The big, thicket-forming Indian fig (Opuntia ficus-indica) is a native of the New World (possibly Mexico). There are many cultivated kinds, some of which have spines and others do not. Since the beginning of time, spineless varieties have been highly esteemed for their juicy, sweet fruits (berries), and aboriginal Americans from Mexico and tropical America exchanged them. The cactus pads (stem segments) are cut into cubes and eaten (boiled) like string beans under the name “nopales” in Mexico.
Nopalitos are little strips made from Opuntia ficus-indica cactus pads (stem segments). The tender stem parts are commonly prepared with eggs, pork, chiles, and onions. They are cooked (boiled) similarly to string beans.
The many-seeded, fresh fruit is known as “cactus apple” or “tuna,” and it can be consumed raw or turned into a beverage. The tiny glochid spines, which resemble hairs, require extreme caution when handling the fruits during preparation. By scraping, singeing, or washing the fruits extensively in a tub with a high pressure nozzle, the uncomfortable glochids can be eliminated from the fruit. Typically, the fruits’ ends are cut off transversely, after which the fruits are split open lengthwise and the contents extracted from the skin.
A section of the flattened stem segment (pad) of an Indian fig hybrid (Opuntia ficus-indica), along with several succulent, mature fruits. The upper end of the fruits is covered in many hair-like spines (glochids), which are not visible in the photo but can be quite painful if they pierce the hand, fingers, or mouth. When handling the fruits, extreme caution must be taken.
This cactus was grown in California throughout the 1700s and 1800s near Spanish missions and on substantial ranchos owned by the Spanish. The cactus pads were employed as a source of mucilaginous binding material for adobe bricks for the mission structures in addition to the cooked stems and sweet fruits. This species has multiplied and interbred with various native prickly pear species over the years, leading to a large number of intermediate forms (known as hybrid swarms) all across its range. In southern California, some of the huge, thicket-forming hybrid clones can even survive grass and chaparral fires by renewing from living stems in the thicket’s heart, where the fire cannot spread. The world’s temperate and tropical climates currently support the growth of this complex plant and its numerous cultivars and hybrids.
An Indian fig (Opuntia ficus-indica), with large leaf segments (pads) bearing many mature figs in the fall, in the Merriam Mountains of San Diego County. In California, large clumps like these are typical; many of them were introduced during the mission period in the 1700s and 1800s.
Can tuna cactus be eaten?
Opuntia, the prickly pear, is a remarkably adaptable food source. Both the fruit (tunas) and the pads (nopales) are edible, although care should be taken when gathering and preparing them.
What is the benefit of tuna cactus?
The prickly pear cactus, often referred to as nopal, opuntia, and other names, is marketed as a remedy for hangovers, high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. It is also praised for having anti-inflammatory and antiviral qualities.
- Treatment for urinary tract infections with an infusion of pads
- Raw nopalitos include mucilage (pulp), which lowers the rate of sugar absorption and significantly lessens the symptoms of insulin shock.
- Adult pads as a wound poultice and antiseptic
- mature pads for burn treatment
- Tea prepared from pads to treat scar tissue from tuberculosis
- Mucilage from mature pads has antibacterial qualities because it kills bacteria in cultures.
- Boils are treated with a hot prickly pear pad treatment.
- As a hemostat, split pads are used to halt bleeding.
- Treatment for a swollen prostate using infusion of pads
Insoluble calcium oxalate and soluble mucilage are both abundant in pads. They drastically decrease cholesterol and prevent glycemia due to their hypoglycemic action. Simple carbohydrates are not absorbed as well when exposed to soluble fibers, especially viscous mucilage. In addition, amylose, which breaks down into simple sugars more slowly than amylopectin, the starch found in bread and potatoes, is abundant in pads. However, mature pads have insoluble calcium oxalate crystals that could be harmful to your health. Nopales are beneficial in “preventing diet-related cardiovascular disease and adult onset diabetes” as well as “preserving the male prostate gland,” according to Laredo herbalist Tony Ramirez. (2011) Fowler
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