WE TRIED SAND BOARDING (van life in La Paz Baja Mexico)

[@digitakes]

Slice those nopales into strips 1-2" long, add a little vinegar and salt to simmer them in until the slime goes away, add a few tomatoes and onions and cook until tender. Lime juice to finish off - delicious. Smaller bite size pieces let the slime cook off a little faster. The tomato and onion sorta soak it up and make a nice sauce. No vinegar, no problem, start off with the lime juice instead of vinegar. It's fun that you tried them and since it's the namesake, it's worth a try to make them good!

[@dsphotoscapes]

INSTRUCTIONS Nopales, or cactus paddles, are the pads of the prickly pear cactus. They’re a very common ingredient in Mexican cuisine and are used in all sorts of dishes, including tacos and salad. They have a thick and meaty texture with a mild flavor that’s a cross between asparagus and okra. When their spines and thorns are removed, they can be chopped or sliced and then cooked until tender. During the cooking process, they release a slime that’s also similar to okra. This is easily removed by rinsing the cooked nopales a few times before using them in other dishes. Place the cactus paddles on a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, carefully scrape and slice off the thorns and dark brown bumps on all sides. Rinse the cactus paddles under running water to remove any dirt and grime. Dice the cactus paddles into bite-size pieces or slice them into thin strips. Place in a medium pot with salt, and fill with water until all the cactus paddles are covered. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium, cover with a lid, and cook for 10 more minutes. Drain the water from the nopales and give them another rinse under warm water to remove any excess slimy liquid. Eat plain or saute in a little olive oil with your favorite seasonings. (See post above for more ways to use cooked nopales.) ISABEL’S TIPS: If you’ve never worked with cactus paddles before, be careful because each pad has little tiny spines and thorns that will easily prick your fingers. I recommend using gloves the first time. Once you get the hang of it, you can try to handle them without gloves. Cooked nopales can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. You can then stir fry them with red or green chile, bell peppers, garlic and other veggies for a bowl. You can eat them just like this, or saute them in a little olive oil with some garlic, onions and any other spices you like. One popular recipe using nopales is nopales con huevo, or nopales cooked with scrambled eggs. They’re a delicious vegetable addition to any meal, and even make delicious vegetarian tacos!

[@DariaThomasNr1]

Jimmy picking up Natalie was so fun!🙈 Love you guys!

[@audreythomas589]

The little dog is Mercy! She is a sweetheart. She belongs to the owner of the restaurant and park. I vacation in LaPaz 2x a yr. The dune you surfed on is amazing. I was there in Oct during Hurricane Norma and the bottom was full of water! Baja Pelican is a great restaurant also. So glad you enjoyed LaPaz

[@audreythomas589]

The nopales are great in a yogurt shake with pineapple 🍍!

[@WheresWiseman]

We've been following along on your Baja trip and it's been fantastic! Sand surfing looks like so much fun, Natalie you crushed it on that run!

[@itsmollz_]

Nat looked like such a badass on the board going down the taller slope! Way to go girl!💪

[@laurenm8561]

Don’t know if I was supposed to laugh, but I busted out when you made that great run Natalie and then you raise your arm and said I’m Okay! You guys are crazy lol. Glad to see Corey in your video! This is so fun, thanks for taking us along!

[@etrimbleable]

You two are so adorable and awesome. Thanks for bringing us along. Stay safe.

[@Gigi2222-p4z]

We have made nopalitoes like I fry okra- roll pieces in corn meal and salt and pepper, and deep fry. Very good!

[@omegaudio]

We enjoy your videos. You made my wife and I laugh. Enjoying your trip.

[@BabaandJerusha]

We love how you keep it simple yet fun. Ya'll make it seem like a Baja excursion is not that far out of reach. Enjoy van aide!!

[@mikeanderson6522]

Great fun. Keep adding Cory story. Fun to watch friends together.😊

[@johnadams7323]

Pickeld Napalitas are good in a Burrito. They will CLEAN YOU OUT 🤣🤣🤣 a lot of fiber 😂

[@tomassanesson902]

So awesome

[@PSAdventures]

Another great video! The sand surfing was awesome. Loved seeing you wearing the VanFest 2023 shirt! We actually found you from your VanFest video since we wanted to know what it was like and now we have VanFest 2024 shirt. Haha! Keep up the fun in Mexico! 🎉🎉🎉

[@alannachristie6495]

You guys are the best! 😂😂😂😂😂😂❤❤❤❤ Thank you for the laughs! ❤ Stay safe! ❤🙏😊

[@ourvanlives4736]

The only way I enjoy nopales is to chop them into thin strips before cooking them the way you did. With onions, tomatoes and black beans.

