The green oval paddles of the Prickly Pear cactus may be delicious, packed full of healthy vitamins, minerals and other essentials but it takes a little work before they're kitchen-worthy. The plant is covered from top to bottom with aggressive thorns and unpresuming clusters of hair-like barbs called glochids that can cause a great deal of irritation and much rummaging around for a pair of tweezers! Forget about gloves, they aren't much help to you here as the hairs can work their way through material over time, so while you might think you've gotten off easy the first couple of times, take it from me, they'll be back to haunt you further down the line. Instead, use a cereal box and a sharp knife. First, when you are foraging for Prickly Pear, you're looking for a younger lobe, thinner than your thumb and more of a vivid shade of green than the paler, older paddles. Try and pick one without any obvious scars or blemishes that sits at the extremity of the cactus, preferably with no other lobes growing out of it. Slotting the box over the paddle, once you've decided on a good one, you can cut it free of the main cactus. Lo and behold, your Prickly Pear is already in a handy carry case! Back at home, holding the paddle by the tip of the cut end, scrape the knife against the grain of the thorns. Some will slice away easily, whereas other eyelets will need a little more attention to disarm. Be sure to cover both sides in this way, then finally trim off the edges of the paddle, leaving it prepped and ready for cooking. Prickly Pear nopales share a similar taste and texture to green beans and are great in salads, tacos - any kind of Mexican food, or with scrambled eggs. Image: Verkhovynets Taras/Shutterstock