Eating Prickly Pear Cactus

In 1805 William Clark (of the famed Lewis and Clark Expedition) named the valley in which I presently live the Prickly Pear Valley.  He named the valley such after removing over a dozen cactus spines from his feet following a brief exploration of the place.  A very real possibility exists that Mr. Clark stepped in the prickly pear cactus while hiking across what is now the very property I own.  He might still pick up a spine or two if he walked through my yard today.

I have allowed the prickly pear to repopulate all around my yard, which is very much a natural and native landscape.  As I have written previously, my yard confuses people with more persnickety definitions of a yard.  Sometimes, people visiting my house will say things like: “You have sagebrush in your yard.”  To which I will answer: “Yes, I do.”  Others will point and ask questions like: “Why is that cactus growing right there in your font yard?   To which I will respond: “I guess it likes that spot.  It has not moved from there since it first started growing several years ago.”

My particular cactus, brittle prickly pear, flourishes in open country along the Rocky Mountains ranging from lower Canada all the way to New Mexico.  Both the flower heads and the flesh of the cactus are edible and were a food source for native populations.

An interesting experiment is to actually try and eat one of the cactus plants yourself.

By interesting, I mean incredibly stupid.

You will likely sustain injuries and hurt like a son-of-a-bitch both during and following any attempted cactus harvest.  Make sure you have a first aid kit with you.  Natives employed a sagebrush stick and fire to remove the incredibly sharp and tenacious spines.  I would suggest a bulldozer and multiple flamethrowers if you want a meal for six.

The flesh of prickly pear cactus plants can be eaten raw, boiled, or may be cooked in other fashions.  Prickly pear may vary in taste from bitter to sweet.  I have eaten the cactus raw and found it bitter, at first, with a near-cucumber to bland finish.  The spines you fail to remove from the plant during the early harvest and preparation process will stick in your lips and tongue.

The prickly pear is in bloom as of this writing.  Today, I am posting a photograph I captured with my twice-as-smarter-than-me phone.  You are welcome to print a copy of the photograph and eat it.

--Mitchell Hegman