[@ourvanlives4736]

Oh and cook it for 35 minutes that way.

[@tedpreston4155]

Sometimes, watching Jimmy and Natalie's adventures reminds me of a sticker I once saw on a rally car: "A Coupl'a Nuts in a Tin Can." Rally cars always have a driver and a navigator, and they have to be half nuts to compete in that crazy sport. But the label works well for Jimmy & Natalie in Pancake too! 🙃

[@candyclemens4432]

❤ I can't believe I missed this one but glad you mentioned it on the live. 😂 you both are so fun to watch. That was a great pic shot at the end!!!❤

[@Ed-R]

Hi Jimmy and Natalie. I found and subbed to your Channel at the end of the Canadian Road Trip. I am from Alberta, Canada. Love all your Adventures. Who needs Sunscreen when you can use Sandscreen. Stay safe and keep having Fun on the Baja Road Trip.

[@shaunmoller2997]

Again grat episode full of fun

[@MichelleFitzpatrick-of8oc]

❤ Love watching your videos. Come North to Michigan and see the Sand Dunes, then take excursions to the Manitou Islands, Mackinaw Island. Tour the UP and do pictured rocks National Lakeshore, Backpack on Ilse Royal, then go West and do the Northern parts of Wisconsin and Mimnesota, kayak in Boundary Wayers.

[@jennifersanchez4040]

Omg this was your funniest video yet! I laughed so hard at you eating the nopales!!! I see someone already told you how to prepare them. We slice then cube and scramble with eggs and also with meat. They’re very healthy!

[@thom_lester]

On the prickly pear cooking? We grow several plants in our yard (we are in southern Nevada just east of Death Valley). My wife cleans them and tosses them in our dehydrator on low for about a day. They make absolutely wonderful jerky strips! Oh, and we have a DIY PM 159rb that we lived in full time for ~2+ yrs before building our tiny house on foundation.

[@lilrusty6720]

There are a few ways of making nopales. The most common is a cold salad. Steam the pods until they turn a different shade of green. Dice the pods. Dice tomato, onion, chop cilantro and mince some garlic(optional). Place it all in a bowl and add salt, pepper and lemon or lime to your liking. This becomes a cold salad. Tasty. The cactus is a fiber and the slime has medicinal properties. If the slime is not appealing, instead of steaming, boil the pods, dice and rinse. Then add everything else, The salad can be eaten as a side salad or with tortilla chips. Very tasty. A green salad can be topped with this cactus salad and add olive oil and avocado. A chile colorado dish can be made with diced pods. Chile colorado is small chunks of pork with red chile sauce and diced nopal pods. Others enjoy placing the pod on a barbeque grill. Nopales do not need to be cooked. Simply washed and diced to make that same cold salad to retain the slime. Enjoy.

[@tanyajohnston8262]

Yikes I would have stayed at the bunny hill ! I’m glad you made it through with no crazy hardm 😊

[@bobknull7502]

I was pretty impressed with Natalie's sand boarding skills. Fun episode.

[@karenolson5556]

I would have googled it before I tried to cook it!!!

[@ShellysNest]

Sandboarding looked like a lot of fun! Although, we may stick to the bunny slope 😂 Jimmy, I can't believe you didn't save the sand from your shoes! 👟⏳ Cool you tried a new food! I'm sure your next batch will be better! 🌵

[@josephsilvia1746]

Natalie I heard you boil the pads and eat them with garlic and onions with salt

[@keiramorgan5052]

Yes it is slimy. People make a salad with them.. salt and limon

[@keiramorgan5052]

Chop into small pieces. Boil to get rid of the sliminess. Rinse and chill. Make a salad with red tomato (jitomate) onion and cilantro all chopped fine, then add salt and lime juice.(limon). Serve chilled as a side salad with whatever

[@Live-Your-Passion]

too funny when Jimmy carried Natalie to the restaurant

[@jcv6988]

Was n La Paz 4 yrs ago & loved my time there. The shops, restaurant/bars along the waterfront were really cool. Did go in a whale shark snorkeling boat trip & also saw dolphins. Was so awesome!

[@Mr.Ramirez95]

This is definitely making me miss my country after watching your Mexico series. I haven’t been there in more than a decade. Mostly fear from what I see on the news and an empty wallet is what keeps me from visiting. The pendulum is definitely swayed by your videos and can’t wait to go back one day.

