Are all Cacti fruit edible ?

mckrob

mckrob

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In the area where I live in Peru, the Prickly Pear is plentiful. They are called "Tuna" here which I think is a Quechua word (not Spanish).

There are at least two types here that grow wild and are sold in the markets, one has a red flesh, the other green, and they both taste more or less the same, they are quite a delicacy here, everyone loves them so they are not that easy to find in the wild until you get quite a ways out of town.



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In Hawaii a few months ago I was hiking up Makapu'u Head and noticed a very similar fruit that was growing everywhere. I thought I had scored big time (I love prickly pears) so I cut one open to take a bite and it was full of worms.

Any prickly pear experts out there? are there any species that can not be eaten? are there any species that are more prone to insect infestations that render them inedible such as the ones I observed in Hawaii? These certainly would be a great survival food if infact all species are edible.


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Sorry ... just another physicist!

However, I had the same experience as you hiking in Hawaii a few years ago.

I'm just as interested in the eventual answer. Frankly, I love prickly pear and am as interested as you to hear the answer.
 
you live in Peru thats interesting. im going to Ecuador this summer to vist some family and maybe ill see some prickly pear.i know its of topic but do you know of any sites you recommend seeing in Ecuador besides the Galapagos. any native tribe areas i should check out?
 
Well im very far from an expert.. But i do know that some of them can kill you while others might make you feel how can i say it... Sort of happy as a butterfly in a sunny day... Well im sure you get it lol. As for worms, if a bird breaks the skin then the worms get in there. The way i like to pick the fruit. I use a long pole with a can on the end alittle larger then the fruit. I put it over and then break it off. The fruit end up in the can. Find some sand and roll the fruit in it to get the thorns off. Yes i do like to eat them. In Israel as kids we used to eat them alot. The red ones are very high in Iron, its good Pregnat women .

Sasha
 
The ones on maui are edible... I've never seen worms in them....of course you have to clean well before you eat them, there's about a thousand mini needles on the outside.'
 
Don't know much about cacti, but to my knowledge a prickly pear is edible. I've eaten a few that were growing in the sandhills with no ill effects. I do know that the peyote contains a hallucinogenic chemical, though.
 
The variety in South Texas is edible as well. Well, I don't know that for sure. If it is not edible, then I am dead several times over from eating them as a kid. Had those mini thorns in me for weeks every time. Never learned.
 
I know most prickly pear are edible. Some species more than others. The pods of the teddy bear cholla are also edible. As are the fruits of the saguaro.
 
Great thread...I love the threads that make me do research. Gene
 
I have never heard of any prickly pears being poisonous. I may be wrong about some varieties that you don't find around here, but I haven't heard otherwise.

In terms of the thorns, and this goes for prickley pears and especially chollas (which have thorns considered to be the sharpest things in nature), a Bic lighter is your best friend. :D Really, even the little barely visible ones are no match for a little flame.
 
we have the ordinary prickly pear ( or indian fig as its sometimes called here in Aus ) , they have finer smaller prickles than the ones pictured above tho , we pick them , stick them on a long handled fork and burn the prickles off over a flame

then we have tiger pear , skinnier leaves , with MUCH longer spikes , a pretty flower and fruit that are not much at all ... but they are edible I heard .. too prickly for me to be bothered trying

there are a couple other kinds of catci that have fruit , some tiny little red ones barely bigger than pin heads , that are sweet but not enough of them to make a feed of the fruit .

Some people here collect the leaves of the prickly pear too and cook it for a vegetable , I tried it , its OK .

I dont know of any inedible cacti , but Id guess there would have to be somewhere ...
 
Cactus can be cooked. It can also be eaten raw. I have yet to see a human eat it unpeeled though I'd probably pay some dare money to see it done.

I prefer mine well peeled, cut into strips, and pan sauteed in a little olive oil, some salt, white pepper, and then a few splashes of tabasco.
 
When I was a kid, I ate the pears mostly unpeeled. Just scrape away as many of the thorns as possible. I always had those tiny thorns in my fingers, though.
 
I live along North African coast where prickly pear plant grows in abundance. The fruits are of red or green color, sometimes both and are best picked during the Summer months. I have never come across a type that was not edible.
 
on_the_edge said:
In terms of the thorns, and this goes for prickley pears and especially chollas (which have thorns considered to be the sharpest things in nature), a Bic lighter is your best friend. :D Really, even the little barely visible ones are no match for a little flame.
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hlee said:
When I was a kid, I ate the pears mostly unpeeled. Just scrape away as many of the thorns as possible. I always had those tiny thorns in my fingers, though.
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Glochids are the bane of the cactus world. Those little irritating hairs that surround the larger needles.

I agree they are best dealt with by fire. The itching is worse than getting stabbed. Unless it's a cholla needle. Each cholla spine is covered with a thin paper like sheath that remains in your skin after the needle is removed.
 
I like to go camping at Anza Borego desert alot... Everyone need to exp some of the jumping cholla thorns.. At the end they have a barb that looks like a tiny fish hook. Last trip i triped and had about a dozen of then stuck in my hand. It hurts to leave then in and its a pain to pull them out. They are soooooo sharp that just touching them and they go in half an inch deep. I were told that in Mexico they have some cactus that you are not supposed to eat as it can make you sick.

Sasha
 
The fruits of the prickly pear around here (Central TX) are good. They are very sweet, some people make jelly with them. I've cut them into thin slices and eaten it for a sugary snack. A bit smaller than a fist and purple/red. They are everywhere.

The worst cactus I know are pencil cactus (also called jumping cactus). Whole bushes made of small, finger joint sized sections. Smack one with a stick or hit it with a utility vehicle and the sections fly everywhere and stick in everything. There's a variety with long flame colored needles that also have the sheaths that come off. So freaking sharp you have to see to believe it. They have a small red fruit that someone told me was edible. I've not tried it, I try to steer clear of them.

It's the peyote that's hallucenigenic. I had one pointed out to me once in west TX. Small wrinkley ugly thing.
 
mckrob said:
In the area where I live in Peru, the Prickly Pear is plentiful. They are called "Tuna" here which I think is a Quechua word (not Spanish).

There are at least two types here that grow wild and are sold in the markets, one has a red flesh, the other green, and they both taste more or less the same, they are quite a delicacy here, everyone loves them so they are not that easy to find in the wild until you get quite a ways out of town.

I don't know of any U.S. native cacti that are poisonous. Many SW U.S. cacti produce edible fruits. The flesh of the barrel cactus is chopped and boiled for hours in sugary water to make candy (bisnaga). The barrel cactus is protected on public lands but they are illegally harvested in large numbers and hauled to So. Cal. Prickly pear fruits are popular with a lot of animals-from tortoises to javelina.

GB
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