336 lines
15 KiB
Plaintext
336 lines
15 KiB
Plaintext
From: steveb@surfcity (Steve Barton)
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Newsgroups: alt.drugs
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Subject: cooking san pedro (long)
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Message-ID: <2hpc6t$pde@engnews1.Eng.Sun.COM>
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Date: 21 Jan 94 19:59:25 GMT
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- abstract
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various nopale recipes from dianna kennedy's "the art of mexican
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cooking" are adapted to trichocereus pachanoi. implications of using
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this cactus as a foodstuff are examined. the primary challenge to the
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cook is seen to be mucilage and bitterness, rather than emesis or
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cramping.
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- intro
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traditional preparations of trichocereus pachanoi involve boiling the
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sliced whole cactus for long periods of time with various admixtures.
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drawbacks to this are 1) emesis: the curandero actually seeks to make
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the patient vomit and if the pachanoi preparation fails to induce this
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a supplemental emetic draught is administered, and 2) pharmaceutical
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complications: a datura species is usually added to the broth.
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reliable dosage information for tropane alkaloids from natural sources
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is very hard to come by, the margin of error is vastly smaller than
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with, say, blotter acid, and the special contributions of tropane
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alkaloids to an entheogenic experience may not be sought-after. :-)
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most contemporary practice either mimics a simplified form of the
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traditional broth (abandoning both the datura, the emetics, and every
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shred of the set-and-setting of traditional use) or follows
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well-established chemical methods of alkaloid extraction (which is
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time-consuming and equipment-costly, and usually involves toxic
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solvents.)
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one neglected approach is to treat the cactus as a vegetable foodstuff,
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and draw upon mexican culinary experience with nopales (opuntia cactii)
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as prior art. the results of some initial explorations of this
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approach are reported here.
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- preparing the cactus
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t. pachanoi is a slightly tapering cylinder with a small number of ribs
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(typically 6 or 7), and clusters of 1-2mm spines running along the
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ridge of the rib and spaced about 1" apart. cactus cuttings in the
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market range in diameter from about 2.5"-3.5". cuttings of these
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diameters range in weight from < 1.5 oz/linear inch to 3.5 oz/in.
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the outermost layer is a tough, plastic-like membrane a significant
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fraction of a mm thick. directly underneath this is a zone of green
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tissue less than 1/4" thick. this shades rapidly into a zone of white
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tissue. at the core is a hollow cylinder of tough fibers, from 0.5"-
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1.5" dia, with a heart of more white tissue. in younger tip-cuts the
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fibers are like a loofa-sponge, or softer. in more mature base cuts
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they are very woody, almost like bamboo bbq skewers.
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there are conflicting statements in the popular literature about which
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of these tissues contain the entheogenic virtues. the outermost
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membrane is almost certainly devoid of them (unfortunately ott's
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pharacotheon asserts that this is where they reside). the green tissue
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is most widely identified as the seat of these virtues, and i believe
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this to be the case. it is a logical location for a barrier of
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cactophagic repellents, it proves to be sharply more bitter than the
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white tissue (certainly indicating that it is very basic, and
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*probably* indicating that it therefore has the highest concentration
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of alkaloids), and the obvious informal qualitative bio-assay suggests
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that the white tissue is either very weak, compared to the green, or
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else entirely inactive. one experienced respondent opined that the
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white tissue none-the-less contains enough non-entheogenic
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psychoactives (such as the mescaline precursor dopamine?) to positively
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"color" the experience.
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there are many ways to approach peeling off the skin, but this gave me
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the best results:
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nick or notch out the spine clusters. split the cactus by cutting from
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the "valleys" between the ridges inward to the center of the core.
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this yields a "stick" of cactus with a diamond-shaped cross section
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which gives the most support to the green tissue during the peeling.
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starting from the corners and working along the length of the ridge,
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carefully peel off the skin. take multiple passes to do this. it is
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possible to detach the skin in a single piece, if you are patient.
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avoid leaving any of the green tissue clinging to the skin. the skin
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is likely to tear when lifting it away from scars and blemishes. the
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peel can be re-started by picking at it with a thumbnail if this
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happens.
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this is rather time-consuming. kennedy suggests listening to music
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while peeling nopale paddles, so there may be no way to speed this up.
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blanching the unsplit cactus for a minute in rapidly boiling water only
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makes things worse: it causes the soft tissues to begin to exude
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mucilage, a whitish waxy scum boils off of the skin (which is
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nauseating to even look at), and the skin still adheres.
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once the cactus is peeled it should be further broken down. i split
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the green layer off, then cut the fibrous tissue off of the white
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tissue.
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the peeled cactus can be used fresh, refrigerated for a week or so, or
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dried in a home food-dryer. "cactus jerky" can be further processed in
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a blender or food processor to yield "cactus granules".
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- recipes
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*crudites st. pierre*
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slice raw, peeled cactus into sticks. eat like "bitter cucumber
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spears". add salt, lime-juice and chopped cilantro to taste. this is,
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so far, my method of choice, partly because it is so minimalist.
