Cactus... Stuffed, Hog Tied & Grilled

I like cactus, but don't think to make it very often. The pasture is full of prickly pear. I use the fruit for jelly and wine and usually grab the younger cactus pads for cooking. This time, I grabbed some larger pads that were at the grocery store. I hoped they would be cleaned, but they weren't. lol
Some jelly....
https://cowgirlscountry.blogspot.com/2008/09/prickly-pear-cactus-jelly.html

I started by cleaning the cactus pads. Held them over the fire to burn off some of the thorns...

They look like little candles. lol

Next, I scraped any burnt or remaining thorns off with a knife, then washed the pads well...

Next, I prepared my stuffing..
corn, red pepper, scallions, onions, garlic, conecuh sausage, cilantro, (shrimp and pepperjack cheese not in the pic).

I grilled the corn and saved the husks...

Browned my conecuh sausage with onions, scallions, peppers, garlic....

added some cubed cactus....
Cactus has a texture like okra. I like to cook the "slime" out before using as stuffing.

The grilled corn....added mexican oregano, salt, pepper and chopped cilantro.
Cooked til the cactus was tender, then let the filling cool.

Cut a pouch in the cactus pad....

Ready to stuff!

I stuffed the pad with the sausage/cactus/corn mixture, shrimp and pepperjack cheese..

I "stitched" the pads closed with strips of corn husk, to keep the filling inside...

Oiled, salt and peppered.... ready for the grill!

I grilled the cactus pads with indirect heat at first. About 10 minutes per side. I wanted to heat the filling through, also cook the outer pad so it would be tender.

Then directly grilled them for a few minutes to melt the cheese and make sure the shrimp were cooked..

Ran my knife around the top, and opened the "lid"...

The stuffing smelled incredible... the cheese was gooey, the cactus was tender, the conecuh sausage added a nice smokey aroma...

Served with a couple of fresh hot corn tortillas and a cold beer....

It was tasty! The cactus was nice and tender, the smoked sausage added a lot of flavor, the pepperjack cheese added just enough heat for me. It was almost a comfort meal, with the gooey cheese and tender shrimp. lol  The outer cactus pad is edible too, so it made a big meal for me! 

The stuffings are endless. I'll be doing this again!

A side note... People who live in cactus country do not call these "Nopales". They are known here as cactus. Sometimes they are referred to as "blankity blank" cactus....depending on whether they have flattened your tire or not. But not once have I heard of anyone calling them "Nopales". lol

Hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for stopping by!