[@anneparisi1828]

That sand boarding looks amazing . Interesting experience with the food. 👍

[@hiltonmclaurin]

Nopales cut into strips, salt and pepper, dredge in flour or cornstarch then fry in oil with RANCH dressing of course. My Lubbock recipe 😊

[@ourv9603]

When the California gold rush began in 1849 there were no farms in California but hundreds nay Thousands of people began pouring in to San Francisco. To feed this horde, a farmer in La Paz bought a small sailing ship & began making weekly deliveries to SF of produce. !

[@tammycruz8189]

OMG Looks like sooo much fun . Nat your a badass 😎... Please Stay Safe Down There Guys . Safe Travels Always. God Bless Ya'll. Mucho Love from your friend in Michigan Tam ❤️ ♥️ 💕 💗

[@wandaboutilier2608]

Sandboarding looks like so much fun

[@genekied]

Back in the 90's we started sandboarding in Colorado at the Great Sand Dunes, it was tough, we had just regular snow boards and they just don't work on dry sand. We found out that if the sand was wet it worked great and you went really fast, however the falls/landings were really painful as wet sand is hard. People were getting injured pretty bad and the Park Service was getting ready to ban the activity all-together. Luckily people started to develope the types of baords and sleds you guys used in La Paz and that opened up the activity to the dry and softer sand. The Colorado dunes are really huge and some riders still get hurt but if you watch your speed and learn how to fall, you can manage it pretty safely. It's now a big deal at the Park.

[@snug40pip]

Another great video! I’m surprised you guys did not. KZbin had to cook Nopales Always enjoy you guys love from Colorado.

[@CrustyClad]

Curious… Do y’all filter your tank water or use bottled water for drinking?

[@donnacrosby7439]

Hi Natalie, I am allergic to shedding animals also. So I have 2 yorkies they are small and very good travelers.

[@victoriamaaske7420]

I really enjoyed watching the shopping and sand sliding.

[@joannemcmurray2155]

I looked up a recipe on KZbin and apparently if you brush them with some garlic and oil and cook them on a BBQ they are supposed to be good.

[@gr6696]

All I really noticed was when Jimmy got on the soundboard all the sudden he went backwards even with you at the bottom of the hill everybody else seem to going forward.🤣😁😂 I think all your eggs and pains will go away all in the fun of your excursion. Great content thank you.

[@archieletsyouknow5508]

💯🤔 okay okay okay want a little more than 25 minute videos😂😂😂

[@archieletsyouknow5508]

💯🤔 just to remind you the way you brighten up people's days😂

[@Miguel-r3r1x]

yes you cook them until all the slime is cooked out one can eat them with a meal not by themselves! mix them with salsa or meat or Pico de Gallo

[@johnrandazzo7158]

Hi, we love your videos! FYI: on your next SAND adventure take baby powder with you. Sprinkle it on and it will take off the sand easily (not sure how it will work if you have "fresh" sunscreen on).

[@samydamico9843]

Love the adventurous side of your lives. Great bloopers. Got jokes!😂😂

[@DebraGuzman-jv9uh]

You cut cactus up into small pieces and cook with scrambled eggs or diced potatoes or any stir fry meals ... Can also grate it like cheese and use in cookies, or bread, like zucchini 😋

[@mscarlarn]

Loved watching yall sand surf how fun.

[@phosawelonewolf2886]

That looked like so much fun. I was worried about Nat, hitting her head and all. I thought she would buy a sun dress at the market. I think they are beautiful. Can’t wait till next week 👍🏽😬☀️

[@ErnestPerez-rg2uo]

Natalie that was an awesome ride. You all are living the dream in the moment. Nopales are usually cut in small thin strips or cut in small squares. I cook them in the same pan I am cooking my steak. So they pick up all that flavor and are soft because they were cut thin or small. You can also buy them pickled in a jar in the states. Yes they are good cooked in certain methods. I am jealous you even speak more Spanish than me. I was born a coconut! Keep the joy coming. Jimmy you are a very loving person.

[@DebraKopera]

Looks like you had a awesome time Be safe out there

[@johnstuart8511]

This looks like a adventures of a lifetime. "Action ". Was fun just watching. Besides the windy day. Great stuff. Thank you for sharing your videos. Regards 🇿🇦.

[@thomastevis8655]

Awesome videos sorry I’m so late

[@lyndalabine2875]

To say I’m enjoying this video is an understatement….from the goofy goggles (I’m still laughing ) to your first attempts at the bunny hill this video made my day…..as for the cactus paddles….no thanks LOL….

[@garymackenzie9125]

Awesome video

[@fredbeagle307]

SHREDD NATE!

[@annettemills3840]

It’s really fun to do that in White Sands New Mexico, also.

[@suzanneethier1450]

Hey you guys from canada woiw so cool are you ok must be ard on San nice show ❤

[@jerroddooley374]

Y’all please be careful and vigilant down there. have fun!

