What do you call these wonderful plants and fruits? Turksvye, prickly pears, cactus pear fruits, Indian figs, tunas? These incredible, drought-resistant plants and fruit are widely known in South Africa, whether it reminds one of a thirst-quenching delight on a hot day or a prickly situation after landing in one of these plants, they are often seen in clusters along major South African roads. The Department of Sustainable Food Systems and Development continually looks to improve food security in arid regions like Central South Africa. Together with the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), various research projects were launched to explore the cultivation and use of cactus pear for human consumption. This website is focused on cactus pear as a food source and boasts more than 50 mouth-watering recipes.

South Africans are most familiar with the mature green fruit, but the white, pink, yellow, and orange fruit are also delicious, and catalogued under cultivars to aid you in identifying your own fruits. The recipes make use of not only the well-known mature fruits, but also use unripe fruit and nopalitos (young leaves). Since this plant is known to be prickly, tried and tested methods of harvesting, cleaning, and preparing the different plant parts are available here. The plants are also sought after for their pharmacological properties. Get to know more about the people involved in the research and making of the website on the About Us page. If you’ve tried any of our recipes or have any cactus-pear-related questions, you can get in touch by emailing Dr Alba du Toit at DuToitA1@ufs.ac.za