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*ensalada de nopalitos*
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to each 4 oz of peeled, chopped raw cactus add 2 Tbs good-quality cider
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vinegar, and let stand in the refrigerator for at least an hour. add
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chopped parsely to taste. this is the second-best tasting recipe.
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*nopales asados*
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fry raw, peeled cactus strips in extra-virgin olive oil over medium-
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high heat, until the sharp edges brown, and small golden-brown blisters
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rise up on the faces. this ties for second best-tasting. the white
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tissue, in particular, has an underlying quality of sweetness that is
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brought out by frying, and the contrast of the crispness with the
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now-gelatinous interior is rather nice. serve lightly salted.
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*nopales al vapor*
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to 1 2/3 C peeled, trimmed, and chopped fresh cactus add 1 Tbs chopped
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scallions, a minced clove of garlic and salt to taste. fry in 1 Tbs
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olive oil, covered, over low-medium heat for 10 min. shake the pan
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from time to keep the cactus from sticking. when the juice has started
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to flow, uncover the pan and cook for an additional 15 minutes, until
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the juice has evaporated some, the residue has begun to resorb, and the
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cactus is lightly browned. scrape the pan with a wooden spoon to
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prevent sticking. yield 1/2 C.
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this is the best-tasting recipe. my concern is that some of the
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mescaline might stick to the pan rather than being entirely resorbed,
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although perhaps it is not carried out of the tissues in the mucilage,
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but remains behind in the cells. it *does* significantly reduce the
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volume of the cactus material.
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*chunky snot tea*
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add 1 - 2 Tbs cactus granules to 1 C hot water, and let stand for a
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bit. insignificant-looking granules swell to rice-grain size, and even
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finely chopped and ground fibrous tissue become noticeable
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"chunky-bits". the mucilage becomes quite pronounced, dripping in
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strings from the stirring spoon. adding the juice of 1/2 lime, or so,
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decreases the bitterness.
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i wish that i could say that the mucilage reconstitutes as a silky
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unction, reminiscent of some beloved child-hood comfort food, but what
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it really reminded me of was a bad head-cold. tossing the
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reconstituted tea back into the blender smoothes out the texture some.
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i can't help thinking that this treatment has potential, but i'm darned
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if i can make it manifest.
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*cactus jerky*
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the peeled, sliced, and dried cactus sticks can be eaten out-of-hand.
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this is my second-favorite recipe. it is more work than "cactus
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sticks", but can be made ahead, and is quite handy. since the mucilage
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begins to reconstitute during chewing this has the unnerving property
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of "the more you chew, the more there is to chew".
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- conversions and yields
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a widely-quoted figure says that t. pachanoi (wet) is 0.12% mescaline.
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freeze-dried unpeeled t. pachanoi is quoted at 2%. it is my impression
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that fresh cactus varies significantly in entheogenic activity, but
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this might be due primarily to water content, rather than environmental
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or cultural considerations. home-drying is probably not as complete as
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freeze-drying.
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8 oz (226 gms) whole, unpeeled, fresh cactus == 270 mg mescaline.
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12 oz (340 gms) whole, unpeeled, fresh cactus == 400 mg mescaline.
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2-2.5" dia fresh unpeeled ~= 1.5 oz/in
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3.5-4" dia fresh unpeeled ~= 3.5 oz/in
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16 oz. fresh cactus ~= 3 oz. fibrous pith
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+ 6 oz. white tissue
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+ 6 oz. green tissue
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+ 1 oz. skin and spines.
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12 oz. fresh cactus == 1 oz. dried (+ 7/8 oz. peel).
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1 oz. dried cactus == 2 slightly heaping Tbs cactus granules
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4 oz. fresh cactus == 5/8 C chopped.
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- palatability
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the discarding of the skin is probably an essential step to reducing
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the nausea induced by any cactus preparation (with the exception of a
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proper chemical extraction.) just looking at the waxy scum that boils
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off of it in just a minute of blanching is enough to turn my stomach.
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this stuff was not evolved to be digested, it was evolved to be
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abrasion-resistant and water-proof. it makes cucumber peel look
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burpless.
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generally, the addition of lime-juice or vinegar improves palatability
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by neutralizing the bitterness, which is particularly intense in the
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green tissue (see "chemical considerations" below). mature tissue from
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the base of a column seems to have a sandy, crunchy texture, although
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storage in a dark closet for some weeks may reduce this, as well as
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possibly intensifying the alkaloidal content (one cactacean informs me
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that t. pachanoi moved into the shade increases its alkaloidal content,
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although it grows fastest in direct sun.) the bitterness compares to a
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bitter espresso, but in volume can become daunting.
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i've only had one mild episode of stomach cramping. as noted an
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authority as shulgin says that that can almost be counted upon even
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with pure synthesized mescaline. i don't know if the mucilage actually
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soothes stomach tissues, or if an inveterate espresso-drinker such as
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myself has such a cast-iron stomach that mescaline can't get its
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attention, or if i just haven't yet eaten enough, often enough. nor
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have i yet suffered emesis, although sometimes those last few mouthfuls of
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bitter green tissue or the last gulps of mucus tea will start my gorge
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rising.
