any alkaloids absorbed sub-lingually the body won't ever be dealing with eaten cactus alkaloids as their free-base. although sometimes those last few mouthfuls of bitter green tissue or the last gulps of mucus tea will start my gorge rising. 2. The second is to see if the mucilaginous quality can be capitalized upon and exploited as a virtue. Chilled. Future Work Two approaches for further exploration suggest themselves.edu () writes: Here is a way to prepare the stuff that I have found effective: 1. eric@d0ibm2. but do not know for a fact. and carefully cut away the spine areoles. or hot. 3. Thaw it in a bowl or watertight container. this might work as a gazpacho. six inches per person.It is not clear to me whether the break-down of cell walls and other plant structures (and possibly break-down of mucilage) in the process of cooking contribute to speed and efficiency of mescaline absorption. Freeze the de-spined cactus. This helps break down cell walls to make extraction of the good stuff easier. Take a length of cactus. The first is to see if 30-60 minutes of pressure-cooking will reduce raw cactus (perhaps with a bit of lime-juice) to a porridge with a more-uniform texture. Don't . I look forward to corresponding with any gumbo-cooks who might have thoughts along these lines.umd. possibly with reduced slime. I am assuming. that mescaline from wellchewed raw cactus tissue in healthy stomach acid is subject to an absorption practically as as complete and fast as that from a boiled-down sludge or hot-water extract. as a vegetable consume' or chowder. Serve. 9. 5. Using a carrot peeler or a small knife. put your seat backs and tray tables in their full upright and locked position. Add milk (about a pint per person) to the mixture.but once it's down. Squeeze the mush through cheesecloth. extinguish all smoking materials. Try to remove as little of the flesh as possible. Mix the goo from step 3 with the liquid from step 7. Fasten your seatbelts. and discard the contents of the cheesecloth. and enjoy your flight.Alan Bostick abostick@netcom. Cut the peeled cactus into small chunks 6. 8. peel the green skin off. Using a blender or a food processor. -. to get the liquid out. One helpful variation is to use storebought eggnog rather than straight milk. Another variation is to add a scoop or two of icecream per person to the milk to make a mescaline milkshake. San Pedro cactus tastes like the bitterest cucumber on God's good green earth. 11.lose the goo that drips out! 4. chop the chunks into mush 7. 10. Blend. It's difficult to get down -. it stays down.com . root it out. most give figures only based on dry material. regardless of their alkaloidal content.05%* 0. BTW.01%* Ag pachanoi 0.5kg to get the least effect. the flowers are gorgeous.14%* 0. If I could get 1000 pachanoi branches blooming in my garden I'd be a very happy gardener. 400 gms of any I've tried seems like an "entheogenic all-day lollipop" to me. according to Ott.12% 2% CF peruvianus 0. But perhaps it is not very common. pachanoi varies by 20X. that it is H&B's 2. The "maximum safe dose" of mescaline.) to get any effect in the best (worst) case.Here is a table of some of the primary citations on Trichocereus potency species %age fresh %age dry citation peyote ? 1 . this is a living organism we are approaching and attempting to enlist.2. The threshold dose is about 150 mg.0. If nothing else.006%* . there might be some wimpy ones in my back-yard unbeknownst to me. It may or may not be weak because of lack of genetic potential. the most powerful pachanoi known to science. or a net mailinglist and expand your horizons. .357% T&H pachanoi 0. and while it is less than half the strength of the strongest peyote on record it is more than twice the strength of peyote you are likely to get your hands on.375% (dry).331% C&M pachanoi 0. This is not Safeway. or about 1 1/2 lbs. I've yet to try the wimpy stuff. Q: Maybe there's some super-secret powerful tricho that nobody talks about. The strongest pachanoi measured is 3X the strongest peruvianus measured.1 .02%* 0. Join your local cactus society. so you'd need at least 107 gms (nearly 4 oz. calculated assuming constant 94% water in fresh material. H&B using consistent methodology came up with figures that nicely bracket all other citations.6% (rarely >1%) XXX pachanoi 0. is 1000 mg. probably about one-fifth your own body weight. If you got the wimpy stuff you will need to eat at least 2. As you can see. and join the rest of us in discovering what this organism wants from life. The strongest T. peruvianus reported is not quite as powerful as the "usual" peyote. provided simply for convenience in comparing different studies. To get the maximum safe dose from the wimpy stuff you need to eat ~17kg. although as a plant-collector I buy many more specimens than will ever make it into my kitchen. This is not likely to be experimental error.82% P&M peruvianus >0. Assume the worst (best) about your cactus.02%* 0. only representing very unhappy plants that have been living in a shopping-mall or similar unnatural locale. Negotiations may be in order. Q: I got the wimpy stuff. plant it.0005% >0. You would therefore not want to take more than 714 gms (fresh). while Ag gives only fresh. now what do I do? A: Let the rest of it callous off.375% H&B * estimated. nobody really knows. there's someone pounding at the door .elders discovered that you knew anything about its existence they would send their hit squads by and.A: That would be Trichocereus bum-fumble you are referring to.. Excuse me. but if the alt.drug..
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