A cactus is basically nothing else than a heavily armed cucumber. Not only the fruits (prickly pears), but also the pads of the opuntia cactus, omnipresent here in Puglia, are edible: raw as a salad, fried or boiled. Originating in Central America, notably Mexico, where they are called nopal, the drought resistant opuntia cacti have found their way into the Mediterranean since the 16th century and even into Sicilian cuisine, where they can be breaded and fried in olive oil.
You need: opuntia cactus pads, flour, eggs, breadcrumbs, oil for frying, lemon or lime
Find more recipes in my cookbooks "GARUM: Recipes from the Past“ (available in English, German, French and Italian), "From Eden to Jerusalem: Recipes from the Time of the Bible“ (English, German and Italian), or "VEGETUS: Vegetarian Recipes from the Past“ (English, German, Italian). And for no-fuzz easy recipes from around the globe there is my cookbook "Cooking on the Move".
Music: The Mini Vandals, Shadoma (KZfaq audio library, creative commons)