Prickly Pear Harvest

                                                                                                                     August 25, 2013
                                                                                                                       Tucson, AZ

I have been harvesting the fruit of the prickly pear cactus every August in Tucson, AZ.  I juice the fruit to make syrup, jelly, vinegar or to use in prickly pear lemonade or margaritas. I think the flavor is tart and unique. 
I have learned some shortcuts over the seasons and I'm happy to share what I've learned about juicing the fruit.
I will post pictures of the process also.

1).  I wear long rubber gloves to protect myself from cactus stickers. I pick the fruit wearing an apron so I don't get stains on my clothes.

2). I use long BBQ tongs to pick the fruit. I fill a large stock pot with the cactus fruit to avoid getting stuck with the cactus needles protruding from the fruit.

3). I pick the ripest fruit it is darkest in color. I choose the fruit from different cactus.
The fruit begins to ripen in August. The earlier fruit contains more natural pectin. This is important if you want to make jelly.

4). I check the fruit  to make sure it is not blemished. If it is blemished discard the fruit.

5). I put the prickly pear fruit into a large 1 gallon plastic bag, seal it and freeze it for 24 hrs.

6).  After taking the fruit out of the freezer I put the bag into a stainless steel stockpot to thaw completely.
The juice will accumulate in the bottom of the bag as it thaws. If the bag has any holes in it ,the juice will drip out of the bag. The stockpot will catch the leaking juice.

7). I use a 1 quart plastic container and put a SINGLE layer of cheesecloth over the mouth of the container. I  fasten it with a large rubber band.I put the plastic container in the empty stockpot. If any juice spills in the next step you won' have a mess.

8). I put my apron on for the next step. I cut a small hole in one corner of the bag and hold it at an angle to let the juice flow into the container. After it stops flowing I let it rest in the stainless steel bowl and pour a second time in about 1/2 hr. to collect all the juice. The cheesecloth keeps the cactus stickers from getting into the juice. I throw the bag with the spent prickly pear fruit into the trash.

9). I package the juice into 1 -2 cup portions into smaller bags and put them in a larger bag to protect from any leaks. I freeze the juice to use as needed.

10). The photos are posted below. They are a quick reference for the process of juicing the prickly pear fruit.

                                                   Happy harvesting!
                        I'll follow up with a post on my prickly pear recipes. Keep reading.