Prickly Pear Cactus For Lunch

Whenever we go to the grocery store, I always pass by this small area where they sell cactus. It wasn't a house plant, but a chopped up ready to cook kind of cactus. Where I come from, we don't eat cactus so I am curious as to what it tastes like. A few days ago, I convinced my sister  to buy one to experiment on. 

I was searching the net on how to cook cactus, but most of the recipes are like omelets. I didn't really feel like eating omelet cactus. Maybe next time :) I also found a good good news about this prickly pear cactus! It actually has anti inflammatory properties! It has been shown to be good in combating chronic inflammation such as Rheumatoid Arthritis (my mom has RA, but she refuses to try eating cactus). It also helps people with diabetes as it helps lower blood sugar. Acne is another condition that also deals with chronic inflammation, and is also affected by blood sugar problems in the body. And who knows, this plant can actually help acne.    

I just decided to stick with a simple meal. Simmered and spiced veggies with some ground turkey. 

I'm not a very good photographer, hehe, hopefully it looks appetizing enough to eat :) 

I know, the cactus is a little brown, I kind of forgot about the cactus until my sister brought it up. I think the cactus just got oxidized... It's not rotting yet! (I hope) If I get sick, then we all know why haha :) 

As for the taste, it wasn't bad. It was kind of like eating okra, where it gets all sticky and sap-like in your mouth so it feels kind of gross, but it was not bad at all. I bet it would taste better if I got to cook it earlier.  >:)