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any kind of heating, as well as exposure to food acids, starts the flow
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of mucilage. some cacti species have such pronounced mucilage that
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they are used to repair pottery. dry-heat treatments such as
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pan-frying act against this trend, but diced t. pachanoi salad stored
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in the refrigerator can become quite slimy (although after an hour or
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so, the volume of drawn juice reaches equilibrium). reconstituted
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dried cactus (as in "tea", above) can become quite unpleasantly slimy.
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i would discard the fibrous tissues, unless i was doing an extraction.
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it's just too hard to make it seem like food.
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the best-tasting recipes *do* taste better than simple raw cactus, and
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also shrink the volume of cactus to be consumed, but they don't taste a
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*lot* better.
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- chemical considerations
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presumably the addition of lime juice or vinegar converts various
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free-base alkaloids into their respective citrate or acetate. i don't
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know if this has any implications for absorption. i would expect
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stomach acid to convert free-base to the chloride, so except for any
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alkaloids absorbed sub-lingually the body won't ever be dealing with
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eaten cactus alkaloids as their free-base.
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according to mcgee "on food and cooking", heat-induced browning
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reactions in food occur from about 130C - 210C, so i'd expect the
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surface of frying (not scorching) cactus would not exceed that, nor the
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moist interior to exceed 100C. a kind respondent assures me that
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mescaline has a boiling-point of 320C @ 1 atm, and that offhand he sees
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no reason to think that it will decompose before it boils (although he
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suggests that i ask a Real Chemist (tm) to be sure. can any of you
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speak to this?).
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it is not clear to me whether the break-down of cell walls and other
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plant structures (and possibly break-down of mucilage) in the process
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of cooking contribute to speed and efficiency of mescaline absorption.
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i am assuming, but do not know for a fact, that mescaline from
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well-chewed raw cactus tissue in healthy stomach acid is subject to an
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absorption practically as as complete and fast as that from a
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boiled-down sludge or hot-water extract.
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- future work
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two approaches for further exploration suggest themselves. the first
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is to see if 30-60 minutes of pressure-cooking will reduce raw cactus
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(perhaps with a bit of lime-juice) to a porridge with a more-uniform
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texture, possibly with reduced slime. chilled, this might work as a
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gazpacho, or hot, as a vegetable consume' or chowder.
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the second is to see if the mucilaginous quality can be capitalized
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upon and exploited as a virtue. i look forward to corresponding with
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any gumbo-cooks who might have thoughts along these lines.
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=============================================================================
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Newsgroups: alt.drugs
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From: abostick@netcom.com (Alan L. Bostick)
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Subject: Re: San Pedro
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Message-ID: <abostickCrtA7w.9D@netcom.com>
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Date: Wed, 22 Jun 1994 18:33:32 GMT
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eric@d0ibm2.umd.edu () writes:
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>Anyone know anyting about the San Pedro cactus? Does it really contain Mecaline
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>or is this just a big joke? Also does it go by any other name?
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>thanx
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>-eric
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Yes, San Pedro cactus (Trichocereus pachanoi) does contain mescaline. It
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can be found at many nurseries that specialize in cacti and succulents,
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and you can raise it at home. It is a not-uncommon ornamental cactus.
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(There is a house between my home and the Ashby BART station in Berkeley
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that has a whole row of them, six feet tall, in the front yard. I wonder
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if the owner has any clue . . . ?)
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Here is a way to prepare the stuff that I have found effective:
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(1) Take a length of cactus, six inches per person, and carefully cut away
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the spine areoles.
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(2) Freeze the de-spined cactus. This helps break down cell walls to make
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extraction of the good stuff easier.
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(3) Thaw it in a bowl or watertight container. Don't lose the goo that
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drips out!
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(4) Using a carrot peeler or a small knife, peel the green skin off. Try
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to remove as little of the flesh as possible.
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(5) Cut the peeled cactus into small chunks
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(6) Using a blender or a food processor, chop the chunks into mush
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(7) Squeeze the mush through cheesecloth, to get the liquid out,
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and discard the contents of the cheesecloth.
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(8) Mix the goo from step 3 with the liquid from step 7.
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(9) Add milk (about a pint per person) to the mixture. Blend.
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(10) Serve.
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(11) Fasten your seatbelts, extinguish all smoking materials, put your
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seat backs and tray tables in their full upright and locked position, and
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enjoy your flight.
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San Pedro cactus tastes like the bitterest cucumber on God's good green
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earth. It's difficult to get down -- but once it's down, it stays down.
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One helpful variation is to use storebought eggnog rather than straight
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milk. Another variation is to add a scoop or two of icecream per person
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to the milk to make a mescaline milkshake.
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-- Alan Bostick
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abostick@netcom.com
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