Cactus and their fruits are a large part of Mexican cuisine. The wide, flat cactus pads ("nopales") are used in many Mexican main dishes such as salads, eggs and as a filling for other dishes. The cactus fruit, sometimes called a "Prickly Pears" are very sweet and can be eaten raw, right off of the plant. Depending on the level of ripeness, they can range from slightly sweet to syrupy sweet.
