Eating prickly pears...

Panhandler80

Anybody ever eaten prickly*pears?* I was researching it today and am going to give it a shot.* I've got a ton of them in a few places.* The flower / fruit is supposed to be real sweet, but the pads are edible too.* A little bit of prep required, but nothing too terrible.* Going to try after next trip to the woods and will report back.

Florida Bullfrog

I actually never have that I clearly recall. They're usually one of the first things people try when they get into trying wild edibles. I think I've eaten some a long time ago that someone else prepared.

Fresh smilax shoots are my favorite. They taste like fresh green beans. I have a buddy who loves to hunt with his children, but he himself is a vegetarian. On the same kind of camping trips I'll go hunting and fishing on, he'll forage for plants. He's taught me a lot about wild edibles. Its actually pretty amazing what all around is edible to humans and actually tastes good. My family has been living off the land in Florida since the early 1800s. Yet whatever traditions were known about wild edibles were lost by the time my great grandfathers were alive, save for obvious things like swamp cabbage, blackberries, and wild onion.

Panhandler80

Florida Bullfrog wrote: »

I actually never have that I clearly recall. They're usually one of the first things people try when they get into trying wild edibles. I think I've eaten some a long time ago that someone else prepared.

Fresh smilax shoots are my favorite. They taste like fresh green beans. I have a buddy who loves to hunt with his children, but he himself is a vegetarian. On the same kind of camping trips I'll go hunting and fishing on, he'll forage for plants. He's taught me a lot about wild edibles. Its actually pretty amazing what all around is edible to humans and actually tastes good. My family has been living off the land in Florida since the early 1800s. Yet whatever traditions were known about wild edibles were lost by the time my great grandfathers were alive, save for obvious things like swamp cabbage, blackberries, and wild onion.

I was JUST thinking to myself that figuring out what all is out there that tastes good would be a lot of fun. While I do enjoy being outdoors, being outdoors for a reason is even more fun. Foraging for tasty treats would be a great reason to be out there and could do some scouting while at it.

RobertR

One of my friends orders the cooked pads called Nopales (spelling?) at one of our Mexican restaurants, he really likes it. I have seen the raw pads for sale.

Panhandler80

RobertR wrote: »

One of my friends orders the cooked pads called Nopales (spelling?) at one of our Mexican restaurants, he really likes it. I have seen the raw pads for sale.

Nopales is correct spelling. At least that's how the Mexican folks spell it in their YouTube Videos.

Turner River Terror

Hogs will nibble on them and my Mexican Neighbors eat them as well.
I don't know how they cook them but they eat a bunch.

tag

I grew up in the desert SW. As kids we used to pick and eat prickly pears. They were a treat. My sister still lives there. She makes prickly pear jelly and sends me some every year.