PRICKLY PEAR INTRODUCTION

OPUNTIA (PRICKLY PEAR)
The prickly pear cactus is the official state plant of Texas. The entire plant is edible. The pads and thorns are its leaves and can be eaten raw if it’s a young tender plant or cooked if older. Interestingly our elders had many uses for the pads including, but not limited to; as a water filter to remove sediment, once dried and sealed with sap used as a waterproof pouch and a great food source of fibre and vitamins.

Avery and I recently harvested some of the fruit and made a jam, which naturally tastes like a watermelon and bubblegum hybrid. Be careful when picking the fruit as it contains small hairs that can burrow in the skin and be quite painful and cumbersome to remove. A great way to pick the fruit is by using tongs. Then at home, put them in a bowl and run under cold water for at least five minutes, keep shaking the bowl and swirl them around — this loosens the small prickly hairs and once done you can handle freely.