I couldn’t help but notice today the abundance of fruit hanging off the huge cacti that line much of the road to Ouirgane. This would explain the unusual looking fruit I’ve been seeing on sale in the Medina for the last couple of weeks and had not, as yet, tried.

Well today seemed as good a day as any to investigate the prickly pear or Figue Barbarie en Français . The huge flat cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica, if you want the Latin name for it – thank you Wikipedia!) is originally from Mexico, but is now ubiquitous in Morocco and Northern Africa. It is often used as a natural barrier between land, or along the roadside. In fact we considered this for the plot divisions at L’Amandier, but it really didn’t seem the most practical solution in the end.

I discovered that before picking a prickly pear, it is prudent to cut yourself a small leafy branch or two, from a rather more friendly plant, and use it as a switch to brush the spines off the fruit before attempting to remove it. Obvious really.

After washing it, there is a most definite way of cutting and peeling it….

Said does quality control. He also imparted a useful piece of information….that “it is definitely not a brilliant idea to eat too many of these fruit” – if you get his drift.

They taste like a mixture between an apple and a pear, but with softer flesh and a structure along the lines pomegranate seeds inside. That’s my take on them anyway.

A quick thank you should be said to Said, my taxi driver today, who got very into the spirit of finding the right prickly pear photo opportunities today.

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