[@flowrider5082]

You have literal true grit! ❤️🇨🇦

[@mikeellindonut2004]

That was a good time watching the 2 of you, I got to try the sand boarding, and the cactus

[@oscarahumada8416]

The cactus goes really well with eggs and ham great for breakfast also goes good with meat and salsa salt is good for both dishes .....safe travels guys !

[@nancyschad2969]

Add a tablespoon of baking soda to get rid of the slim. Can be mushy if cooked too long. I like to grill method.

[@melindamohler7066]

Loved the sand dune show! You guys are awesome!

[@bobstellmaker3816]

nopalitos and scrambled eggs are awesome!

[@brenthiteoutdoors]

Looks like a cool place to visit! Thanks for sharing!

[@youngatheart51]

sandboarding looked exciting...thanks for another great video

[@terriquotskuyva4594]

Looked like a whole lot of fun!!

[@MelissaMalzahn]

Glad your having fun. Safe travels ❤

[@grayfox9911]

Y'all have fun and be very careful down there!

[@joerossiter1611]

You guys are crazy you would not catch me going down in that sand. I hate the feeling of sand on my body. I would have to have a shower close by if I got covered in sand like you guys but it looks like you’re having fun and that’s all that matters, good luck guys be safe

[@mariahorsfield76]

❤ you guy look like you had so much fun ❤ see u next week❤

[@janiec5185]

Great episode! You guys are really too cute.

[@wegottafishdude]

🤘🏻😎🤘🏻 Awesome stuff guys

[@jennifernewby9197]

Stew the cactus wth tomatoes, onions, garlic, and jalapeños . Serve in a tortilla. Looks like you guys are having a blast.

[@superdave1949]

I wonder if sandboarding is relatively new? We went to Cabo San Lucas almost 25 years ago and didn't see it. But we did do a couple of 4-wheeler excursions that were epic! It was fun watching you guys shred the dunes (and get shredded back!)

[@edwarddoran6689]

Great video once agin!!

[@jasontaylor9871]

Do ya'll have any type of tracing device in your van?

[@Bekahandjoel]

So fun!!!! WE just arrived in Le Paz so we are gonna have to try some sandboarding too! Also, what mikes are you using? We are having a brutal time trying to film here with all the wind and your sound was pretty great considering.

[@JimmyandNatalie]

Oh you guys would love Sandboarding! (Just make sure to have a shower lined up after 😂) And we’ve got the quick connect Sony mic for our main camera (I believe the link for that is in the description) and then we also used the GoPro 12 for some of the sandboarding shots! You’re right though, it’s been so hard to film around all the wind!

[@Bekahandjoel]

@@JimmyandNatalie hahaha!! Yes indeed. The shower plan be important! I will have to check out that Mike. Thank you!

[@serafimpereira9483]

Wish I was there with you 3.

[@TreantmonksTemple]

With all the sand stuck to you and the sand goggles, you look like the main characters of the next Mad Max movie.

[@robertspanjers7888]

Wow what a great video full of adventure. First the sandboarding and then trying the nopales. I am not sure but I think I had nopales in a dish in Mexico. It was cut in small pieces and sauteed in its own liquid (according to google 😉)and mixed with other vegetables. It reminded me a bit of cut string beans.

[@fabiolaosuna3201]

Guys, you need to try nopales again, but well cooked😂... they are so good and healthy. Huevo con nopales are so good, you can try with different meals in restaurants.

[@keiramorgan5052]

I think i have learned long sleeves

[@janetcastro371]

Try deep fry..maybe that will work.

[@genesnyder2985]

Looks like great fun but you get sand in places you don’t were places

[@ThePierce5144]

Thought of broiling them? Or roasting?

[@emilygeez]

Nopales is the cactus & as a vegan I love nopales tacos

[@justlookin3]

Sometimes KZbinrs do stuff I would like to do. Thanks, sand surfing is not one and I would be horrified to be in a speeding dune buggy too. Thanks for sharing so I will know better.

[@StanR56]

Enjoyed the video,,,,,,,show more of the city where walmart is..................

[@fordraven5884]

👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾😊😊

[@sandrafromtexas1957]

first google...How to Cook Cactus Pear Most recipes call for cooking cactus pear down into pulp, straining it and then cooking it again to make syrup, sauces, jams and jelly.

[@louiselev5436]

Tacos w/ the nopales, cut into strips. Google recipes.

[@jeanneprice6736]

Google to find how to cook the cactus

[@philipfareio4445]

Take Skiing Poles

[@RuthAnn-f4j]

🤣😂 what you kids do for fun🤣😂