Nopales are the tear-shaped, hand-sized leaves or pads or “paddles” of the prickly pear cactus. Nopalitos are nopales (pronounce no-PAH-les)–cactus spines removed–cut into bite-sized squares or strips. To make nopalitos en salsa verde, steam or boil nopalitos until tender crunchy then re-cook in a sauce of puréed tomatillos, onion, garlic, cilantro, and jalapeño chiles boiled […] More
Mesclun is a mix of tender, young salad green leaves. The mix often includes leaf lettuce, arugula, endive, frisée, mizuma, oak leaf, mâche or lamb’s lettuce, radicchio, sorrel, chervil, groundsel, and dandelion. Mesclun is the French word for “mixture.” In Italy, a similar mixture of greens is called mescladisse. Mesclun was originally a mixture of […] More
Bok choy can be eaten raw in salads, stir-fried, cooked as a vegetable, or marinated. Bok choy has crunchy stalks that are mild and juicy-sweet. Its leaves are tender and crisp with a subtle peppery flavor. Bok choy is sometimes called Chinese cabbage. The Cantonese variation of bok choy is pak choy. There are several […] More
There is curly endive and then there is frisée. They are the same, but they are not. The difference? Frisée—pronounced free-ZAY—is a petite, pale curly endive produced by blanching. It has an opened, flattened shape. Its leaves are frizzy and finely cut, yellow-white to yellow-apple green in color. Frisée has a bittersweet taste and it’s […] More
Mesclun is the French word for “mixture.” Mesclun is a mix of tender, young salad green leaves. Mesclun mixes usually include a variety of lettuces and European and Asian salad greens that grow under similar conditions, have similar rates of maturity, and taste good together. Greens can be mixed by season, by flavor, by color, […] More
Stephen Albert