Nopal and Maguey Festival Mineral de Pozos

This weekend, Saturday and Sunday, September 6th and 7th, the little pueblo of Mineral de Pozos hosts the Second Annual Nopal
and Maguey Regional Festival.

There will be all kinds of displays of Nopal and Maguey and other related cacti, vendors, cooking demonstrations, herbalists, workshops on herbal medicine, musicians, regional dancers such as Huapango, and Folklorico, and plants and art to purchase.

The Nopal is the edible stem or pad of the prickly pear cactus. It is an important part of Mexican culture and cuisine. It is even in the Mexican coat of arms. Nopales are cooking in stews, made into salsas, scrambled with eggs or pickled with other vegetables. When the Nopal has the flavor and texture similar to green beans but cooked with too much water or other moist vegetables they become slimy like okra. There have been numerous health benefits linked to eating the Nopal cactus. At the festival there will be many tasty treats made with the Nopal cactus.

The tuna is the fruit of the prickly pear cactus and they are bright pinkor white in color. The pink fruit is sweeter when ripe, though has more seeds. The tuna has a honey dew melon taste and smaller seeds. The tunas are covered with glochids , which are microscopic spines with barbs. They are very irritating so they should be handled cautiously. At the festival you will find samples of jams,salads and other specialties made with the Tuna, including Colonche, a liquor said to pungent yet mild and almost sweet.

The Maguey cactus has also been an important part of Mexican heritage and culture dating back to the Aztecs. It was and still is used to make Pulque a fermented beverage made from the juice of the Maguay. To read more about Pulque, Chicago Foodies has a great article titled “Pulque Aztec Cactus Cooler.” At the festival you will find pulque tastings as well as mezcal, and quiote.

There is bus transportaion available only for Saturday’s festival. Tickets are sold in advance at La Tienda inside Biblioteca, and Galeria Pergola at Instituto Allende. There are only 40 seats available. The bus leaves from Liverpool at 10:00am and departs from the main Jardin in Pozos at 5:00pm

Pozos is 1,100 feet higher than San Miguel de Allende so dress in layers as the weather can change very quickly. There are no ATM machines in Pozos so bring cash.

If you decide you want to drive yourself and possibly spend the night there are a few hotel options. Casa Montana 442-293-0031, Credit cards accepted) La Posada de las Minas 442-296-0213 (credit cards accepted), and Casa Mexicana Hotel Spa 442-293-0014.

Here is a recipe I like for Nopal, from Epicurious, called Shrimp and Nopal Cactus Salad