If you have wondered what to make with prickly pears, you will love these fun tips and prickly pear recipes! I will walk you through everything you need to know about these exotic cactus fruits and how to enjoy their flavor!
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I have a special treat for you today! I am in love with prickly pears and will show you some of the best prickly pear recipes you can make with them!
Prickly pears have many names, including cactus fruit, cactus pears, Opuntia, cactus fig, and even Mexican tuna fruit. They can be found throughout Mexico, California, South Africa, and in some southern states.
Prickly pears come in several colors, ranging from red to hot pink, orange, and green. You can use any color of prickly pear in the recipes I share. I love using vibrant red and purple cactus pear fruit juice to make syrup.
How to eat a prickly pear:
There are lots of ways to eat a prickly pear. You can make a jam, prickly pear chutney, or cactus pear jelly. I love using juice to make syrup for cocktails! Sauces for roasted meats flavored with prickly pear add a great deal of flavor.
Prickly pears taste like a cross between watermelon, strawberries, and raspberries. They have an earthy flavor and are great for sweet and savory recipes! My favorite way to enjoy them is in my Prickly Pear Margarita recipe linked below!
What part of the cactus pear is edible?
You can eat the fruit inside the cactus pear rind. You should not eat the peel or spines.
How to remove prickly pear spines:
Luckily, most prickly pears are sold with the spines removed. If you end up with a spiny cactus pear, you can safely remove the thorns with these steps:
- Wear thick gloves
- Use tweezers or pliers to carefully pull the spines out of the prickly pear.
- One reader commented that he uses a kitchen blowtorch. If you do this, be sure to take all safety precautions!
You either get a small handheld torch to burn them off before picking, or you hold them with tongs over a flame (stove, etc) & hold them over the flame just long enough to burn the thorns off all the way around.” Hoy, comment on Fearless Dining Prickly Pear Syrup recipe.
Another reader, Alex from South Africa, recommends soaking the prickly pears to remove the spines. His directions are below.
The easiest and painless way to remove the spines of a prickly pear, is to put it in cold water for few minutes to soften the spines so that it don’t prick you, and lightly brush off the spines with a tooth or small nail brush under the water. You will also notice that most of the spines are dislodged by itself after a few minutes in the water.” Alex, blog comment
How to cut a cactus pear:
Cutting a cactus pear is easy once the spines are removed. Place the pear on a cutting board, and use a sharp knife to cut off both ends. Next, make a horizontal knife slice about 1/8 of an inch down the skin. You should be able to peel the skin off, leaving just the fruit.
The bummer about prickly pears is their seeds. They are hard as rocks and not edible in their current form. You will need to either remove them if you use pieces of the fruit or strain them out if you want the juice. Some brave people extract cactus pear seed oil from them, but that requires specialized equipment.
How to remove the seeds:
The best way to remove the seeds is to press the fruit through a fine-mesh strainer. The juice can pass through into a glass. If you want to have chunks of fruit, you can eat the fruit and then spit out the seeds. It isn’t ideal, but whichever you do, be careful because the seeds are small but rock-hard.
Some people just swallow the seeds, as reader Randelions reminded me.
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Just peel the fruit and eat. You don’t want to chomp down hard on them but the flesh is soft enough you don’t have to chew hard anyway. This is how everyone I know in Mexico eats them.” Randelions, blog comment on my Prickly Pear Guide.
How long will prickly pears keep fresh?
Prickly pears should keep fresh on the counter or in the produce drawer of your refrigerator for 1 to 2 weeks, depending on how ripe they were when you purchased them. If they are cut open, store them in these airtight containers.
And now for the recipes. These are easy prickly pear recipes you can make quickly. I look forward to hearing which one you liked best!
Did you make one of these recipes?
We would love to hear what your favorite prickly pear recipe is. Please leave a comment. Thank you!
The Best Prickly Pear Recipes:
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![Prickly Pear Mead [Recipe]](https://jstarwood.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/screen-shot-2017-09-07-at-1-05-11-pm.png)
I truly hope you enjoy this recipe. I have been testing and creating gluten-free recipes for over 15 years. Creating gluten-free recipes that do not taste gluten-free is my goal for every recipe. Sometimes I only have to test a new recipe a couple of times, and others it takes multiple times. I do this so you get reliable, delicious results every time!
I forgot to mention sparkling water was added to the prickly pear and watermelon blend.
I do the grill method for those glochids. Blender then strain. I blended equal parts prickly pear with watermelon and some fresh lime juice. It was SO DELICIOUS that no one wanted to add any alcohol just crushed ice. I froze this blend and it was just as delicious in January.
Thanks for the post.
Hi KJ, I never thought to grill them. I love this idea and I appreciate your mocktail recipe!!
Any recommendations for when the fruit is green? My grocery store is selling green fruit, but I’m unsure if it is underripe, or just green (vs the pink/red of which I am accustomed)
Hi Kelly, I haven’t seen unripe fruit here, but I wonder if putting it in a paper bag, as we would to ripen stone fruit and bananas could work?