Cactus Tuna

That's right. I said Cactus... Tuna.

Say what?!

In our most recent Bountiful Basket, we received a bag of prickly pear cactus fruit. The prickly pear cactus is actually edible. You can eat the paddle/leaf/pad, and also the fruit/prickly pear/tuna. Our bag included six tuna.

I really did not know what to do with these things and had never eaten any part of a cactus before, so I did a little internet research. That's how I discovered that they're called tuna, for example. Not exactly the most enticing name for a fruit, but I can see why it is called tuna. The flesh of the pear itself very much resembles raw tuna steaks, although the taste is much different. In outward appearance, they look like red potatoes. In fact, that's what I thought they were at first. Their flesh is a little squishier than a potato, though.

Which of those is actually a potato? 

My internet research was very helpful in determining how to cut and eat the tuna. I found many recipes for making cactus jellies and jams. Pureeing the fruit and sorting out the seeds for use in various types of beverages was also popular.

Step one: cut off both ends of the tuna.

For our first time trying cactus fruit, however, we opted to simply taste and enjoy.

Step two: Make one long cut from end to end, then peel back the thick skin.

The flavor was like a cross between watermelon and hibiscus. It was actually really good. Very sweet. I could easily taste how it would be very good in a beverage-- mixed with lemonade, or in a delicious coctail of some sort.

Step three: Cut into small pieces, eat and enjoy.
Seeds are edible, but don't chew easily, so you can spit them out as you would watermelon seed.

I also learned that the cactus tuna, referred to in one website as an "enchanted edible," is used in Mexico to treat diabetes as it has properties that aid in insulin regulation. They can and have also been used as a source of natural dye for fabrics.

If you see prickly pear cactus fruit at the store sometime, don't be afraid-- give it a try! I think we all agreed that it was very tasty. I'd definitely eat it again! Have any of you out there in my blogosphere tried cactus tuna before? If so, what did you think?!